Discipline, perspective aid UM football’s 5-1 start

ORONO – There can be a fine line between winning and losing.

Nobody knows that better than University of Maine football coach Jack Cosgrove, whose teams have tiptoed that line during his eight-plus seasons with the Black Bears.

This year’s team may have the right stuff to remain on the winning side of the line and carry UMaine to an Atlantic 10 championship or a postseason spot.

The 18th-ranked Bears take a 5-1 record, with a 4-1 A-10 mark, into Saturday’s league game at William & Mary (Va.). UMaine, which has won four straight for the first time in five years, is off to its best start since going 7-0 in 1989.

Even after an improbable come-from-behind victory Saturday over No. 20 Villanova and jump in the national polls, the Bears know there’s no time for complacency.

“I’ve never thought for a second that these guys are getting ahead of themselves,” Cosgrove said. “They’ve managed themselves pretty well. There’s great leadership in our locker room; camaraderie with their teammates.”

What appears to set this group apart is its ability to remain focused on short-term goals. The Bears have taken the time-worn phrase “one game at a time” and made it mean something.

After UMaine’s 21-9 victory over Northeastern on Oct. 13, junior linebacker Stephen Cooper had to stop and think which team was the Bears’ upcoming opponent when asked about the next game.

That focus has been a key to UMaine’s success. The Bears are concentrating on doing their jobs individually, and collectively – one play, one day, at a time.

“We’ve been very disciplined that way,” Cosgrove said. “We want to keep things in perspective, to stay focused, to concentrate on the task at hand.”

And there is high level of trust among the UMaine players. One unit seems to pick up the other when needed, as evidenced by Saturday’s game.

“We believe in each other because there’s been games this year when they’ve [the defense] stepped it up and we’ve [the offense] struggled a little bit and they’ve kept us in games,” said UMaine quarterback Jake Eaton. “[The Villanova game] might have been a little bit of a role reversal.”

The Bears still face back-to-back road games at William & Mary and at No. 4 Rhode Island and play three of their last four on the road.

Offensive line coming of age

One area in which UMaine continues to do a solid job is on the offensive line.

Last week, with senior tackle Zack Magliaro out because of a sprained ankle and backup guard Brian Williams sidelined with a shoulder injury, the Bears were plenty potent.

Each of the last two weeks, the Bears have inserted a first-year player into the mix without losing much. Josh Watson of Limington stepped in at guard against Northeastern, then Ben Lazarski saw his first college action, at center, last weekend.

To accommodate the injuries, the Bears moved freshman Mike Leconte of South Portland from center to tackle, paving the way for Lazarski. Sophomore guard Pete Richardson of Millinocket and soph tackle Matt Hammond were the only veterans in the game.

The result was 44 points, matching UMaine’s highest output of the season.

“They bent a little but they didn’t break,” Eaton said of the line, which started a bit slowly. “They always had their eyes on me in the huddle and they were excited about playing. There was not one moment in that game where I didn’t think they thought we couldn’t win.”

UMaine won’t play 11th game

UMaine, which lost a game when its Sept. 15 road contest at North Dakota State was canceled in the wake of the terrorist attacks, won’t be playing an 11th game after all.

Western Illinois, the 16th-ranked Division I-AA team in the country this week, had been looking for an 11th game on Nov. 24 and had contacted UMaine about the possibility of playing. However, UMaine athletics spokesman Joe Roberts said Western Illinois has opted not to make the trip to Orono, citing budget constraints.

Unity wins conference soccer title

The Unity College women’s soccer team posted a 2-0 victory over Bunker Hill College Sunday, winning the Yankee Small College Conference championship.

Coach Jeremy VonOesen’s Rams, in their first year as a varsity program, are now headed for the United States Collegiate Athletic Association Championship in Dallas.

Unity takes an 8-4-1 record into Thursday’s opening-round game against Southern Virginia College.