Massachusetts MinutemenvsRutgers Scarlet Knights
MASS 37/RUTG 21
Things to say
UMass beat Rutgers 37-21 on the road at SHI Stadium.
01
opener
Rutgers laid an egg at home. UMass came in and put up 37 like it was nothing. Not the way you want to open the season in your own building.
02
key player
Watson III was surgical for UMass — 19 of 22 for 3 touchdowns. You don't miss three passes all night and lose.
03
hot take
Three picks from Lonergan. Doesn't matter how you dress it up, you turn it over three times, you don't deserve to win.
04
deep cut
Duff went for 196 and 3 scores and it still didn't matter. Half that came in the fourth once it was already out of reach — garbage-time stats.
05
exit
Long year ahead for Rutgers. We'll see if they clean it up next week.
The recap
UMass walked into Piscataway and smacked Rutgers around 37-21, and it wasn't as close as even that looks. William Watson III was surgical, 19-of-22 for three touchdowns, while the Minutemen built a 30-7 cushion before the home crowd could settle in.
The turning point was Rutgers hurting itself: Dylan Lonergan threw three picks, and every time Rutgers looked ready to climb back, they handed it right back. KJ Duff's 196 yards and three scores look loud on the box score, but most of that was garbage time after the result was already decided.