Minutemen outlast Flames in 3 overtimes
AMHERST — UMass and Liberty began an eight-year series yesterday. The next seven meetings will be hardpressed to meet this one as far as entertainment value. The teams accounted for 1,265 yards of offense, UMass receiver Andy Isabella set a school record for receiving yards with 303, and Liberty scored an offensive touchdown on a Minutemen interception. The end result was a 62-59 UMass victory in triple overtime on a Cooper Garcia 22-yard field goal. The Minutemen trailed by 14 points in the fourth quarter but rallied. Linebacker Jarell Addo kept Liberty off the board on the first possession of the third OT with an interception in the end zone. “It comes down to locking in and being focused on the task at hand,” said Addo, who had 12 tackles and forced a fumble. “Going back and forth, there’s a whole bunch of momentum changes ... but if you come down and just focus on one play at a time, you can chip away at whatever the deficit may be. I feel like we do that as a group together.” UMass (4-6) led 31-24 after three quarters, but two straight three-and-outs followed by short punts led to Liberty touchdowns — the first a 14-yard catch by Antonio Gandy-Golden (nine receptions, 205 yards, two TDs) and a 1-yard run by Frank Boyd — put the Flames in front, 38-31. Things looked bleak for UMass after a Marquis Young fumble gave Liberty (4-4) the ball at the UMass 4. Boyd scored for a 14-point lead with 11:22 remaining. “I just kept saying, ‘We had time guys,’” said UMass quarterback Ross Comis, who was 29-for-44 for a career-high 540 yards with four touchdowns. “These guys believe in me and trust what I say, and when I keep my spirits high, it helps everyone out.” The Minutemen racked up a school-record 777 yards of offense. They converted twice on fourth down on a drive that ended with a 6-yard Comis TD run with 6:42 left, then got the ball back with 2:46 left. Young found the end zone for the tying touchdown from 9 yards out with 25 seconds remaining. Comis threw a pair of TD passes to Samuel Emilus in the first two overtime periods, while Liberty had short touchdown runs by Frankie Hickson and Boyd. Isabella broke the mark of 262 yards that belonged to Victor Cruz (2008). “I loved watching Victor Cruz when I was little,” Isabella said. “I never knew he went to UMass. I didn’t know UMass was a school until coach (Whipple) called me about five days before signing day.” Isabella hauled in an 89yard touchdown, blowing past Liberty’s Bejour Wilson to open the scoring. Liberty grabbed its first lead, 24-21, before halftime on a crazy play. UMass cornerback Lee Moses took a step forward, intercepting a deep ball intended for Khaleb Coleman at the Minutemen 8, only to take two steps back by fumbling the return and allowing Coleman to pick up the loose ball and score from 21 yards out. The Minutemen, who have won two straight, will take on BYU on Saturday at noon at Gillette Stadium. UMass’ home away from home has been more like a house of horrors with a 2-18 record since 2012.