The UMass football team is gearing up for its final game of the 2025 season, looking to avoid a winless season against Bowling Green.
With 11 straight losses to begin the year, the Minutemen have had a season to forget, but are hoping to find new life in a senior day matchup against a fellow Mid-American Conference (MAC) foe.
UMass has 31 combined seniors and graduates on the roster, meaning for a large number of Minutemen, it’ll be their last games at the collegiate level.
“I hope they lean 100% into it,” UMass head coach Joe Harasymiak said. “I think it’s something that’s special. Nothing’s in their control after this game, whether or not they get an opportunity or not, or what they want to do with their life … hopefully it provides us a spark, to go out with an opportunity to win the game.”
Although they have three wins on the year, the Falcons come into this matchup on a five-game losing streak, with just one win in MAC play.
One of the biggest variables of the matchup heading into Tuesday’s contest is the current state of the Minutemen’s quarterback room.
AJ Hairston went down with a shoulder injury less than two minutes into UMass’ last game, and will reportedly be out for the season finale.
Brandon Rose came off the bench in relief, also being taken out due to injury during a weather delay. Rose also won’t be available against Bowling Green.
With the medical tent full of signal callers, Grant Jordan is the next man up, and will lead his team into battle on Tuesday. The graduate has 372 yards and one touchdown through the air, with 78 yards and two scores on the ground in six appearances this season.
“We’re going to have to protect [Jordan],” Harasymiak said. “He’s a runner. That’s what he likes to do … he loves to compete. I love that about him. So we have to be ready.”
The Falcons have also dealt with their fair share of quarterback injuries this season, with four different players seeing playing time under center at some point.
Hunter Najm has struggled in limited playing time with Bowling Green, completing just 34.6% of his passes with two interceptions last week.
During the team’s passing struggles, the running game has been essential for the Falcon’s success offensively.
Austyn Dendy has become the team’s bellcow back, averaging 94.5 rushing yards per game on the ground in the four games he’s appeared in.
“We’ve got to lean on [Dendy] right now, until we can find balance offensively, until [Najm] settles in as a quarterback for us,” Bowling Green head coach Eddie George said. “[Dendy] is kind of our workhorse right now, and we’re kind of leaning on him to generate offense and generate first downs and get the offense going.”
The Falcons’ run game will be a key to focus on for the Minutemen, who haven’t done much to stop the run defensively in recent memory.
In the team’s last two games, UMass is surrendering an average of 340.5 rushing yards and five rushing touchdowns per game.
“[Bowling Green is] going to line up in 13 and 12 personnel, and I don’t know why you wouldn’t after the last two games,” Harasymiak said. “So we’ve got to fit things. We’ve got to tackle well, we’ve got to put our face on people. It’s a violent game, so we need to play like that.”
With one game left on the docket, they’ll hope to head into the offseason with some form of positivity.
UMass hosts Bowling Green on Tuesday, Nov. 25, at McGuirk Alumni Stadium. Kickoff is slated for 4:30 p.m.
“I think [a win would] prove some points that you can never get up, you can never quit and a lot of stuff’s messy before the results you want,” Harasymiak said. “So hopefully we can do
that.”