AMHERST — The UMass football team participated in its annual spring game on Saturday, putting a cap on five weeks of spring practices in preparation for the 2026 season kicking off in September.
The Minutemen split their offense and defense up, playing four 15-minute quarters with a running clock. There was no tackling on Saturday, blowing plays dead as soon as tags were made.
With 12 total drives across the 60 minutes of game time, all four UMass quarterbacks got three opportunities to see the field. Virginia Tech transfer William “Pop” Watson was the first signal caller to get a chance, playing with the rest of the “Ones” throughout the day.
On the opening drive, Watson and the offense traveled 70 yards, capping off the successful stretch with a rushing touchdown, sensing pressure to his right and scrambling into the end zone with his arms held above his head in excitement.
“It felt like I was back in high school,” Watson said. “Seeing my father, my mom in the stands… everybody coming out and supporting me. I’m excited to be able to put on for them and Massachusetts.”
Watson’s return to Western Mass. featured multiple opportunities to show off his dual-threat ability. The redshirt junior showcased solid pocket presence and arm strength as well, showing fans why the hype surrounding his return was warranted.
Throughout his three drives, Watson’s favorite targets were former high school teammate and Wisconsin transfer Joseph Griffin Jr., as well as multiple faces in the tight end room who rotated in with one another.
The Minutemen’s impressive tight end group was on full display for all four quarterbacks, proving to be great security blankets to help ease into the flow of the game.
All six tight ends currently on the roster were with the team in 2025, with the wealth of experience in the room being easy to spot on Saturday.
“That’s our best group, by far and away,” head coach Joe Harasymiak said. “… We’re gonna have to use them. That’s gonna be our strength early. We have to run the ball and go through them … It’s a great group to have. We’ve got to lean on them heavily come fall.”
UMass didn’t show off much of its run game on Saturday, with Marshall transfer Justin Williams-Thomas showing some promise in the first half before not seeing many touches after halftime.
Part of the reason for the lack of rushing attempts from the Minutemen may have been due to the success of their defensive front, creating a bunch of passing down and distances.
Romando Johnson, Jerry Washington and Saint Francis transfer Zachary Betts were all constantly creating havoc off the edge, disrupting both the run and the pass throughout all four quarters.
Albany transfer Zakar Morris, North Carolina transfer Kamarion Thomas and UConn transfer Aubrey Melvin did well to shoot gaps from the interior, finding themselves in the backfield for tackles for loss on multiple occasions.
“I felt it up front,” Harasymiak said. “I think we had five or six sacks. We probably could have had more; the [defensive] line’s probably [mad] at me, but it is what it is. But they’ve been getting after the passer… They’re doing a really good job.”
The standout of the day was defensive back Raheim Sexil, with the redshirt sophomore showing off all of the hard work he’s been putting in over the course of the spring.
Sexil found himself around the ball all day long, showing off his hands with two interceptions, one of which he took all the way back for a touchdown.
“I think it’s [Sexil’s] third or fourth interceptions of the spring,” Harasymiak said. “He’s a guy that’s got to play for us. Those second-year guys that have been here, been a part of the culture, been a part of the program, they’ve got to elevate it now. And he’s young, so it’s great to see him succeed.”
With many areas of impressive play from the Minutemen, there were definitely still some aspects of the game that showed off some potential weak points heading into the fall.
The offensive line was inconsistent throughout Saturday’s contest, losing the battle to the defensive side overall. A few timely penalties plagued both sides of the ball as well, with backbreaking mistakes being something the team needs to leave in 2025.
Special teams proved to be another question mark, with kicker Derek Morris nailing all three of his field goal attempts (27, 20 and 45 yards), but missing one of his four point-after attempts.
It’s hard to take too much away from a spring game that is basically a glorified scrimmage open to the public, but Watson made sure to let fans in attendance know one thing before they left for the summer:
“This [isn’t] the same team y’all saw last year.”
