UM football’s McMahan catches on in scrimmage

ORONO – Sophomore quarterback Ron Whitcomb and redshirt-freshman Anthony Cotrone each threw a pair of touchdown passes during the University of Maine football team’s Jeff Cole Spring Scrimmage at Alfond Arena Saturday afternoon.

The scrimmage was divided into five series with the first offense and first defense taking three series apiece.

Whitcomb, the Bear starter last fall, threw a 15-yard TD pass to sophomore wide receiver Arel Gordon and an eight-yarder to freshman tight end Mike Moran.

Cotrone tossed a 58-yard TD pass to junior wide receiver Kevin McMahan, who made a one-handed grab, and found Manzi Pierre for a 10-yarder.

Freshman tailback Keien Williams ran 19 yards for another TD and junior quarterback Chris Legree hooked up with McMahan for a 60-yard score.

The other highlights included a 39-yard scamper by Ryan Waller on a reverse; a 25-yard run by Teron Allen and a 30-yard field goal by Sean Garvey.

On the defensive side, Brewer’s Josh Caldwell registered a sack; Chris Jackson had a tackle for a loss of yardage; Jermaine Walker forced a fumble and Justin Knox recovered it.

“It was a clean scrimmage in that we did not have anyone come off injured and I thought we did a lot of things real well,” said Maine coach Jack Cosgrove. “We can see some playmakers emerging on both sides of the ball, so that part of it is encouraging. They played hard and played with some enthusiasm. I am encouraged about our development. This is not a veteran team so we are going to rely on a lot of young guys who are learning as they go. That is taking place.”

The final scrimmage will be Saturday at 9:30 a.m. and that will be followed by the Black Bear Youth Experience at 11 a.m.