AMHERST — It is rare for a game to look as bad on film as it looked in person.
Yet, when UMass coach Mark Whipple reviewed the tape from the Minutemen’s 55-21 loss to Boston College on Saturday, it didn’t look any different than it did from the sideline in Boston. Whipple discovered a few technique issues like running the wrong route or blocking the wrong rusher, but the mental errors were still an eyesore on film.
“When you make mental mistakes and blow assignments and leave guys wide open, that’s what happens when you play good teams,” Whipple said Tuesday. “Those are the ones that are disappointing, but it’s simple. There were a couple of those mistakes (against Duquesne) but they didn’t hurt us the week before because of the talent level.”
The miscommunication was at its worst in the secondary with blown assignments leading directly to two touchdowns and setting the stage for a third score. Senior cornerback Lee Moses said reviewing the film highlighted how poorly UMass was prepared for the Boston College attack and provided a good teaching tool for the younger players on the unit.
He said there were plenty of moments when defenders lost sight of the scheme and did something that led to the breakdowns Boston College exploited.
“Going back looking at it, it was just a lot of mental mistakes,” Moses said. “A lot of guys just not slowing things down and seeing the whole picture. It was pretty bad, but we’ll learn from it and we’ll try to limit the mistakes and keep moving on.”
One of the other big lessons the Minutemen learned was the importance of not overcomplicating the matter. Bakhari Goodson said he felt he and his teammates were thinking too much on the field against BC and it hurt their technique.
He said it is important for UMass to simplify everything Saturday against Georgia Southern’s option offense
“We just go back to the basics on some of the stuff,” Goodson said. “Everybody doing their individual jobs and tackling. That’s a big thing, just making our tackles, that’s why I said back to the basics. Making our tackles and doing your job, doing what you’ve got to do and it’ll all come together once we do that.”
Despite a poor performance against Boston College, the UMass defense is still filled with confidence. Whipple said the team responded well in practice Monday and Tuesday and looked hungry to prove it is better than what it showed against the Eagles.
That chance comes on the road Saturday at 6 p.m. against Georgia Southern. Goodson said playing an option team like Georgia Southern is a great opportunity to showcase how much confidence the players have in one another.
“It’s still the same positive vibes, we’re still hungry,” Goodson said. “I think going against a running team like (Georgia Southern), our defense gets even hungrier. The vibe around our locker room is still good.”
Georgia Southern’s offense is far different than the one that showed up in Amherst last season. The Eagles will have Shai Werts under center this year after the redshirt sophomore missed last year’s contest with an injury.
Moses said the Eagles look more complete and organized with Werts in charge of the offense. The quarterback ran 22 times for 163 yards and three touchdowns in Georgia Southern’s season-opening 37-6 win over South Carolina State and also completed 5 of 7 pass attempts.
After last week’s undisciplined performance, Moses said a quick improvement in that area is vital to UMass winning this weekend.
“This week, it’s going to be a lot of eye discipline,” Moses said. “You really need to know what’s going on because playing a team like Georgia Southern, if you’re not focused, one mistake can cost you a touchdown. It’s going to come down to focusing on what (we) have to do and not to trying to do too much.”