Where has this offense been all season long?
That’s what UMaine football fans are wondering after the Black Bears racked up 56 points in a 56-28 victory over Stony Brook on Saturday.
UMaine had scored just 39 points in its first four games combined en route to a second consecutive 0-4 start.
Then the team scored 42 points in the first half alone against the winless Seawolves.
The question now is can the Black Bears sustain the offensive momentum built from Saturday’s victory when they travel to Virginia to take on Richmond this weekend? And while the Black Bear offense certainly isn’t going to score 56 points per game, can it at least move the ball consistently and score enough points to churn out wins?
UMaine’s no-huddle offense must continue to have success on first and second down to enable the Black Bears to expand the playbook on third down and be less predictable. And the defense must limit the big plays. If they do, they are capable of stringing together some wins.
Senior quarterback Derek Robertson had the best game of his career, completing 25 of 30 passes for 394 yards and five touchdowns. Those were both career-highs and he was named the Coastal Athletic Association’s Co-Offensive Player of the Week.
The 394 passing yards were the most posted by a Black Bear quarterback since 2019, while the five TDs were the most since 2018. The 56 points were the most scored in a game since UMaine beat Bryant 60-12 on Sept. 9, 2017.
The Black Bears also exhibited some imagination on offense with a flea flicker resulting in a 41-yard touchdown pass from Robertson to Montigo Moss and an end-around producing a 30-yard TD run from wide receiver Trevin Ewing.
There were two handoffs on the flea flicker before the ball was tossed back to Robertson, who threw to a wide open Moss behind the Stony Brook secondary.
UMaine head coach Jordan Stevens said at Monday’s weekly conference coaches call that the team’s efficiency on first and second down enabled it to “open up the playbook a little more.”
“Outside of the [Florida International University] game, we hadn’t gotten into a rhythm on offense. Those certain types of plays are always there,” Stevens said.
Through the first three periods of the Stony Brook game, UMaine averaged 9.9 yards gained on first down and 8.9 yards on second down.
The coach was also pleased to see Robertson get untracked after coming into the game with no touchdown passes, five interceptions and a 56 percent completion rate with each completion averaging just 8.6 yards.
His 25 completions against Stony Brook averaged 15.8 yards.
“We got him in rhythm early. That’s the key. He was really efficient. I was really happy for Derek. He is a diligent worker. He watches film all the time and leads the team in terms of his approach to the game. I knew it was just a matter of time before he got his feet underneath him,” Stevens said. “The offensive line did a great job. They have improved a lot and continue to improve.”
It is a youthful offensive line with sophomores Darius Bell, Joe Horn and Orland’s David Gross starting at left tackle, center and right guard, respectively, and redshirt freshman Nicolas Cruji starting at left guard.
Two graduate students, Kevin Jones and Cooper Heisey, start at right tackle and tight end, respectively.
Wide receivers Moss and Joe Gillette each caught a pair of TD passes and Heisey caught one.
Moss had five catches for 108 yards and Gillette was one of three who had four catches and covered 96 yards.
Moss, the team’s leading returning receiver with 35 catches in 11 games a year ago, had just eight catches on the season entering the game.
“That is what we’re going to need moving forward. He can make those big catches and those contested catches as well. It was great seeing him perform like that. He is more of a four-down receiver with his progress as a blocker,” Stevens said.
The second-year head coach was also pleased with his defensive unit even though it allowed 479 yards and 28 points. The defense had three sacks and forced three turnovers that led to 14 points.
The defense stopped Stony Brook on a fourth-and-two in the first half with UMaine leading 14-0 and the Black Bears made it 21-0 two plays later.
“The defense has responded well to adversity all year,” said Stevens, whose defense was led by freshman linebacker Jabari Odoemenem’s nine tackles.
“He started out on special teams but his role at the linebacker position has increased as he continues to get better. I’m really excited about seeing him the rest of the season,” Stevens said.
UMaine will be taking on a Richmond team that is 2-3 overall, 1-1 in the Coastal Athletic Association, and has used four different quarterbacks due to injuries. Game time is 3:30 p.m. on Saturday.
“They’re a very good football team. They are really sound, defensively. We’re going to have to do a great job on offense,” Stevens said. “Any time we’ve given up points it has come off some type of explosive within a drive. It’s a huge challenge. It’s a tough place to play against a very good opponent that is at the top of the conference year in and year out.”
UMaine’s defense has surrendered 17 plays of 20 or more yards with 11 going for 30 or more yards. UMaine’s offense has produced 13 plays of 20 or more years and five of 30 or more.
UMaine was without starting safeties Shakur Smalls and Robby Riobe against Stony Brook due to injury. Linebacker and leading tackler Darius McKenzie saw limited duty in the second half. Running back Tavion Banks has yet to play due to a shoulder injury.
“They’re all day-to-day. We anticipate the majority of them returning this week,” Stevens said.