UMass Dartmouth's top-ranked offensive unit helps
Corsairs post a winning record in 2000

(Dartmouth, MA) -After posting a 3-7 record in 1999, UMass Dartmouth football coach Bill Kavanaugh called the 2000 season a "real cross road season". When the season was complete, the Corsairs found themselves heading in the right direction bolstered by the top ranked offense in the New England Football Conference (NEFC).

The Corsairs finished the 2000 season with a 5-4 overall record and second in the New England Football Conference's Boyd Division with a 4-2 record. Three season-ending losses to NCAA qualifier and NEFC champion Bridgewater State College, a loss to Boyd Division champion Salve Regina and a tough loss to Curry College closed out the season. Prior to that, the Corsairs had put together an impressive 5-1 record and re-established themselves as the top offensive team in New England.

Led by four players selected either First or Second Team All-NEFC on offense, the Corsairs led the conference in total offense by averaging 386.6 yards per game, 26 yards more than the second place team. Sparked by the passing combination of First Team All NEFC receiver sophomore Joe Sabina (Taunton, MA) and Second Team quarterback Matt McLaughlin (Mansfield, MA), the Corsairs were the NEFC's top passing team, averaging 230 yards per game. Averaging 33.1 points per game, UMass Dartmouth led the NEFC in that category as well and finished the season ranked tied for 24th among all NCAA Division III teams.

Sabina had an impressive debut season for the Corsairs, leading all UMass Dartmouth receivers with 51 catches for 897 yards, an average of 99.7 per game plus 5 TD catches. Sabina's 5.7 catches per game and 99.7 yards per game were both tops in the NEFC. Sabina also averaged 10.2 yards per punt return (5th in NEFC) and finished as the Corsairs' leader in all-purpose yards at 126.2 per game, fifth best in the conference.

McLaughlin closed out his career with the Corsairs by connecting on 138 of 267 passes for 1991 yards, 20 TDs and 18 interceptions. His quarterback rating of 125.56 placed him third in the NEFC. The highlight of the senior quarterback's season was his NEFC Player of the Week honor following his four TD passes (92, 78, 15, 48 yards) on eight completions for 240 yards to lead the Corsairs to a President's Cup victory over UMass Boston, 40-0.

Another reason for the Corsairs' success in the air was UMass Dartmouth's receiving corps, which included NEFC First Team All-Star and senior co-captain Mike Armandi (Foxboro, MA) at tight end and NEFC Second Team All-Star junior Shane Harris (Marion, MA). Armandi, who also was the ECAC New England Division III First Team selection at tight end, grabbed 21 passes for 314 yards and a team-high 6 TDs. Harris finished second in catches with 28 for 388 yards and 5 TDs, including a season-long 92 yarder against UMass Boston.

UMass Dartmouth finished in the top 50 nationally among Division III teams in both total offense and passing offense. The Corsairs' 386.6 yards per game were 43rd in the country and their 230 yards per game in passing offense ranked them 47th in the country.

While most of the damage was being done in the air, the Corsairs also took advantage of a solid running game. Senior tailback Frank Meranda (Richmond, CA) rushed for 820 yards and averaged 102.5 yards per game, fifth among NEFC running backs, plus a team-leading 9 TDs. Meranda also caught 10 passes for 85 yards and 1 TD, giving him a total of 62 points on the season to lead the Corsairs' in scoring (6th in NEFC). Meranda averaged 113.1 all-purpose yards per game, ranking him 8th in the NEFC.

The Corsairs' other top scorer along with Harris, Armandi and Sabina was place kicker junior Jacob Jata (Port Richey, FL). A newcomer to the program this season, Jata connected on 4-7 field goals and 26 of 36 extra points for an average of 4.2 points per game, second among kickers in the NEFC. Jata also stepped in and handled the Corsairs' punting duties, averaging 32.8 yards per kick.

A pair of NEFC Second Team selections led UMass Dartmouth's defensive unit, senior tackle and co-captain Chris O'Day (Westminster, MA) and senior linebacker Chris Jones (Foxboro, MA). O'Day finished the season with 22 unassisted tackles and 6 assisted, including 2.5 tackles for losses. Jones had 14 unassisted and 21 assists for 3.9 tackles per game average. Senior defensive back Charlie Hogan (Waltham, MA) was the Corsairs' top tackler with 34 unassisted and 23 assists for a 6.3 per game average. Among the other top tacklers for the Corsairs were senior linebacker Bryant Donovan (Portsmouth, RI) (28 UT, 21 AT, 5.4), junior defensive back Geoff Taintor (Natick, MA) (26 UT, 24 AT, 5.6), junior defensive back Mark Kulakowski (Peabody, MA) (31 UT, 18 AT, 5.4) and junior defensive back Frank Femino (Medford, MA) (24 UT, 13 AT, 4.1 per game).

Taintor led the Corsair defensive backs with 4 interceptions for 46 return yards and one TD. Senior defensive back Manny Santo (Warwick, RI) was one interception behind Taintor with 3 interceptions and 34 yards in returns. UMass Dartmouth's defense also produced a 36-yard fumble return by junior defensive lineman Mike Caito (Chelmsford, MA).

UMass Dartmouth opened its season with a 62-30 loss to a Springfield College team, which would advance to the third round of the NCAA Division III football championships. The Corsairs rebounded the following week by posting a 40-0 victory over UMass Boston to successfully defend its President's Cup Trophy. The Corsairs offense exploded the following week with a 65-6 win over Maine Maritime and followed it with a 33-7 win MIT.

In one of the most exciting comebacks in the history of UMass Dartmouth football, the Corsairs came back from a 21-0 deficit against Nichols College to score 27 unanswered points, including 20 points in the game's final 3:39 to come away with the victory.

Trailing, 21-0, Shane Harris' third quarter TD at 2:29 got the Corsairs on the scoreboard for the first time. Following an interception of a Corsair pass, which appeared to put the game away for the Bison, UMass Dartmouth's defense stopped Nichols College and forced a punt with less than four minutes remaining.

Joe Sabina started the comeback with a 53-yard punt return and Jacob Jata's second straight extra point cut the Nichols lead to 21-14. Unable to move the ball on its next series, Nichols again punted to the Corsairs and the UMass Dartmouth had the ball in the endzone in less than 2 minutes. Frank Femino's 20-yard run and Jata's extra point tied the game at 21-21. On the Bison's next offensive series, the UMass Dartmouth defense grabbed its fourth interception of the game to set up Femino's game-winning 2 yard TD run with 25 seconds to play, giving the Corsairs a 27-21 win.

The following week, Corsairs scored a 24-7 Homecoming Day victory over Western New England College. The UMass Dartmouth football field was named in honor of former UMass Dartmouth Peter H. Cressy in ceremonies prior to the game.