Sept. 14, 2011
Vanderbilt and Massachusetts have finalized an agreement to play a four-game series in football starting in 2012.
Vanderbilt Vice Chancellor of Student Athletics David Williams II said the Commodores and Minutemen will play twice in Nashville, the first coming on Oct. 27, 2012, and twice at Gillette Stadium. Starting next year, the venue near Boston will join as home to both UMass andthe New England Patriots.
The teams will play in consecutive years through 2015. Besides the 2012 game, other series dates include Sept. 21, 2013 in Foxborough, Mass., Oct. 4, 2014 in Nashville, and Oct. 29, 2015 in Foxborough.
In April, UMass announced its intention to jump to NCAA’s Football Bowl Championship division (FBS) after many years as a FCS power in the Colonial Athletic Association. UMass is moving into the Mid-American Conference, beginning in the 2012 season.
The October 2012 game also will serve as homecoming on the Vanderbilt campus.
Vanderbilt and UMass have not met in football, but have played men’s basketball games in 2008 and 2009, both games captured by the Commodores.