2024: UMass Dartmouth Football Soars to New Heights ahead of upcoming NCAA Tournament appearance

The November 30 matchup between the Corsairs and Springfield College a showdown of undefeated teams

The undefeated University of Massachusetts Dartmouth football program will travel to Springfield College on Saturday, November 30, at 12 p.m. in the second round of the NCAA Division III Tournament after winning their third-straight conference championship and dominating conference awards season.

Head Coach Josh Sylvester was named BSN Sports MASCAC Coach of the Year, Quarterback Dante Aviles-Santos won an unprecedented third-consecutive Offensive Player of the Year award, and senior Tyler Gmyr won Offensive Lineman of the Year in the conference. Eleven Corsairs were named to the All-Conference First Team. Offensive Coordinator Ryan Struthers won the Gridiron Club of Boston Assistant Coach of the Year.

“Head coaches get a lot of credit for the amazing work their players and staff do,” said Sylvester, a Wareham, MA native. “It’s easy to win when you have great players and dedicated coaches. Our guys play free, fun, hold each other accountable, put the team first, and live up to a standard that’s been raised each year they’ve been here.”

Following just their second-ever 10-0 season, the Corsairs earned a bye and automatically advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament for the first time in program history. For Sylvester, raising the standard of play at UMass Dartmouth starts with the small details.

“Our philosophy is to win the rep,” he said. “We attack every opportunity with an energy, focus, and grit unknown to mankind. That has nothing to do with football – it’s every interaction with a person, every class, every assignment. Not everything’s going to go your way, and when it doesn’t, do you have the grit to overcome and move forward. If you approach these opportunities with the right attitude, you’ll be successful in our program.”

Among the MASCAC leaders, the Corsairs are first overall in 23 different categories, including total offense, total defense, team tackles for loss, team passing efficiency, team passing efficiency defense, scoring offense, scoring defense, defensive touchdowns and completion percentage.

“For all the football stats and awards that this team is lining up, I am thrilled,” said Athletic Director Lori Hendricks. “However, it’s the lessons they are learning for life that lead me to see this future Hall of Fame team as exceptional. They not only show up for each other, but also at contests for our other varsity teams. I’ve seen their team GPA rise each semester. They have a strong work ethic that permeates their lives, not just their football identities. This is an extraordinary group of young men!”

Raising the standard of play comes as a point of pride for quarterback Dante Aviles-Santos and cornerback Shane Meerbott, co-captains and former high school teammates from Cumberland, RI.

“It was important for us to leave this place better than where we found it,” said Aviles-Santos. “We have a group of guys that wanted to be better and have been willing to push each other to achieve that. We demand excellence from each other, and that’s made us a better team.”

Much of this graduating class lost their freshman year to the COVID-19 pandemic, which Sylvester says gave the program an opportunity to reset, look themselves in the mirror, and decide who they wanted to become.

“Our love for the game got more personal,” said Meerbott. “We’ve put a lot of work in, and it’s all led to this moment. We’re rolling, we’re ready to win the rep, and it’s going to be hard for anyone to stop us.”

Few have been able to slow down, much less stop Aviles-Santos’ passing attack. The graduate student is 37-6 over four seasons as a starter and has won the conference’s Offensive Player of the Year award the last three seasons in a row. Holding most of the program’s single-season and career passing records, he boasts 38 passing touchdowns against just four interceptions this season.

“If you take the hardest working person you know in your life and double it, that is the work ethic that Dante displays every single day,” said Sylvester. “He is a natural born leader with a great football IQ that puts the team first no matter what.”

UMass Dartmouth takes on Springfield College on Saturday, November 30 at 12 p.m. The game can be livestreamed on ESPN+.