On Monday, Coach Jack Cosgrove was still regretting his decision to not play both of his quarterbacks in Maine’s 21-10 home loss against Yale on Saturday.

For the first time since the opener, Cosgrove stuck with junior Dan Collins throughout the game, leaving sophomore Drew Belcher on the sideline.

Collins completed 19-of-49 passes for 199 yards and two interceptions. He was just 3 of 14 in the fourth quarter, when the Bulldogs rallied with two touchdowns to dampen homecoming for the Black Bears (2-4, 2-1 Colonial Athletic Association).

“The decisions that you make during the course of the game, it’s something that’s still there with me,” said Cosgrove, adding that he probably will play both Collins and Belcher on Saturday, when Maine hosts Stony Brook (2-3, 1-3).

Collins has started all six games this season, completing 93-of-187 passes for 987 yards, two touchdowns and seven interceptions. He has also rushed for a pair of scores.

Belcher played in each of the previous four games, either as a change-of-pace substitution for Collins or in mop-up duty, and is 23 of 36 for 255 yards, three touchdowns and one interception.

Cosgrove reiterated Monday that dropped passes were also a problem for Maine on Saturday. But he clearly is looking for better quarterback play.

“The quarterbacks get the most criticism all the time. That’s the way it is. They learn to live with that. They have to,” said Cosgrove, a former quarterback. “What was disappointing was some of the decisions and also some of the obvious opportunities we had and didn’t hang on to.

“Danny’s working his tail off. He’s had his ups and his downs. … It all goes to getting the best player on the field that you can get and it also encompasses what’s best for the football team.”

Stony Brook blew a 14-0 lead Saturday and lost its homecoming game as well, 21-14, against Towson. The Seawolves lead the league in pass defense, allowing only 161 yards per game through the air.

That will be a challenge for Collins and Belcher. Compounding that may be some injuries at wide receiver.

Leading receiver Micah Wright played Saturday but was considered a game-time decision after suffering bruised ribs the preceding week. He caught four passes for 47 yards, but appeared to be less mobile in the second half.

In the first half Saturday, wide receivers Jaleel Reed and Jared Osumah left the game after taking big hits on incomplete passes. Neither returned, and their status for this week is in doubt.

“Those were key losses for us, no doubt about it,” Cosgrove said. “I think if we get one of them back, that will be good.”

JAMES MADISON is getting college football’s version of the royal treatment this week. ESPN’s “College Gameday” crew will be in Harrisonburg, Virginia, on Saturday for its national pregame show, airing from 9 a.m. to noon. It is the first visit by the show, which features Lee Corso and Kirk Herbstreit, to a CAA campus.

No. 4 James Madison (7-0, 4-0) is hosting No. 11 Richmond (5-1, 3-0) in a battle for CAA supremacy. Kickoff is at 3:30 p.m.

Dukes Coach Everett Withers said he’ll use the ESPN presence as a recruiting pitch.

“Why wouldn’t you want that challenge?” Withers said of the potential distraction of having national media on his campus. “I just spent two years at Ohio State, where this was an every-week deal. I’m going to use it in recruiting that, ‘Hey, we’re going to have Gameday back again.’ ”

Withers, who would only refer to Richmond as “our next opponent” during Monday’s CAA teleconference, said James Madison may be looking at a move up to FBS. But for now he’s focused on being a good host to Rece Davis and crew.

“It shows that college football can be really good for a university as far as its national brand,” he said. “We sell this kind of stuff to our kids – ‘Hey, we want to play on a national stage.’ ”

TOWSON GOT its first conference win Saturday with that rally at Stony Brook. And it came because quarterback Connor Frazier returned from a first-half injury to lead an 80-yard drive in the final 4 minutes.

“Connor is one tough, tough ballplayer,” Towson Coach Rob Ambrose said.

“He led by mentality and attitude and I think our team really believes in him. He kind of sparks everybody. That was evident in the second half; we looked like an entirely different ballclub.”

 

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