Rutgers Paid UMass $1.55 Million to Lose, and UMass Won
A team that went 0-12 last season scored 24 points in four drives for one of the most expensive upsets ever.
Pardon My Take · CFB Week 1 Chaos With Andy Staples, Western Michigan HC Lance Taylor, Who's Back Of The Week + Max Is Back From His Honeymoon With GiftsRutgers paid the University of Massachusetts $1.55 million to come to New Jersey and lose a football game. UMass won instead.
The price tag made it the second most expensive loss of its kind, trailing only Auburn's 2023 loss to New Mexico State. UMass had gone 0-12 last season and had not scored 21 points against another big-school opponent that season. It scored 24 points on its first four drives against Rutgers.
UMass had not won any game since October 2024, when it beat a smaller-school opponent from the lower division. Pop Watson led the upset. There were fireworks afterward, which Andy Staples, who was watching the game with his son, called "maybe the saddest thing I've ever seen in my life."
Questions people ask
Why does one college football team pay another to play?
Bigger schools routinely pay smaller schools for nonconference home games. The visitor gets money to fund its athletic department, and the host expects a win, a full stadium, and a television broadcast.
What is the difference between the bigger schools and the smaller schools?
They are the two main divisions of Division I college football. The top level offers more scholarships, plays in bigger stadiums, and gets most of the television money. The lower level plays a playoff for its own national title.
Has a paid underdog won like this before?
Yes. Auburn paid New Mexico State and lost 31-10 in 2023, still the record for the largest payment in a loss. UMass is now second on that list.