AMHERST – Leading into Florida International, UMass coach Mark Whipple said sophomore Ross Comis would be healthy enough to play and reaffirmed him as the starter going forward.
After UMass’ 21-13 win Saturday, sophomore Andrew Ford, who started against FIU in place of Comis, whose injured shoulder kept him out of action, played well enough to perhaps reopen the competition at quarterback.
“We’ll see. I’m not worried about tomorrow,” Whipple said.
He praised Ford’s poise, even after an interception on the opening drive.
“You’re going to make mistakes. You’ve got to reset. I could see it in his eyes that it wasn’t a big deal,” Whipple said. “He just settled down. Sometimes an interception will do that for really good players. Other times it puts gas on the fire. But he was just settled. … He’s done a good job. There wasn’t any panic.”
Ford completed 28 of 42 passes for 278 yards and three touchdowns. He was sacked twice. His numbers were better than Comis (20-for-45, 286 yards, one TD, one interception, 12 sackes), who played against two tougher opponents in BC and Florida.
Ford said he’d accept whatever role came his way.
“Whatever my role is going forward I’m going to do it to the best of my ability. We want Ross back out there,” Ford said. “He’s our guy. Whatever Coach Whip and the offensive staff ask me to do, I’m going to do to the best of my ability.”
Ford said Whipple told him on Thursday that he’d start. Comis came out in uniform before the game and took practice snaps, but didn’t attempt any throws. He was not in pads during the game.
UMass plays Mississippi State, Saturday at 3:30 p.m. at Gillette.
INJURIES – In addition to Comis, offensive lineman Elijiah Wilkinson and cornerback Jackson Porter missed the game with injury. Linebacker Shane Huber joined them on the sideline by halftime.
There were no available updates on their injuries after the game.
Their replacements all contributed to the win.
True freshman Isaiah Rodgers had three pass breakups and nearly grabbed two interceptions.
Steve Casali,who was already a starter, played his best game at UMass with Huber gone, notching 10 tackles and recovered a fumble.
Colbert Calhoun, who replaced Huber, had six tackles.
Jake Largay saw more time in Wilkinson’s absence on a reshuffled line.
SHORT YARDAGE BACK? — Senior fullback John Robison-Woodgett had five carries for 28 yards as UMass tried to kill clock late in the fourth quarter. He had just one career carry before that.
“Johnny Rob did a good job. We brought the bus in at the end,” Whipple said.
MISCELLANEOUS – The game drew 12,202 fans, including Miami Dolphins executive vice president Mike Tannebaum, a UMass alum. The Dolphins play at New England Sunday. Recent standouts Randall Jette and Jovan Santos-Knox were also in attendance.
Adam Breneman was the first UMass tight end to catch 10 or more passes since Rob Blanchflower in 2012.
Matt Vautour can be reached at mvautour@gazettenet.com. Get UMass coverage delivered in your Facebook news feed at www.facebook.com/GazetteUMassCoverage