Looking in from the outside, the University of Central Florida’s 28-6 football victory over Maine Saturday might give the impression that it’s going to be more of the same from the Black Bears this fall.

Coach Jack Cosgrove has the advantage of seeing things from an inside perspective, and judging from Saturday’s effort, he thought his team showed some positive signs in spite of its inability to match up with one of the country’s top I-AA programs.

Maybe the Black Bear secondary was overwhelmed by the quick-striking Golden Knights, who popped in four quick touchdowns Saturday with apparent ease. What pleased Cosgrove was the way his defense – which was without four ineligible starters – responded to its first-half woes.

“They’re young people and the first half was very much a high-anxiety situation for a lot of our guys,” Cosgrove said. “We had three kids in the secondary starting for the first time. They were nervous.”

Sophomore cornerback Alon Byers was the lone member of the secondary with starting experience. The rookies included senior Robert Tubbs, a converted tailback; freshman free safety Derek Carter; freshman strong safety Mike Long; and three others who saw limited action.

To make matters worse, junior strong safety Greg Kelley missed the game because of a torso injury.

Carter proved he was ready to step in, making nine tackles, seven unassisted, and intercepting a pass. Long made six tackles and had an interception.

The defense refused to fold.

“They just had to get their feet underneath them and when they did, they were able to play the kind of football that we think they’re capable of playing in the second half,” Cosgrove said. “I was very pleased to see that development in the course of a the game. Sometimes, it takes a whole season to see that.”

The eligibility situation hit the Bears hard at linebacker, costing them two regulars in Jeff Comissiong and Ako Stafford. Starting middle linebacker Ross Fichthorn was hampered by a bulky cast and foam pad on his injured left hand.

That meant backup Todd Williamson, a converted tight end, had to step in at outside linebacker. Junior fullback Ray Baur and freshmen Jon Gautier and Brian Doughty all were called upon to fill in, while Joe Robinson had a good outing at the other outside spot.

“We did what we had to do and the guys reached down as far as they could,” Cosgrove said. “…. we got in here at halftime and looked up and said, `oh boy, 28-3,’ but this team responded much differently than the team last year would have, and it was excellent to see that.”

Maine played Central Florida to a virtual standoff in the second half. The Bears clearly took no chances offensively, despite facing a substantial deficit.

“We were conservative, being behind, but there’s a right and a wrong way to play the football game and I didn’t think getting in a shootout with Central Florida was the smart thing to do,” Cosgrove said.

“The biggest difference we were trying to make from last year was to come out and play hard the second half,” Baur said. “Last year we had a couple times when we came out in the second half and just didn’t show up.”

Maine will have at least three of its six eligibility casualties back for Saturday’s Yankee Conference opener against Rhode Island, but it remains uncertain which three those are.

Senior strong safety Greg Mikell, linebackers Comissiong and Stafford, junior defensive end Rob Shaw, and junior offensive guard Mike Thomas missed last weekend’s contest because of the situation. The identity of the sixth player affected could not be ascertained.

While unable to contribute on the field, Cosgrove lauded the penalized players with having a positive effect, nonetheless.

“Some of the guys who were missing were up there stepping it up and helping to keep the morale up on the sidelines when we got behind,” Cosgrove said. “They had something happen to them Thursday night that could have really let them hang their heads and mope and complain. I didn’t see any of that.”

The NCAA is expected to rule this week on the pending cases of three players, all of whom have already missed one game. UMaine compliance officer Tammy Light explained last week that the players would receive credit against any penalties that are levied against them because they sat out the contest.