WHERE: Alfond Stadium, Orono
KICKOFF: 1 p.m. Saturday
WEB/TV: FloFootball
ALL-TIME SERIES: 2-2. Maine defeated Colgate, 35-21, in their last meeting in 2019.
KEY STAT: 1 of 12 – the Black Bears’ third-down conversion rate in last week’s loss at New Mexico.
OUTLOOK: Both teams are coming off a lopsided loss to a Football Bowl Subdivision opponent. Maine fell 41-0 at New Mexico, while Colgate lost 41-10 at Stanford. The Black Bears were held to just 118 yards of offense last week, and to center Michael Gerace, a team captain, the improvement has to start with better play from the offensive line. The linemen have to do a better job picking up and reading the defense’s pre-snap movement, Gerace said, giving quarterback Joe Fagnano time to find open receivers downfield and running backs holes to run through. Maine had nine penalties for 75 yards last week, and Coach Jordan Stevens said that has to improve.
Defensively, the Black Bears need to contain Colgate quarterback Michael Brescia. The Patriot League Offensive Rookie of the Year last season, Brescia ran for nine touchdowns and threw for two more last season. Against Stanford last week, Brescia was 9 for 19 passing for 57 yards with an interception, and ran the ball 13 times for 43 yards. Despite the score, there were some good things defensively at New Mexico on which the Black Bears can build. The pass rush, a weakness last season, was stronger, with linebacker Brian Lee and defensive end Justin Sambu each recording a sack. Kahzir “Buggs” Brown and Xavier Nurse each had an interception for Maine. The Black Bears have to do a better job on third down. New Mexico converted 9 of 12 third down opportunities and dominated time of possession.
OF NOTE: Maine won its last two games against Colgate, in 2019 (35-21) and 2001 (34-10). The Raiders defeated the Black Bears in 1916 and 1999. … This is Colgate’s first trip to Orono since that game in 2001. … Maine is 16-19-1 all-time against Patriot League opponents. … Maine senior linebacker Adrian Otero made 10 tackles the last time the Black Bears played Colgate. … Brown has three interceptions in his last two games for Maine. … Safety Robby Riobe was practicing for Maine this week after a lower body injury kept him off the field in the preseason.
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