UMass football secures first sellout in over a decade

UMass football secures first sellout in over a decade

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UMass football secures first sellout in over a decade

UMass has been one of the best stories of the 2026 college football season.

Nobody expected the program to be good, and yet the team is 4-0 under head coach Joe Harasymiak, who is only in his second year at the helm.

MORE: Greg Schiano firmly on hot seat after Rutgers’ embarrassing Week 1 loss to UMass

UMass secured a major 37-21 upset over Rutgers, a Power Four program, in Week 1 before beating Sacred Heart, Stonehill and Sacramento State in its next three games. The Minutemen compete in the Mid-American Conference in football and remain the conference’s lone unbeaten team.

The program will now try to make it five wins in a row to open the season. The Minutemen are expected to have more than 17,000 fans inside McGuirk Alumni Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 3, against Eastern Michigan. This will be UMass’ first sellout since 2014, per ESPN’s Pete Thamel.

William ‘Pop’ Watson III leading the way for UMass

NCAA Football: Massachusetts at Rutgers

Sep 3, 2026; Piscataway, New Jersey, USA; Massachusetts Minutemen quarterback William Watson III (5) runs the ball during the first quarter against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images via Reuters Connect (Reuters)

William “Pop” Watson has been tremendous as the starting quarterback this season, throwing for 610 yards, six touchdowns and one interception. He also has 154 rushing yards and four touchdowns on the ground.

He didn’t get this opportunity at Virginia Tech and is making the most of it at UMass.

Kickoff for Saturday’s game will be at 3:30 p.m. ET on ESPN+.

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