University of Maine redshirt sophomore cornerback Jamaree Gibson couldn’t have picked a better time for his first career interception.
Gibson intercepted Myles Burkett’s pass and returned it 78 yards for a touchdown with 1:46 remaining to clinch a 34-20 Coastal Athletic Association win over No. 21 Albany at Bob Ford Field in Albany, N.Y on Saturday afternoon.
Graduate student transfer quarterback Carter Peevy completed 20 of 24 passes for 193 yards and two touchdowns as UMaine improved to 3-2 overall and 1-1 in the Coastal Athletic Association.
The Black Bears snapped a six-game CAA losing streak and have already exceeded the overall win totals of the previous two seasons when they went 2-9 each year.
Albany, which shared the CAA regular season title with Villanova and Richmond last season and reached the Football Championship semifinals for the first time in school history, fell to 1-3 and 0-1, respectively.
UMaine trailed 14-10 at halftime but Joey Bryson’s field goal early in the second half and a pair of two-yard touchdown passes from Peevy to graduate student tight end Cooper Heisey late in the third quarter and with 7:04 left in the fourth, plus a two-point conversion pass from Montigo Moss to fellow wide receiver Joe Gillette, gave UMaine a 27-14 lead.
The Great Danes answered just 1:44 later when University of Wisconsin transfer Burkett threw a 32-yard TD pass to Seven McGee with 5:20 left.
UMaine went three-and-out and Albany got the ball back in UMaine territory but Gibson saved the day as Burkett’s pass went off his receiver’s hands into Gibson’s.
“I got a little lucky,” said Gibson. “He dropped it into my hands. Then the defense did a great job blocking for me.”
“It was like something out of a movie script,” said Peevy. “The ball was tipped, Jamaree caught it and the whole defense blocked for him.”
The Black Bears earned the win, outgaining Albany 337-260 and having a huge edge in time of possession: 39:10 to 19:21.
“It was a huge team win and all three units came through: offense, defense and special teams,” said Peevy.
“This is the best win we’ve had in my three years here,” said UMaine head coach Jordan Stevens. “It was a really strong team win. We didn’t have to punt until the fourth quarter.”
Bryson opened the scoring with a 40-yard field goal early in the first period.
It was the first time this season UMaine scored first.
Albany answered with a two-yard TD run by JoJo Uga which capped an eight-play, 74-yard drive.
UMaine regained the lead when Jaharie Martin finished off an eight-play, 62-yard drive with 1:57 left in the half on a 1-yard touchdown run.
Burkett countered for Albany with a 13-yard TD pass to McGee with 14 seconds left in the half to give the Danes a 14-10 lead.
The UMaine defense was stout, forcing three turnovers and holding the Great Danes to just six second-half points.
Peevy said the two touchdown passes to Heisey were wide open and he was elated that the tight end had a pair of TD catches.
“He is our vocal leader. Nobody cares more than he does and works harder than he does,” said Peevy.
Mo Irefin was UMaine’s top receiver with five catches for 68 yards. Gillette had four for 31 and Moss and Heisey had three each for 30 and eight yards, respectively.
Martin ran the ball 19 times for 82 yards and Tavion Banks had 12 for 57.
Kesean Dyson had six tackles and Alhaji Kamara had five and an interception. Shakur Smalls had five tackles before leaving with an injury in the third period.
Albany’s Burkett completed 19 of 32 passes for 202 yards and two touchdowns and two interceptions, McGee caught four passes for 72 yards and MarQeese Dietz had four for 43. Griffin Woodell had nine carries for 36 yards.
Ron Holmes had a game-high 12 tackles and Dontae Lunan had 11.
UMaine has next weekend off before traveling to Delaware for a 1 p.m. game on Saturday, Oct. 12.
