Maine football preparing for conference opener

ORONO, Maine (WABI) - It’s time for Maine to kick off its Coastal Athletic Association schedule this week.

The Black Bears are 0-2 through two games, but they’ve still seen progress.

“I think we’ve learned more about who we are, how we’re going to be successful, and how we’re going to win games. Seeing that on offense, we’ve seen us running the ball effectively. We’ve seen us connecting with a lot of guys that are playmakers for us in the pass game. We’re going to continue to come back to those players and schemes to put ourselves in positions to win games,” said Jordan Stevens, head coach.

Maine’s offense is focused on capping off drives and limiting turnovers.

“The biggest thing is we’re going to battle, fight, and be physical. That’s what we preach every single day. Now, it just comes down to finishing. We’ve got to finish these games and take care of the ball. I’m taking full ownership of those. I’ve got to be better in those aspects,” said Derek Robertson, senior quarterback.

Any weather from Hurricane Lee gives the defense a chance to capitalize on mistakes in the conference opener.

“We know we’re always going to take any opportunity. If it’s rain, snow, whatever, we’re always going to come out to be the Black Hole. We definitely get a little extra excitement with the rain. You’ve got a lot of opportunities for forced fumbles and stuff like that. We’re just really excited to get out here and show what we can do against the CAA. We’re coming out guns blazing. We’re ready to start league play and put these two losses behind us. I really feel like we’ve got a good football team here. We just need to go show it on Saturday,” said Shakur Smalls, junior defensive back.

Saturday’s kickoff against Rhode Island is at 3:30 p.m. in Orono.

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