DURHAM --- Sophomore quarterback Andy Vailas of Bedford had mixed results in mixed roles in the University of New Hampshire's first two football games.

He'll lead the Wildcats onto the field at Cowell Stadium on Saturday against Central Connecticut State University in a new, third role with a clear mission: Vailas will make his first collegiate start at quarterback and look to lead his team to a little redemption.

“Obviously, I'm very excited and the team is very excited to get back on the field,” Vailas said. “We know that last week wasn't the way we normally play. We want to come out and make a statement. Everyone is real excited to see what's going to happen on Saturday.”

UNH took a hit last week in a 44-7 loss at Minnesota.

Vailas started the game on the sidelines, helping senior James Brady signal in the offensive plays to redshirt freshman quarterback Sean Goldrich.

After the second UNH play, injured senior wide receiver Tim Farina was handing Vailas his helmet, and Vailas was on his way to the huddle. Goldrich was forced out of the game after being hit on a run. A separation of the AC joint in his right shoulder is expected to keep Goldrich out for two to three weeks.

After a standout appearance in a backup role in a 38-17 win over Holy Cross in UNH's opener, Vailas had his troubles against Minnesota. All the Wildcats did.

Vailas led UNH on a nice scoring drive that led to a 5-yard touchdown run by Chris Setian to cut Minnesota's lead to 16-7 with less than a minute to play in the first period.

On their next possession, Vailas led the Wildcats down the field again and hit Harold Spears for what could have been a 28-yard touchdown that would have kept the game within a couple of points. Instead, the catch was ruled no good and UNH lost the ball on downs.

The game got away from the Wildcats soon after that.

Minnesota started getting after Vailas and the UNH offense.

“He took off and ran a little bit and rightly so, because he was getting pressure,” said head coach Sean McDonnell. “Hopefully, we protect better this week and he can get out and go through his reads. When he went through his reads, he went to the right people. There were only a couple of times where some things didn't turn out the way we needed them to turn out because of where he went. Other than that, I thought he did a really good job coming in cold.”

Vailas, 6-foot-2 and 193 pounds, comes from a long line of football players. He was a wide receiver and defensive back at Bishop Guertin in Nashua before becoming a quarterback there. As a senior, he led Guertin to a state championship by running for 1,200 yards and passing for 400, and also intercepted 10 passes.

After a year at Phillips Andover in Massachusetts, he entered UNH, where his big brother, Jimmy, was a defensive lineman. Jimmy, now a 6-foot-3 and 260-pound junior, has played at both defensive end and tackle as part of a regular rotation in UNH's first two games.

Nick Vailas, Andy and Jimmy's father, (and a member of the Union Leader Board of Judges) played at Plymouth State. Their uncle Jim Vailas played at Dartmouth, and uncles John and Arthur Vailas played at UNH.

Goldrich edged Andy Vailas out for the starting job in a close competition during pre-season camp.

Brady had a slight advantage over both of them coming out of the spring, but tendinitis held him back. He's now ready to go and will be the backup on Saturday.

Vailas got a pre-planned series in the second period against Holy Cross and led the Wildcats to a quick and important touchdown.

Brady will likely get a similar opportunity to play on Saturday, McDonnell said.

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ST. ANSELM looks for its first win of the season against Stonehill in the Hawks' first home game under the lights tonight at 7 in Grappone Stadium, a contest with extracurricular activities including a marshmallow roast and a punt, pass and kick competition.

The Hawks are 0-2. Stonehill, which has won the last seven games in the series, is 1-1 after a season-opening 44-28 loss to Bloomsburg and 13-0 win over Southern Connecticut.

Chris Bolte, a 6-foot-1, 270-pound center from Tilton, is a Stonehill captain. Stephen Gryzywacz, a freshman kicker out of Manchester Central, made two of his four field goals (from 37 and 25 yards) last week in the win over Southern Connecticut and was named Northeast 10 Rookie of the Week. Sophomore defensive tackle Taylor Russell of Keene has four tackles, including a sack.

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DARTMOUTH holds the distinction of being the last Division 1 team in the country, in either the Football Bowl Subdivision or Football Championship Subdivision, to open its season when it takes on Butler under the lights in Hanover on Saturday at 7.

Sophomore Alex Park, a transfer from the University of New Hampshire, has been named Dartmouth's starter at quarterback, and it's expected freshman Dalyn Williams will see action in the opener, too.

The Big Green won their last three games and four of their final five to finish 5-5 overall and 4-3 in the Ivy League last year. Dartmouth was 4-1 at home.

Butler is 1-1 with a 23-15 loss at Western Illinois and 42-13 win over Division 3 Franklin.

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PLYMOUTH STATE, 0-2, seeks its first win at Maine Maritime, 0-1.

The Panthers have averaged 231 yards rushing and 77 passing in their first two games. Maine Maritime rushed for 248 yards and 0 yards passing — with no completions in five attempts — in a 34-14 loss at Anna Maria in its opener.

Senior defensive back Ray Boulay of Keene has eight tackles and leads PSU with three pass breakups.

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Allen Lessels covers UNH football for the New Hampshire Union Leader and Sunday News. He may be reached at alessels@unionleader.com.