UMASS'S COEN HAS GOLDEN TOUCH - The Boston Globe (Boston, MA)

Officially, Liam Coen didn't turn 20 until yesterday, but it'sbeen a long time since he played like a teenager.

The University of Massachusetts redshirt freshman quarterbackcontinues to display veteran composure in sparking the Minutemen toan important 35-7 bounce-back win over Delaware Saturday. Hecompleted 21 of 26 passes for 318 yards, throwing for one touchdownand running for another.

That helped the Minutemen meet coach Don Brown's challenge thatgood teams don't lose two straight games. Coming off a disappointing34-28 loss at home to New Hampshire, UMass sailed over a Blue Henteam that was 4-1 at home. With the win, the 7-2 Minutemen (6-1Atlantic 10) leapfrogged three places to No. 5 in the Sports Networkpoll.

Coen's efforts earned him the Gold Helmet award as the top playerin New England, as well as a third straight nod for A-10 Rookie ofthe Week. That's pretty heady stuff for a guy who was on the benchwhen the season began.

'It's definitely something I've been dreaming about for a longtime,' said Coen.

In the backyard of his Wakefield, R.I., home, the football didn'tfall very far from the tree. Coen's grandfather, Philip , played atBoston College in the late '40s and early '50s, ultimately serving ascaptain. (At 76, Philip listens to all of Liam's games when notrunning, lifting, and taking spinning classes.) Liam's father, Len,was his high school coach at La Salle Academy in Providence.

Coen came off the bench in the second half against Colgate in thesecond week, and almost led UMass back from a 17-point deficit,ultimately falling, 17-14. He has since proven a perfect fit for theball-control offense, which emphasizes the run and play-actionpasses. He has completed 64.3 percent of his throws, with 10touchdowns and only three interceptions. His quarterback rating of147.5 ranks 13th nationally, and if that holds up, Coen would breakthe UMass season mark (145.4) held by Greg Landry since 1965. Landrywent on to spend 11 years in the NFL.

'He's given us tremendous game management,' said Brown. 'I can'tsay enough good things about his coolness under pressure, just theway he's responded in big games.'

Two big ones await, and at least one win probably will be neededto clinch a playoff berth. This week the Minutemen will try for theirfirst victory over a Division 1-A team in more than 20 years whenthey travel down to West Point. The 2-6 Black Knights have won twostraight, both on the road. UMass then closes out the regular seasonat Hofstra, far from a gimme.

Back on top

With Furman losing to Georgia Southern, New Hampshire regained thetop ranking but only after a Houdiniesque escape at Hofstra.

Defense saved the day in the 29-26 victory. It's not often a unitthat surrenders more than 500 yards is going to garner praise, butthe crew was amazingly opportunistic with eight turnovers. None wasmore important than the fumble the 'Cats forced at the goal line inthe final two minutes. On first and goal from the 2, tailback KareemHuggins was leaning in for the winning score, only to have the ballknocked away by linebacker E.J. DeWitt and recovered by cornerbackEtienne Boulay .

All year, the UNH defense has been overshadowed by its explosiveoffense, but with 32 take aways, it is second in the country. Thoseextra possessions for quarterback Ricky Santos have gone a long wayin propelling the Wildcats to an 8-1 record (6-1 A-10). Despite whatUNH offensive coordinator Chip Kelly referred to as only 'an OK RickySantos performance,' the sophomore from Bellingham earned his fourthA-10 Offensive Player of the Week honor by completing 23 of 35 passesfor 285 yards and four touchdowns.

Not even two years into his career, Santos has already thrown fora school-record 60 TDs. Fifteen of those this year have gone to DavidBall . In fact, Ball has more touchdown receptions than six Atlantic10 teams.

The just-miss loss for Hofstra adds to a season of remarkablefrustration. The Pride are 5-4 (3-3) and almost certainly out of theplayoffs, but they could easily be 8-1 with a high national ranking.Two of the losses came in double overtime. This one, in regulation,was the hardest yet for coach Joe Gardi .

'It takes a little piece of your heart,' said Gardi. 'You can'twin a football game with eight turnovers, but we almost did.'

Gotta have Hartigan

Brown tailback Nick Hartigan has recently been featured in bothUSA Today and The New York Times. The attention is clearlydistracting him so much so that he ran for only three touchdowns andcaught another in last week's 38-21 win at Yale. Hartigan carried 33times for 192 yards, becoming the fourth Ivy Leaguer to amass morethan 4,000 rushing yards. At 7-1 (4-1), the Bears control theirdestiny in terms of claiming at least a share of their first Ivytitle since 1999. They host Dartmouth this week and then finish atColumbia. Princeton is also 4-1 in the league. Last year's champ,Harvard, has found its stride, overwhelming Columbia Saturday, 55-7.It was Harvard's largest margin of victory in 32 years. Harvard isnow 5-3 (3-2).