Bert Rich arrived at the University of Maine in 1994 with hopes of carrying the football for the Black Bears.

With a stable of talented backs in front of him, the South Portland native was moved to cornerback, where he played regularly in 1995 and finished sixth on the team in tackles.

Last season, Rich was sidelined by a nagging back injury and was forced to redshirt. That forced Cosgrove to use other players at cornerback, which gave the Bears more depth there.

Finally, the 1992 winner of the Fitzpatrick Trophy, given to Maine’s top high school player, is back in the backfield.

The 5-foot-9, 195-pounder came out of spring ball as UMaine’s top tailback and is expected to be one of the Bears’ mainstays next fall when they join the Atlantic 10 Football Conference.

Rich, a junior, carried 13 times for 71 yards during Saturday’s Blue-White intrasquad scrimmage at Alumni Field, which wrapped up the team’s spring workouts.

With seniors Andre Pam and Bob Jameson having departed, Rich is expected to contend for playing time with sophomore Trey Johnson and redshirt freshman Lamin Sisay.

Johnson, who was academically ineligible last fall, boasts more size at 6-0, 215 pounds. He rushed for 103 yards on 13 carries, including a 48-yard touchdown spurt, in Saturday’s Blue-White affair.

Sisay is a 5-10, 190-pound speedster out of Nashua, N.H.

Among the other players to stand out during the spring is Andy Ferran of Winslow, who will be a senior in the fall. The 6-6, 285-pounder appeared in 10 games last season as a defensive tackle, but has moved over to offense.

Ferran is expected to be the starting left tackle for the Bears, who must replace two National Football League signees and four-year starters in tackles Dave Rilatt and Mike Flynn.

Billy Cole of Benton is trying out his third position since arriving at UMaine. The 6-2, 250-pound Cole, who saw playing time at fullback as a sophomore last season and who also was the backup center, is pencilled in as the No. 2 tight end behind senior Steve Gangi.

Quarterback Mickey Fein, coming off a superb sophomore season, appears to have recovered fully from a closed vein in his right shoulder that caused two blood clots to form there last December. Fein completed nine of 18 passes for 114 yards in Saturday’s game.

Fein will be backed up by sophomore Brian Scott of Waterville.

The UMaine women’s basketball team has added depth at the guard position, receiving commitments from a pair of Canadian players.

Kizzy Lopez and Chantel Macream, both of whom played at schools in Montreal, are expected to join the Black Bears next fall. Maine coach Joanne Palombo-McCallie cannot comment on the players until the university has received their signed National Letters of Intent.

Maine already boasts five guards, including point guards Cindy Blodgett and Amy Vachon, shooting guard Kristen McCormick, and swing players Sandi Carver and Katie Clark. Blodgett and Carver will be seniors next season, while Vachon, Clark and McCormick are entering their second year.

Previously, Maine had received commitments from 6-foot-2 forward Jessica Lawson of John Abbott College in Montreal and Martina Tinklova, a 6-3 center from the Czech Republic.