Maine’s offense is still learning to crawl, let alone walk. And that painful process will continue with a number of raw players Saturday when the Black Bears open Colonial Athletic Association play at Towson.

True freshman Drew Belcher is likely to split snaps at quarterback with redshirt sophomore Dan Collins, Coach Jack Cosgrove said Monday.

Belcher saw his first action of the season in Saturday’s 40-10 loss at Boston College. He didn’t exactly distinguish himself, passing for 10 yards and rushing for 10 more. But Cosgrove was intrigued enough to declare it an open competition for his team’s most important position.

“His composure and his quarterback presentation was really good to see for a kid right out of high school,” Cosgrove said of Belcher. “We’re going to play the best guy. For a while, they could both be seeing action together. It’s not something that we’ve done in the past here before. But it’s been done at other places and it is something that we feel like they’re very close and it’s time to get this guy rolling, and it’s time to do something to help our offense because we’re not as productive as we need to be.”

Maine (1-2) has scored 10 points in each of its three games. Alarmingly, only three of the 30 have come after halftime.

Other freshmen playing an increased role are linemen Isaiah Brooks, Jamil Demby and Daniel Burrows. Cosgrove praised their competitiveness against BC and felt they showed improvement.

Freshman Nigel Beckford got the start at tailback after Nigel Jones suffered a concussion, and gained only 7 yards on five carries.

“I think we just had a little bit of higher productivity expectations for (Beckford) and that didn’t take place,” Cosgrove said. “I’m not sure it was completely his fault.”

Then there is freshman wide receiver Micah Wright, whose first career catch, an 11-yard pass from Collins in the first quarter Saturday, was Maine’s only touchdown.

Wright had one more catch, for 7 yards.

As teams like BC devote attention to taking senior wide receiver Darmarr Aultman out of Maine’s game plan, Wright could be a vital option for whoever ends up playing quarterback. Aultman, Maine’s most dynamic playmaker, caught only one pass Saturday, gaining 5 yards on a bubble screen in the third quarter.

Unfortunately for the Black Bears, it came on a third-and-18 play.

“I don’t know that we have enough substance right now on offense to think that anyone’s a good matchup for us,” Cosgrove said when asked about facing a Towson defense that has allowed 112 points in four games.

“We’ve established, I think, who our personnel are going to be on the field. Now we have to get better.”

MAINE HARDLY STANDS alone when it comes to offensive ineptitude in the CAA. What happened to Stony Brook on Saturday left Coach Chuck Priore calling it “maybe as disappointing of a loss as I’ve had here.”

The Seawolves had one run inside the 10-yard line called back by a holding penalty, fumbled inside the 15-yard line and saw a potential winning touchdown drive end up being a 95-yard interception return for North Dakota, which won 13-3 despite picking up only five first downs.

“We made a ton of mistakes. We’ve continued to make those mistakes,” said Priore, whose team has scored 46 points in a 1-3 start. “And certainly that falls on my shoulders.”

Maine travels to play Stony Brook on Oct. 11. Will either offense have gotten on track by then?

NEW HAMPSHIRE HAD a stirring win and a significant loss Saturday. The Wildcats scored with 19 seconds remaining to beat Richmond 29-26. But that winning touchdown drive was led by backup quarterback Andy Vailas. Starter Sean Goldrich suffered an apparent MCL sprain while running for his third touchdown of the game.

Goldrich was scheduled to undergo tests Monday, but Coach Sean McDonnell said he is out for this Saturday’s game against Dartmouth, at least.

“We’ve got a lot of work to do to bring him back,” McDonnell said. “The swelling wasn’t as bad as we thought it was going to be. We’re just hoping that we can get him back here in a couple of weeks. Sean’s a tough kid, a physical kid. He’s been hurt before. He’ll find a way to get healthy.”

THIS WEEK’S TOP showdown figures to be Delaware (2-1) at James Madison (2-2). The Dukes led at halftime at Villanova before losing 49-31 Saturday.

The Blue Hens had the week off.

James Madison has had 26 plays of 20 or more yards this season, led by explosive dual-threat quarterback Vad Lee.

Delaware Coach Dave Brock said the difficulty of containing him starts long before Saturday.

“It’s very challenging to simulate a player of his ability and skill set. The improvement he’s made through four games is probably second to nobody in this league,” Brock said.

“If you can win relevant games, then you’re a relevant team.”

 

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