ORONO, Maine — Dan Collins admits he did not have a good game on Saturday against Yale University.
The University of Maine’s junior quarterback completed only 19 of 49 passes for 199 yards and was intercepted twice in a 21-10 Homecoming loss to Yale at Alfond Stadium.
The Black Bears were sporadic on offense in what appeared to be a winnable game. They managed only 308 yards while running 82 plays, a 3.8-yard average.
“I didn’t think we did a good job communicating, just not being together on plays,” Collins said.
Coach Jack Cosgrove said the responsibility is shared, including the offense’s inability to run the ball effectively.
“We dropped a lot of balls,” he said during Monday’s Colonial Athletic Association coaches teleconference.
“[The chemistry] didn’t show up as it did the week before in our throw-catch game. That was disappointing with some of the decisions and also some of the obvious opportunities we had and didn’t hang on to,” he added.
Cosgrove said quarterbacks often absorb the brunt of the criticism when offenses struggle, but he conceded that Collins has been inconsistent.
“Danny’s working his tail off. He’s had his ups and his downs,” Cosgrove said. “Certainly we would like it to be more ups than downs, and right now that’s something that we’re looking at.”
UMaine is 2-4 this season under Collins and is 4-8 with him as the starter dating back to last season. The Black Bears have scored 10 points or less in seven of those 12 games.
Collins ranks fifth in CAA passing yards (164.5 per game) but is 10th in pass efficiency (90.1). His seven interceptions are the fourth most, and his .497 completion percentage ranks ninth.
“They’re always the right guy,” Cosgrove said. “Whether or not they perform at the level we need [them] to, I think that’s something that coaches have to make a decision on week to week.”
The staff appeared committed to using sophomore quarterback Drew Belcher more in a complementary role. But he did not play against Yale after throwing for two touchdowns and rushing for 29 yards in limited action during UMaine’s 39-7 win on Oct. 10 at Albany.
Cosgrove said that was among the “decisions that you make during the course of the game. It is something that’s still there with me that we talked about,” he said.
He indicated that both Collins and Belcher, who was 3-2 as the starter after Collins was injured in 2014, are likely to play in Saturday’s CAA home game against Stony Brook.
UMaine encountered complications on Saturday when wide receivers Jared Osumah and Jaleel Reed went down with injuries in the first half and did not return. The Black Bears also used redshirt freshman Cody Levy after starting tackle Jamil Demby reaggravated a leg injury.