ORONO – As a high school senior, Damon Boinske was ready to accept a football scholarship from the University of Maryland.

Only days before the National Letter of Intent signing date, Terrapins coach Mark Duffner was fired and Maryland’s new coach chose not to honor its scholarship commitments.

That left Boinske, a promising linebacker from Notre Dame High School in Elmira, N.Y., scrambling to find another school with some available scholarship money.

Duffner, who took a job at Yale, offered to help Boinske get a spot at the prestigious Ivy League school.

“I’m not really a Yale guy,” chuckled Boinske, who had his heart set on playing Division I-A football. Instead, he wound up accepting an offer from I-AA Maine.

Boinske has proven a nice fit as a three-year starter with the Black Bears. The 6-foot-3, 234-pounder from Blossburg, Pa., admitted UMaine was far from his dream school.

“It bummed me out,” Boinske said of his bad luck. “When Maine first contacted me, I was like, ‘No way, I’m not going to go up there and freeze.'”

After Maryland fell through, the recruiting efforts of the UMaine staff paid off.

“I had to sign somewhere and Maine was really good at recruiting me,” Boinske said. “I was real happy about coming up here.”

Boinske is even more pleased to be playing on a 6-2 Black Bear team that is ranked No. 20 and is fighting for a postseason berth for the first time since 1989. He plays his final home game in a UMaine uniform Saturday when the Bears face Massachusetts at noon.

“Everybody knows what has to be done. They’re focusing on this game,” said the soft-spoken Boinske. “We haven’t been here before as a team, so I think everybody’s real excited and everybody understands what’s happening around here.”

After sitting out 1997 as a redshirt, Boinske has been a mainstay on the Bears’ defensive line. In 40 games, he has registered 97 tackles, including 30 for a loss, and 15 sacks.

“We liked his speed, his quickness, his agility off the football at defensive end and we think he’s fit into that spot pretty well,” said UMaine coach Jack Cosgrove. “He’s very technique-sound.”

UMaine ranks second in the Atlantic 10 in total defense (317 yards per game). The Bears are third against the run (130 ypg) and fifth against the pass (187 ypg).

Boinske enjoys playing end in UMaine’s defensive scheme. The ends push everything inside in the base set, but turn into attacking pass-rushers in pressure packages.

“It’s a mesh. Everything’s got to fit together,” Boinske said. “If I do my job every time, that’s the way I see my success.”

Boinske’s biggest battle hasn’t been against opposing linemen. It’s been his struggle with chronic back problems.

Last season, he suffered pulled hamstrings and later began experiencing back trouble. That rendered him virtually unable to work out during the spring and summer.

“I went and got an MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) and I have four bad discs in my back,” Boinske explained. “The fluid’s out of them, some of them are bulging and they’re pinching on the nerve. I’m just waiting for them to herniate.”

Boinske is quick to joke about his back, but the injuries have hampered his ability to have normal practice and game day routines. It also has cut down significantly on his playing time.

“He’s had to battle through it,” Cosgrove said. “It’s been discouraging for him to be hurt and not be a 60-play-a-game guy. We’ve had to manage him carefully with practice reps and those type of things.”

Boinske has learned to live with the pain and discomfort.

“Back pain, I’ll let it get better after I’m done [playing],” Boinske said. “The coaches know I’m ready to play in a game and during practice they’ll have me get what I need to do done.”

Boinske relishes his role as a senior, especially in light of the team’s success so far this season.

“He plays a tremendous leadership role,” Cosgrove said. “Damon does what he can do and then he’s a very positive teacher kind of guy with the younger players.”

Upon graduation, Boinske plans to put his kinesiology and phys ed degree aside and work as a game warden. His love of outdoor pursuits was fostered by his father and his grandfather, who taught him how to hunt and fish.

“I used to go out before school in the morning turkey hunting or deer hunting,” he said. “I’d go to practice [in the afternoon], then I’d catch the last light for archery hunting.”

Boinske’s too busy to hunt during football season, but he gets his fix by making opposing quarterbacks and ballcarriers his quarry.

“I’m happy with what I’ve done,” Boinske said. “I want to make it to the playoffs and make this [senior season] last as long as it can.”