University of Maine junior linebacker and captain Vince Thomas said the Black Bears will definitely have some extra motivation this fall.
The team was picked 13th among 15 teams in the Coastal Athletic Association preseason coaches poll. The conference was previously known as the Colonial Athletic Association.
The Black Bears went 2-9 overall and 2-6 under first-year head coach Jordan Stevens a year ago although five of their losses were by four points or less.
“Being a competitor and an athlete, you always want to be first. Being ranked that low is something you never want to see,” said Thomas during Tuesday’s preseason media conference.
“This will give us a chip on our shoulders. If you look at us and think that’s a team that doesn’t have it, you’re going to be wrong,” Thomas said.
Senior quarterback and captain Derek Robertson said the team’s top goal is to win a championship.
“We go out and compete every single day no matter what our ranking is,” Robertson said. “We can’t wait to do that.”
The Black Bears have an interesting conference schedule, based on the latest rankings.
They will play the teams chosen to finish first (William and Mary), second (New Hampshire) and third (Richmond) and four of their other five conference games will be against teams in the bottom third of the rankings: Albany (11th), Campbell University (12th), Stony Brook (14th) and Hampton University (15th).
The other game will be against sixth-ranked the University of Rhode Island.
“I’m really excited about the season coming up with the progress we’ve made as a team these past eight months … working together, the commitment to competitiveness the team has showed,” Stevens said. “I’m really looking forward to getting out and starting preseason camp next week. We have a challenging first part of the schedule right out of the gate before we get into CAA play and I’m really looking forward to this team taking the next step from last year.”
UMaine opens the season against Football Bowl Subdivision team Florida International University in Miami on Saturday, Sept. 2, before taking on Football Championship Subdivision powerhouse North Dakota State in the Fargodome in North Dakota the following Saturday.
FIU was 4-8 last season in the Football Bowl Subdivision, which is a notch above the Football Championship Subdivision in terms of scholarships and resources. UMaine is a Football Championship Subdivision school.
North Dakota State has won nine Football Championship Subdivision championships over the past 12 years and was 12-3 a year ago, including a 45-21 loss to South Dakota State in the title game.
“We will have a lot of new faces this year and we’re focusing on finishing games we were unable to finish last year,” Stevens said. “That speaks to our culture we’re developing here. We’re going to be on the other end of a lot of those this year. That’s just the confidence we’re approaching this season with.”
Stevens said in addition to doing a better job finishing games, his Black Bears will have to be “more efficient on first and second down on both sides of the ball” and to improve their first-quarter performance.
The Black Bears often found themselves chasing games a year ago because they fell behind early. UMaine was outscored 80-44 in the first quarter.
Robertson will replace Joe Fagnano at quarterback after Fagnano transferred to the University of Connecticut.
Robertson played in eight games in 2021 when Fagnano got injured, and he completed 121 of 238 passes for 1,505 yards and 12 touchdowns. He was intercepted four times.
“Gaining that experience was huge for me and I’m excited to build off that experience,” said Robertson, a team captain.
Defensively, Thomas said you can expect the Black Bears to be “relentless” going after the ball carrier.
UMaine’s defense allowed 31.5 points and 412.5 yards per game a year ago, which were 10th and 12th, respectively, among 13 teams.
It will return four starters.
The offense was 10th in points (23.3) and yards (353.7) and will have five starters back.
Stevens likes his offensive line and said he has more depth than a year ago on offense. Captain Kevin Jones, a graduate student, and sophomores David Gross and Darius Bell will anchor the offensive line.
Stevens expects senior running back Tavion Banks to have a productive year in a more elevated role this season. Banks was a standout in the spring game.
Junior Montigo Moss, the team’s third-leading receiver a year ago with 35 catches for 398 yards and a team-leading six touchdown receptions, will headline the receiving corps.
“I’m excited by that side of the ball,” said Stevens, who added that his team has outstanding leadership.
The defense will be led by junior cornerback Kahzir “Buggs” Brown, who was the only UMaine player who earned a spot on the All-Conference preseason teams. He was an honorable mention.
He was the team’s third-leading tackler with 59 and he led the team in pass breakups (9) and was tied in interceptions with two.
Stevens expects big things from linebackers Darius McKenzie, Vince Thomas and Christian Thomas, along with nose tackle Josh Lezin. All will find themselves in more prominent roles.
“When you’re looking at the season, we’re going to have a plan. We’re going to come out and be sound. We’re going to be physical and will do it in the way we know will get us the results that we want,” Stevens said.
“I’m very optimistic with us showing improvement from last year. I have no doubt about that.”