Coen Hurt Again In UMass Win

[EmeryZach]

UMass quarterback Liam Coen left the game today after reinjuring his knee. He hurt it earlier this year against Towson, hurt it again vs. Boston College, and then today hurt it once more. He left the game in considerable pain near the end of the first half. They took him into the training room and he never returned to the field. I'm a little worried it might be more serious this time. Scott Woodward, the backup, played the rest of the game and didn't look too sharp. We'll see if Liam plays next week.

P.S. - UMass was plagued again by penalties. Seriously, the coaches need to get a handle on that.

[Sam Adams]

At 6-1 I'd say the coaches have a pretty good handle on things. xnodx

[EmeryZach]

You honestly don't think all of those penalties are a problem? 10 penalties for 102 yards this week!!! 102 yards just given away. That's a problem, and it has been that bad every game.

[EmeryZach]

vs Holy Cross - 13 penalties for 133 yards
vs Colgate - 13 penalties for 135 yards
vs Towson - 15 for 114 yards
vs BC - 14 for 117 yards
And then this week vs Northeastern 10 for 102 yards.

That is a huge problem. It will end up costing us games. It needs to be fixed, and that is the coaches job.

[JMU2K_DukeDawg]

I'm with you Zach... I think UMass has all the potential in the world to repeat a trip to Chattanooga, but not with the kind of undisciplined play they consistently show week after week.

You are lucky the schedule is so favorable for you guys. Good luck the rest of the way, although I am hoping all these mistakes bite you in the ass at least once before the playoffs. ;)

[Minuteman87]

I'm not one to complain about officials normally, but some of the so-called "holding" calls on UMass were bizarre. Even the broadcast crew on CN8 were totally baffled by the calls after watching the replays.

That being said, penalties are definitely a problem for UMass, and it's going to bite them in the butt (again). Is it possible that UMass now has a "reputation" for being penalty prone and officials are looking at them more closely? I hope not.

The injury to Coen is a HUGE concern. He had nearly 200 yards passing in the first half. Woodward wasn't awful (he was 7 of 11 passing) but the team definitely didn't move as well with him under center.

If Coen misses the W&M game, maybe Woodward will be a little sharper with a whole week to practice with the first team O. Let's hope so.

I know NU has kept some games against good teams close this season, but they really didn't show me much. Neither QB was that good and Murray was average. Their defense couldn't stop Coen in the first half.

[Chi Panther]

I hope he gets healthy for you guys.....he looks like UNI's Sanders....and I know what he means to us.....

GO UMASS

GO UNI

[umassfan]

Durring the game Coen tied the all time UMass TD record with his second td. If he plays vs W&M he just needs 309 yards to be the all time yardage passer as well.

[Sam Adams]

It really doesn't matter how many penalties you have when you are 6-1 and just trounced your most recent opponent. Some of the least penalized teams in the country also have the worst records. Penalties should be avoided but I'd rather have an aggressive football team that is kicking butt and winning games then an unaggressive lightly penalized team that is a doormat.

[UMass922]

Penalties should be avoided but I'd rather have an aggressive football team that is kicking butt and winning games then an unaggressive lightly penalized team that is a doormat.

Agreed. But you know what I'd rather have than either? A talented, aggressive football team that's also focused and disciplined and doesn't make it's job harder than it needs to be by committing 10+ penalties every game. And I think UMass is fully capable of being that. You're setting up a false choice.

[Sam Adams]

I'd rather have an undefeated perfect football team that never made a mistake or got called for a penalty. But I'm not ready to condemn the coaching staff of a 6-1 team just because they got called for some questionable calls in a game that they dominated.

[UMass922]

But I'm not ready to condemn the coaching staff of a 6-1 team just because they got called for some questionable calls in a game that they dominated.

Not talking about just this one game. It's week after week after week, and most of the time the calls aren't questionable at all. All UMass is showing is that it's talented enough to commit lots of penalties and still beat teams that aren't as talented. That's fine. But if UMass makes the playoffs, finally runs into a team that's its match in talent, shoots itself in the foot by committing penalty after penalty, and loses--then what's the excuse? It will be a frustrating loss to take if we get buried by a correctable problem that we've had for a long time and still haven't managed to do anything about.

To be clear, I'm not ready to "condemn" the coaching staff yet, either. That's too strong a word. I don't know what goes on at practice, and I'm sure at least some effort is being made to correct the problems. It's just frustrating that the penalties keep coming week after week after week, and I hope you can understand why some of us are worried that eventually this is going to cost us a big game.

[EmeryZach]

The penalties need to stop. PERIOD. #72 Vladimir Ducasse = Holding. That needs to change. And it isn't just him. It's everyone

[Maroon&White]

P.S. - UMass was plagued again by penalties. Seriously, the coaches need to get a handle on that.

xdeadhorsex

[EmeryZach]

Yeah, that's him. I'm sure he'll get better.

[ChickenMan]

Forget the penalties.. if UMass is to have the kind of season they were hoping for.. Coen has to be their QB. Hopefully the knee injury isn't serious and Coen will be able to finish the year as UMass' QB.