AMHERST — University of Massachusetts defensive lineman Ali Ali-Musa said junior-college transfers are a little different.
There is little glitz or glamour at that level, simply a collective hunger of almost every player to perform well enough to get a better opportunity at a four-year school.
Ali-Musa said that hunger remains.
“JUCOs, we’re dawgs,” he said smiling. “We’re savages. You can put us anywhere. We’ll adapt anywhere. JUCO is a struggle. To get out of that takes a different mind set. You just have to be a born animal. We have to be scrappers.”
UMass is counting on those scrappers to make a difference on a defense that graduated several players from last year.
At least two junior-college additions will start — Ali-Musa on the interior line and Tedrick Lowery at the hybrid linebacker-safety position in the Minutemen’s 3-4 defensive scheme.
Both enrolled in January and took part in spring practice.
Linebackers Rod Jones Jr. and Colbert Calhoun, and defensive lineman Davone Hall are recent arrivals. They will likely be on the two-deep depth chart and are expected to play.
Jordin Hamilton, a potential starter at cornerback, is in his second season at UMass after transferring from Scottsdale Community College in Arizona.
There’s a stigma with some JUCOs. Some players land in junior college because they were late bloomers still chasing their Division I dreams. Others have been booted from their FBS teams for behavior issues, while some failed to qualify academically out of high school.
Whipple said he’s careful to find guys who will fit.
“We look at what led a guy to junior college. We look at their background,” said Whipple, who said junior college players offer talent and size they’re unlikely to get from true freshmen.
“It’s hard to play at the level we’re playing at with small guys,” Whipple said. “Big guys out of high school get over-recruited.”
Lowery and Ali-Musa said arriving in the spring was helpful.
“It was really valuable. The transition was smooth,” Lowery said. “Being here in the spring was really important. I learned the playbook.”
Ali-Musa agreed.
“Since the spring, I’ve gained a lot,” he said. “Coming from JUCO, I had to build up, get strong and learn the plays.”
Ali-Musa said he tries to help the newer junior college arrivals.
“I try to help them a lot, show them what to do, what not to do,” he said.
Jones said he’s been picking things up on the fly.
“It’s been an adjustment. I’m getting to know everything and making a transition to a new team,” Jones said. “You have to get ready or get left. I’m feeling great. We have a lot of diamonds in the rough here. We all have to work hard to get where we need to be.”