Massachusetts Minutemen
0–0 · 0–0 MID-AMERICAN
In the books
WEEK 1 · 2026
Week 1 pregame guide
Make the first punch last at Rutgers
UMass has a 1.7% upset chance at Rutgers, but four quarters of structure would make this opener meaningful even without a miracle.
Read the rooting guide →The model sees Massachusetts as an extreme playoff long shot.
Credit
Photo creditQuintin SolovievWikimedia Commons · CC BY 4.0Cropped to 16:9, resized and converted to WebP by Fan Watch.Your game
Massachusetts at RutgersFinal
Massachusetts
Final · Massachusetts 37–21 RutgersWish granted ✓
Rutgers
Nothing else moves the path
the rest is background footballNothing else meaningfully changes Massachusetts's path. Watch the rest because it is football.
42 other games had little impact
Akron at Wake Forest · ACC Network
Colorado at Georgia Tech · ESPN
UAB at Illinois · BTN
San José State at Eastern Michigan · ESPN+
UTEP at Oklahoma · SECN+
Toledo at Michigan State · FS1
Miami at Stanford · ESPN
Fresno State at USC · FOX
East Carolina at Alabama · ABC
Oregon State at Houston · ESPN
Coastal Carolina at West Virginia · TNT
North Texas at Indiana · FOX
Ohio at Nebraska · FS1
Liberty at James Madison · ESPNU
Miami (OH) at Pittsburgh · The CW Network
Ball State at Ohio State · BTN
Kent State at South Carolina · SEC Network
Baylor at Auburn · ABC
Texas State at Texas · ESPN
Boston College at Cincinnati · FOX
Tulane at Duke · ACC Network
Boise State at Oregon · CBS
Marshall at Penn State · FS1
Oklahoma State at Tulsa · ESPNU
Northern Illinois at Iowa · BTN
Wyoming at Colorado State · USA Network
Missouri State at Texas A&M · ESPN
Arkansas State at Memphis · ESPN+
Florida International at South Florida · ESPN+
Sam Houston at Troy · ESPN+
Clemson at LSU · ABC
UL Monroe at Mississippi State · ESPNU
Western Michigan at Michigan · NBC
Florida Atlantic at Florida · SEC Network
UNLV at Hawai'i · The CW Network
Central Michigan at New Mexico · FS1
UCLA at California · ESPN
Western Kentucky at Nevada · CBSSN
Washington State at Washington · NBC
Louisville at Ole Miss · ABC
Wisconsin at Notre Dame · NBC
SMU at Florida State · ESPN
The rooting list was:Massachusetts. Nothing else meaningfully moves the path.
Based on 50,000 season simulations entering week 1, anchored to the AP Top 25 (preseason). How the model works.