2018 College Football Team Previews: Maine Black Bears
Maine Black Bears
Location: Orono, ME
Coach: Joe Harasymiak (10-1) 3rd Season at Maine
Stadium: Alfond Stadium (Capacity 10,000)
CSJ Projections
8th: CAA
1st: Maine
47th: FCS
168th: Division I
2017 In a Sentence: Maine played in quite a few tight games in 2017. They could never pull away in wins or quite catch up in losses. A look at their stats from 2017 shows them to be nearly equal with their opponents in many categories.
Biggest Shoes to Fill: RB Josh Mack led the FCS in rushing yards as a sophomore for Maine in 2017. In December, coach Joe Harasymiak announced that he had granted Mack’s request for a release in order to transfer to the FBS level, and in April Mack announced he was joining rising FBS member Liberty. Mack’s transfer leaves Maine with a huge hole to fill.
Key Player: QB Chris Ferguson started all 10 games for Maine in 2017 as a freshman. He will need to take that next step forward and avoid the sophomore slump. If he can improve upon his freshman numbers, Maine will again play in a lot of close games. He will be extremely important early the season as the team searches for a new #1 running back.
Fearless Prediction: Maine will beat either New Hampshire or Villanova, but remain around .500 despite being in the discussion for a playoff push midway through the season.
Jamie is a proud 2002 graduate of James Madison University. He’s witnessed the growth of the program from no one in the stands in 1998, to the hiring of Mickey Matthews, to the 2004 National Championship, to the 2008 team, to the struggles in the early 2010s, and finally the rebuild under Mike Houston. He also allegedly really enjoys Washington, DC-based Stanley Cup winners.
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