0-12 UMass Routs Rutgers as 29.5-Point Underdog

UMass opened 2026 by hammering Rutgers 37-21 in Piscataway, snapping a 16-game losing streak and winning as 29.5-point underdogs.

UMass opened its 2026 season with the most improbable result of college football's first night, blasting Rutgers 37-21 on Thursday in Piscataway, N.J. The Minutemen entered as 29.5-point underdogs after going 0-12 in 2025, yet they dominated in every phase. After falling behind 7-0 early, UMass scored touchdowns on its first three possessions, scored on each of its first four drives, and did not punt until the final two minutes of the third quarter. It was UMass's first win over any FBS opponent since it beat Army on Oct. 28, 2023, and it snapped a 16-game losing streak that was the longest in the country.

The magnitude of the shock is hard to overstate. According to CBS Sports, teams favored by 29 or more points had gone 213-0 since 2024, and Rutgers' 16-point defeat was the fifth-largest upset margin by a favorite of 25-plus points since 2000. The New York Post, citing Action Network, reports it was the biggest outright upset in five years. It was the first time UMass ever beat a power conference team since joining the FBS in 2012 — its 2018 win over BYU came while the Cougars were an independent — and, per The New York Times, its first win over a true major-conference opponent since beating Boston College in 1978. CBS Sports notes UMass entered the night 0-9 all-time against the Big Ten.

Virginia Tech transfer quarterback William "Pop" Watson, making his UMass debut, shredded the Scarlet Knights. CBS Sports reports he completed 18 of 21 passes for 189 yards and three touchdowns while adding 40 rushing yards; The New York Times counted him at 19 of 22 for 197 yards with the same three scores and 40 yards on the ground. The defense that ranked last nationally in 2025 looked transformed: CBS Sports reports five sacks, seven tackles for loss, three interceptions of Dylan Lonergan and a 4-0 turnover margin, including a fourth-down stop near the goal line in the third quarter. The New York Times reported UMass forced five turnovers and outrushed Rutgers 200-30 while averaging 6.4 yards per play.

The win erases one of the bleakest seasons in modern FBS history. UMass went 0-12 in 2025, ranking last nationally in both points scored (11.1 per game) and points allowed (38.6 per game), scoring more than 14 points just twice and allowing at least 42 points eight times, per The New York Times. Since moving up to FBS in 2012, the program is 26-134 by the Times' count — USA TODAY put the all-time mark at 28-142 — and it had not beaten an FBS team since 2023. The 37 points were its most since 2024, and the 16-point margin was its most decisive against an FBS team since 2018, according to USA TODAY. It is also the first win for second-year coach Joe Harasymiak, a former Rutgers defensive coordinator under Greg Schiano.

For Rutgers, the loss was a disaster. Despite returning two of the Big Ten's top playmakers in receiver K.J. Duff and running back Antwan Raymond, the Scarlet Knights never established a running game and were beaten along the line of scrimmage. Duff was the lone bright spot, catching nine passes for 196 yards and three touchdowns, per The New York Times. The program failed to reach a bowl game last year and is 31-42 under Schiano since he returned in 2020, with three years left on his contract; the Times reports a buyout after this season would cost Rutgers $17.3 million. Even Barstool's Dave Portnoy, who called Rutgers -29.5 his potential "strongest play of the year," apologized to followers and wrote that the effort was the most pathetic he had ever seen.

The stakes now shift in both directions. Rutgers, per The New York Post, next plays Boston College on Sept. UMass, meanwhile, can build on a result USA TODAY frames as a milestone: athletic director Ryan Bamford has said significant investment is flowing into the program and that winning one game was never the goal. The Minutemen remain the only established FBS program yet to reach a bowl game, and with the streak gone, a first conference title game and postseason berth become the next targets.