By MATT VAUTOUR
AMHERST — Ross Comis is UMass’ No. 1 quarterback.
At Monday’s first practice of the season, Minuteman coach Mark Whipple said the redshirt sophomore is taking snaps with the first-team offense while junior college transfer Andrew Ford will lead the second team offense.
“Ross has been in the system and has played. He’s the starter, ” Whipple said. “Andrew is right there with him.”
With just under four weeks til UMass’ season opener at No. 25 Florida on Sept. 3, there’s obviously time for the depth chart to change. But Whipple’s declaration is noteworthy. In previous seasons when Whipple has entered the season without an incumbent quarterback at UMass, he’s been noncommittal about elevating anyone. For example, while most people expected Blake Frohnapfel to start over A.J. Doyle in 2014, Whipple didn’t make it official until later in camp.
So naming Comis doesn’t mean the West Virginia native will be under center in Gainesville, but it sends a message that the job is his to lose.
“It’s great to compete. I’ve been here before. I know how to compete for my job. I’m ready to go,” Comis said. “Knowing I’m going to be the starter I have to lead these guys. I have to be ready to go. These guys trust me.”
UMass quarterbacks coach Scott Woodward said Comis’ leadership and play when opportunities have presented themselves have given the coaching staff confidence in him.
“Ross realizes the position he’s in and what he has to do. He’s proven to this team he can be a leader. He only gets better when the pressure is on him. The team sees that,” Woodward said. “There’s a saying when the pressure is on you either play 15 percent better or 15 percent worse. He plays 15 percent better. ”
Comis was 15-for-21 for 171 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions in limited duty last year.
At 6-foot-0, Comis, who can throw on the move and make plays as a runner, represents a different look under than Fronapfel, a more traditional pocket passer.
“When he got in games he threw the ball well out of the pocket,” Whipple said. “He got a lot of practice last year when Fro was hurt. You’d always like a guy who can make a play on his own.”
Comis said he’s grown comfortable knowing when to run and when to wait.
“If I have to make a play, I’m going to make a play if it breaks down. I’ve worked on staying in the pocket since high school,” he said. “I’ve gotten better at that over the past couple of years. He knows if the play breaks down I can make a play, but I have to stay within the offense as well.”
Comis said he and Ford have become friends quickly. In addition to living together, they were regular golf partners this summer.
“We live together. We’re cool. Andrew’s a great kid. It’s good to compete with him,” Comis said. “It’s a healthy competition.”
Ford agreed.
“We’ve become really close friends,” he said. “That entire room needs to be one tight-knit unit.”
Ford, who began his career at Virginia Tech and spent last year at Lackawanna Community College, is a redshirt sophomore. He’s a 6-foot-3 left-hander who is more of a pro-style passer. Watching Frohnapfel film convinced him that he and UMass would be a good fit.
“I saw a lot of similarities in our game,” Ford said. “Coach Whipple has been very successful with this offense for a long time.”
He spent most of the summer in Amherst working out with his teammates, but the prospect of Monday’s first practice still made him anxious.
“I think I stayed up all night. I couldn’t really get too much sleep. I was just ready to be out here with these guys,” said Ford, who was ready to embrace whatever role he earned. “I’m here ready to do whatever the coaches ask me to do, whether that’s second, third of fourth teams reps. I’m just going to try to get better every day and help this team the best I can. You go into every opportunity with your best foot forward and the rest will work itself out.”
Redshirt freshman James Sosinski is battling a foot injury and is limited in practice. Randall West ran the third team.
HEALTHY/INJURED — Running back Sekai Lindsay and safety Khary Bailey-Smith were both back in action at full speed after missing most of last year with injuries.
Freshman tight end Taylor Edwards won’t play this season after suffering a knee injury this summer. Redshirt sophomore tight end Jon Lucier, who missed last season with a knee injury left practice, with what looked like another knee injury Monday.
Matt Vautour can be reached at mvautour@gazettenet.com. Get UMass coverage delivered in your Facebook news feed at www.facebook.com/GazetteUMassCoverage