AMHERST — After being hired earlier this year, new UMass football offensive coordinator Max Warner met with the media for the first time after Tuesday morning’s practice.
Throughout spring ball, Warner has worked with his group to implement his system and philosophies. With a bunch of new faces all trying to acclimate, toughness is the mantra that Warner has been preaching.
“To win at the end of the game, in the third quarter and fourth quarter, the toughest teams, the most veteran teams, and teams with the best leadership and toughness ultimately are going to win,” Warner said. “So we’re really big on that.”
Last year’s Minutemen struggled offensively throughout the year, finishing with the 136th-ranked scoring offense last season, good for last place at the FBS level. Warner is hoping to turn things around, bringing in a new scheme that will focus on good quarterback play.
Warner plans to run a very “multiple” system, with a wide variety of formations and personnel groupings. He plans on emphasizing success in the ground game through his “toughness” approach up front, helping to open up the passing game.
After coaching at Bowling Green for six years under then head coach Scot Loeffler, Warner claims he was significantly influenced by the now quarterbacks coach for the Philadelphia Eagles.
“It’s a lot of what you see on Sunday,” Warner said. “… Very much a pro-style system, pro-style approach. We put a lot on the quarterback and demand a lot of that position.”
William “Pop” Watson has been the main talking point surrounding the Minutemen this spring, with Warner also liking what he’s seen out of the redshirt junior quarterback so far.
Although Watson has yet to be named the starter for the fall, the pair have been working together to improve their relationship. The hard work has helped the entire offense continue to come together, with more and more progression over the course of the spring.
“[Watson’s] one of the hardest practicing guys we have day in, day out,” Warner said. “You never have to push him in terms of getting to go harder, like he’s a kid that loves to practice. I think that energy feeds throughout our quarterback room, our offense, the whole team, kind of feeds off that energy when you can get a quarterback that wants to play that hard.”
Knowing how much UMass struggled last season before his arrival, Warner is focused on moving forward and not dwelling on the past. He noted how great the energy has been around the facility this spring, with the group focused on winning.
The level of competition at practice so far throughout the offseason has been impressive, but there’s plenty of work for Warner and the rest of the Minutemen to do prior to their Week 1 contest against Rutgers.
“We’ve got to go have team success, whatever that looks like,” Warner said. “If it’s winning a 6-3 battle, if it’s winning 57-54, it doesn’t matter to me how we win. I just want to win.”
“This isn’t an 0-12 team,” Warner continued. “This locker room, this group that we have right now — These guys are unbelievable.”
