“I’m hoping the students show up like they did last year”: UMass football to begin season at home for first time since 2018
UMass quarterback Andrew Ford steps back to pass against Duquesne during the Minutemen's 63-15 win over the Dukes in their home opener at McGuirk Alumni Stadium in Amherst on Aug. 25, 2018. That game marked the last time the Minutemen opened their season with a home game. STAFF FILE PHOTO
| Published: 08-30-2024 4:15 PM |
AMHERST — There isn’t a single player on the UMass football roster who has opened their season at McGuirk Alumni Stadium.
Josh Atwood, Te’Rai Powell, Myles Turner and Gerrell Johnson have been in Amherst for five years and they’ve opened every one of those seasons on the road. They’ve traveled to Statesboro, Ga.; Pittsburgh, Pa.; New Orleans, La. and Las Cruces, N.M. But they’ve never been able to sleep in their own beds on the eve of the season.
On Saturday, UMass hosts Eastern Michigan at 3:30 p.m., the first time the Minutemen have hosted the opener since 2018, when they beat FCS Duquesne 63-15. Since moving up to FBS in 2012, the only other time UMass has hosted the season opener was in 2017, when it lost to Hawai’i 38-35.
“I’m actually excited because this is my first home opener game,” Powell said. “I’m expecting a lot of people to come to this game, high-energy. That’s just my expectations for the first game, and just, for the fans to see what they’re going to get a taste of for the whole season.”
Atwood, a Natick native, said he’s thankful to begin his final season in friendly territory.
“I’m excited,” Atwood said. “I know a lot of my family is coming up for it, so I know I’m going to have the support in the stands and I’m hoping the students show up like they did last year. But I think it’s big for us, if we can go out there and win the first game at home I think it’s going to set the tone for the whole season.”
At Monday’s press conference, head coach Don Brown shared a similar sentiment. While UMass’ season-opening win over eventual 10-win New Mexico State ultimately became the highlight of last year’s season, it happened 2,200 miles and two time zones away.
“I’m anxious for our guys to play in their first game,” Brown said. “And it’s nice that we actually get to do it at home.”
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Quarterback Taisun Phommachanh said the Minutemen have to show the same “juice” whether they’re home or away. But he was nonetheless thankful for the home date.
“I am grateful it is here in front of our home fans, in front of our people,” Phommachanh said. “So we definitely want to go out and show out and make them proud.”
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