Tailback efforts please Bears UMaine offensive line opening holes for Williams, Momah

The University of Maine football team showed off its talent and depth at the tailback position during Saturday night’s 44-21 dismantling of Hofstra at Hempstead, N.Y.

Junior preseason All-American Marcus Williams and junior Onyi Momah combined for 303 rushing yards and nearly seven yards per carry.

Williams, who came up two yards shy of achieving a career single-game high with 197 yards on 22 carries, has moved into ninth place on UMaine’s all-time rushing list with 1,846 yards. He passed former Portland star Ed Bogdanovich, who ran for 1,764 yards from 1951-53.

Williams is now 154 yards shy of becoming the school’s ninth 2,000-yard career rusher.

Momah, who had a breakout game with 106 yards on 22 carries, gives opponents another dimension to worry about. He explained how his running style differs from that of Williams.

“Marcus is more of a vision back,” Momah said. “I’m more of a hard-nosed, hit-me-if-you-can back. Marcus does bring the pain, too, so we definitely wear them down.”

With Montell Owens sidelined by an injury, the Bears do not have a third-string tailback. But the offensive line is opening up big holes for Momah and Williams.

“They’re the best line in the country in Division I-AA,” said freshman quarterback Ron Whitcomb. “That’s the great thing about playing at Maine, you’re always going to have that run game to open up the pass.”

Martinez’s homecoming spoiled

Derek Martinez was extremely excited about playing in last Saturday’s UMaine football game at Hofstra.

Not only was the senior defensive back making his first career start for the Bears, Martinez had a group of 60 family members and friends who turned out for the contest.

His father, Manuel, actually chartered two buses to help get the throng from Martinez’s hometown of Patterson, N.J., over to Hempstead, N.Y.

Things didn’t work out as planned for the 5-foot-7, 170-pound Martinez, who dislocated his left elbow during UMaine’s second defensive series of the game.

“At least we won. I was able to enjoy the game,” said Martinez, who was disappointed not to have been able to play a full game in front of his family and friends.

The gritty Martinez is no stranger to injury. He has undergone season-ending knee surgery two of the last three years. The cornerback-turned-strong safety said he will miss Saturday’s game against Florida International in Portland. He is scheduled to see a doctor today to determine his prognosis.

In other injury news, backup place-kicker and punter Chris DeVinney has been sidelined by problems with his left foot and ankle. The former South Portland star had surgery on his left ankle in February and returned to practice in August, but has still been dealing with a lot of pain in the ankle.

DeVinney, who was the Bears’ top kicker in 2001, has served as the backup to Mike Mellow. The junior will see a specialist Friday to determine the next course of action.

Black Bears tough up front

UMaine’s Virginia Tech-style defense is built for speed, even in the front line.

The defensive line, which bears the responsibility of putting initial pressure on opposing offenses, demonstrated its skills again in the win over Hofstra.

Tackles Dan Joslyn and Pat Pa’u, flanked by ends Dennis Dottin-Carter, Marcus Walton, and Brian Mann, were a disruptive force that had Pride quarterback Anton Clarkson on the run and on the ground.

Joslyn registered three QB sacks and Pa’u came up with a forced fumble and a pass deflection that resulted in an interception. Dottin-Carter (4 tackles) forced a fumble, while Walton (3 tackles, 1 for negative yardage) turned in a diving interception and a pass breakup.

“I put a lot on them before the game and talked to them earlier in the week, and they really came through,” said UMaine defensive coordinator Rich Nagy, who was honored as the 2002 NCAA Division I-AA Defensive Coordinator of the Year by American Football Monthly magazine.

With the line wreaking havoc, linebackers Fred Lazo and Jermaine Walker had another outstanding game. Lazo earned his second straight A-10 Defensive Player of the Week honor by making six tackles, including a sack, while coming up with an interception and a fumble recovery.

Walker, making his second career start, piled up 10 tackles for the second week in a row and leads the squad in that category.

“They both played a lot better than they did last week [against Montana],” said Nagy, who saw a more physical presence from Walker.

“He likes to hit,” Nagy said. “I think last week he made a lot of plays, but we didn’t feel him as much as we did [Saturday].”