Joe Harasymiak Named UMass Head Coach After Run As Rutgers Defensive Coordinator
UMass made its choice, and it is a coach with a track record of building things from scratch.
The school announced Joe Harasymiak as its next head football coach on Wednesday. Harasymiak comes from Rutgers, where he served as defensive coordinator, but his real claim to fame is his run at Maine where he was named the 2018 FCS Coach of the Year after leading the Black Bears to the semifinals of the playoffs.
That is the resume that matters for a program like UMass. The Minutemen have been one of the toughest jobs in the FBS for years. They are an independent struggling to find a conference home. The roster has not had the resources to compete consistently. The wins have been hard to come by.
Harasymiak’s Maine experience is the template. He took a low-resource program and turned it into a winner through scheme, recruiting, and culture. That is exactly what UMass needs. A coach who has done it at a lower level is more valuable than one who has only worked in environments with built-in advantages.
The Rutgers stop adds Power Four exposure to the resume. Harasymiak has been around big-time college football. He has recruited against the SEC and Big Ten. He understands the level of operation needed to compete with the resources the top programs have. That experience matters when you are trying to drag a program up.
UMass is in a unique spot. They play in the FBS but do not have a conference home that fits them. They have struggled to find consistent quality opponents. They have made coaching changes regularly. The job comes with built-in obstacles that most programs do not have to deal with.
Harasymiak’s defensive background should help. UMass has been outscored badly in recent years. Bringing in a coach who can install a system that slows down better-talented opponents is the immediate need. The Minutemen do not need to outscore everyone. They need to keep games close enough that the talent gap does not show up early.
The offensive coordinator hire will be the most important staff decision. Harasymiak has not been an offensive guy. He needs someone who can build a quarterback-friendly system that can produce points without requiring blue-chip talent. That kind of coordinator exists in the FCS and Group of Five ranks. UMass has to find one.
The recruiting challenge is the bigger long-term issue. UMass does not pull from a deep regional talent base for football. New England produces some Power Four caliber players but they tend to go to the bigger conferences. UMass has to compete with FCS programs for the next tier of players, and even then they have to sell a unique vision.
Harasymiak’s Maine years suggest he can recruit at that level. He knows New England. He has relationships from years in the region. He can sell what UMass offers, which is a chance to play FBS football for a coach who has built winning programs.
The expectations should be modest in year one. UMass is not a quick fix. Even with the right coach, the rebuild takes time. The school’s leadership will have to be patient. The fan base will have to be patient. Harasymiak will need at least three full recruiting cycles to make a real dent.
The hire is a sensible choice. Big names were not coming to UMass. The school went with a coach who has actually built something at a similar resource level. That is the right call for where the program is.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
