ORONO – Coach Jack Cosgrove and the University of Maine football team are well aware they’ve long since been out of the hunt for an Atlantic 10 championship or a spot in the NCAA playoffs.

By the same token, the Black Bears also realize how important it is for their peace of mind, and the development of the program, to string together a few wins.

UMaine is better equipped to attack its last three games after showing some fortitude during Saturday’s 25-15 victory over longtime nemesis Delaware at Alfond Stadium.

The Bears rose to the occasion with the game seemingly slipping away and rallied for an important win.

“It just speaks to the character of the kids,” Cosgrove said. “When you get thumped like we did – [James] Madison was one thing, but when you follow it up with Hofstra doing the same thing to you – you really start to wonder about your ability to compete in the league, and is this going to keep happening.”

UMaine, which demonstra-ted some improvement against Massachusetts on Oct. 22, finally made some clutch plays against the Blue Hens.

The Bears’ defense came up with two momentum-building turnovers, one of which came at its own 12-yard line with Delaware threatening to take the lead in the fourth quarter.

An offense that had been stagnant during the third quarter then fed off the energy and drove downfield for the go-ahead touchdown.

The defense responded by forcing another turnover and the offense converted it into another score.

“Whenever we’ve been good, we’ve had that type of an exchange where the turnovers impact us,” Cosgrove said.

UMaine benefited from altering its defense slightly, moving defensive tackle Reggie Paramoure out to an end position to help deal with Delaware’s powerful offensive line.

“We put Reggie out over there to give us a little stouter, thicker kid to help versus what we thought would be a run effort by them,” Cosgrove said.

Now, the Bears are trying to heal up and prepare for Saturday’s A-10 North contest at Northeastern.

No rest for the weary

The Bears had to overcome some obstacles against Delaware.

Starting cornerback Daren Stone went out with a foot or ankle injury in the second quarter. He did not return, meaning freshman cornerback Lionel Nixon was pressed into service.

By the fourth quarter, the Bears’ offensive line had utilized at least seven different players. Starting guards Shawn Demaray and Justin Roberts, along with tackles Ryan Bird and Chris Parcells, all missed snaps with injuries, yet the unit still came through.

The offense was bolstered by the return of senior tight end Josh Radulski, who had missed the previous two games with a left hand injury but played wearing a cast.

Kicking woes continue

Perhaps the most frustrating situation for Cosgrove was UMaine’s place-kicking woes.

Freshman Matt Voliva, who took over the starting job Oct. 15 at Hofstra, missed two extra points and had a field goal blocked, making for some tense moments late in the game as the Bears tried to keep from falling behind.

“Oh my goodness, what a nightmare,” Cosgrove said.

“There’s no question, we’re struggling on special teams and we’re not kicking the ball very deep on kickoffs and we struggle on KORs [kickoff returns],” he said.

Bobby Donnelly of Westbrook handled the kickoffs in Saturday’s game.