After its eighth 0-2 start in the past 10 seasons, the Massachusetts football team now enters the most grueling stretch of its 2025 schedule. On Saturday, the Minutemen (0-2) will travel to take on the Big Ten’s Iowa Hawkeyes, before turning around after a bye week to face the Missouri Tigers.
It’s tough timing for a program still finding its footing in year one of head coach Joe Harasymiak’s tenure. UMass is coming off its first loss to an FCS program since 2021, as the Bryant Bulldogs came into McGuirk Alumni Stadium on Saturday and left with a 27-26 victory off a game-winning field goal. The day after the game, Harasymiak held a team meeting he said was “not fun,” focused on going through tape and calling coaches and players out.
“I don’t know if they’ve ever been through [a meeting] like that,” Harasymiak said. “They certainly haven’t with me. … But I think they took ownership for it. I think they sat up and they looked me in the eye.”
With the mistakes of Saturday now processed through the team’s system, a new opportunity awaits in the Hawkeyes (1-1). At time of writing, the starter under center will not be the incumbent Brandon Rose, as the Utah transfer suffered a shoulder injury in the second quarter of the game against the Bulldogs. There’s a possibility that he could be cleared closer to game day, but for now, Yale transfer Grant Jordan is the most likely candidate to lead the Minutemen offense.
Jordan had an up-and-down start to his UMass career, going 13-of-22 for 205 yards and an interception against Bryant. In the losing effort, the graduate student combined his scrambling ability and confident arm with wild incompletions and rough decision-making. Against a vaunted Iowa defense, more consistency will be expected out of the quarterback.
There’s also a chance that redshirt freshman AJ Hairston will get the start. The Pompano Beach, Florida native played in one series last Saturday, going 3-of-4 for 28 yards. Hairston appeared in four games last season, and despite his youth, he has experience playing in major college football environments, getting the start for the Minutemen in games at both Mississippi State and Georgia.
“I don’t have the decision [on the starter] right now,” Harasymiak said. “[Jordan] has more experience, but [Hairston’s] kind of got that mindset that he’s not afraid of anything.”
UMass will likely be depleted on both sides of the ball heading into Iowa City, as the team is without nine starters at time of writing. On the offensive side, it will be tough sledding against a Hawkeye program that’s known for pumping out stifling defenses year in and year out. Iowa only placed one defender on The Athletic’s preseason All-Big Ten teams (DL Aaron Graves), but its unit under defensive coordinator Phil Parker has consistently operated at a level that’s greater than the sum of its parts.
The offense is a bigger question mark for the home team. While South Dakota State transfer Mark Gronowski drew praise in the offseason, the graduate student struggled in the team’s first big game against Iowa State, going 13-of-24 for just 83 yards and a pick. He’ll look to break out of his early slump against a Minutemen secondary that’s been low on both bodies and results. Through just two games, opposing quarterbacks have combined to put 594 yards and nine touchdowns on a UMass unit that’s been forced to use players deep down the initial depth chart.
“We’re going to have to see what we can do coverage-wise, what we can do situationally to help our guys out,” Harasymiak said. “We’re not creating pass rush right now, right? [That’s] an issue. If you rush four and you play man or quarters, bad stuff’s going to happen if you don’t get to the quarterback.”
The Hawkeyes’ offensive line has been a strength for years, and although Gronowski has been sacked four times through two games, the group has still done well creating lanes for rushers. Iowa will likely use three running backs – freshman Xavier Williams, Jaziun Patterson and Terrell Washington Jr. – throughout the game to go along with Gronowski’s legs. It’s a tall task for the Minutemen front seven, but if they’re up for it, Iowa’s path to victory gets more difficult.
“This is going to be a violent game,” Harasymiak said. “Like extremely violent … So we got to match their violence.”
Saturday will be the first meeting all time between the Minutemen and the Hawkeyes, although Harasymiak has coached in Iowa City three times as a staff member with Minnesota and Rutgers. UMass is getting paid $1.7 million to play this game and opened as a 34-point underdog.
Opening kickoff will be at 7:30 p.m. ET and the game can be watched on the Big Ten Network.
Dean Wendel can be reached at [email protected] and followed on X @Dean_Wende1.