BOSTON (AP)—Quarterback Liam Coen’s 3-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter was the difference as Massachusetts defeated Northeastern on Saturday, 28-24.
Coen’s run with 6:42 remaining came after a 48-yard scoring drive that began with a 30-yard run by Tony Nelson.
Massachusetts sealed the win when Jeromy Miles’ recovered a Northeastern fumble at midfield with 1:30 to play.
Nelson had 175 yards and a touchdown on 37 carries for UMass (4-2, 2-1 Colonial Athletic Association). Coen was 20-of-30 for 269 yards with one interception. Victor Cruz added 10 receptions for 139 yards for Massachusetts.
Northeastern’s Alex Broomfield ran for 169 yards and a touchdown. Quarterback Anthony Orio was 10-of-19 for 179 yards, with a touchdown pass and a touchdown run.
Broomfield’s 22-yard scoring run put Northeastern up 7-0 before a 1-yard run by Nelson tied it, 7-7.
Orio connected with Rob Theoudele on an 80-yard scoring strike early in the second quarter. UMass tied it on a 1-yard Zardas touchdown run with 23 seconds to play in the first half.
But Northeastern (2-4, 1-1) took a 17-14 lead at the break, covering 31 yards in 18 seconds to set up Mat Johnson’s 37-yard field goal as time expired.
Chris Zardas’ 2-yard scoring run early in the third gave UMass a 21-17 lead. Orio’s 8-yard keeper with just over two minutes to play in the third put the Huskies back up, 24-21, before Coen’s score.
Massachusetts missed two great 1st-and-goal chances in the fourth quarter, as Northeastern stopped them on downs once and then forced a fumble.
Head to Head - Week 7
| Team | Total Yds | Pass Yds | Rush Yds | First Downs | 3rdD% | Pen./Yds | Turnovers | Time of Poss. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Massachusetts | 475 | 265 | 210 | 24 | 50.0% | 11/112 | 2 | 34:15 |
| Northeastern | 423 | 190 | 233 | 18 | 58.3% | 7/50 | 3 | 25:45 |
