1981 UMass Minutemen football
Yankee Conference co-champion
Conference	Yankee Conference
Record	6–3 (4–1 Yankee)
Head coach	Bob Pickett (4th season)
Defensive coordinator	Jim Reid (4th season)
Home stadium	Alumni Stadium
Seasons ← 1980 1982 →

1981 Yankee Conference football standings
v t e	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
Rhode Island +^	4	–	1	–	0	6	–	6	–	0
No. T–10 UMass +	4	–	1	–	0	6	–	3	–	0
Boston University	3	–	2	–	0	6	–	5	–	0
No. T–10 New Hampshire	2	–	3	–	0	7	–	3	–	0
Connecticut	1	–	4	–	0	4	–	7	–	0
Maine	1	–	4	–	0	3	–	7	–	1

+ – Conference co-champions ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant Rankings from NCAA Division I-AA Football Committee poll

The 1981 UMass Minutemen football team represented the University of Massachusetts Amherst in the 1981 NCAA Division I-AA football season as a member of the Yankee Conference. The team was coached by Bob Pickett and played its home games at Alumni Stadium in Hadley, Massachusetts. The 1981 season saw the Minutemen win their thirteenth Yankee Conference title. UMass finished the season with a record of 6–3 overall and 4–1 in conference play.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 19	Holy Cross*		Alumni Stadium Hadley, MA	W 13–10	9,960	^[1]
September 26	Dartmouth*		Alumni Stadium Hadley, MA	W 10–8	11,855	^[2]
October 3	Rhode Island	No. 6	Alumni Stadium Hadley, MA	L 10–16
October 10	at No. T–7 Delaware*		Delaware Stadium Newark, DE	L 15–38	19,581	^[3]
October 17	Maine		Alumni Stadium Hadley, MA	W 20–7
October 24	Boston University		Alumni Stadium Hadley, MA	W 34–20
October 31	at Connecticut		Memorial Stadium Storrs, CT (rivalry)	W 29–24
November 7	at Boston College*		Alumni Stadium Chestnut Hill, MA (rivalry)	L 22–52	20,400	^[4]
November 14	at No. 4 New Hampshire		Cowell Stadium Durham, NH (rivalry)	W 20–9
*Non-conference game Rankings from NCAA Division I-AA Football Committee Poll released prior to the game

References

^ Monahan, Bob (September 20, 1981). "UMass' Late Rally Crosses Up HC". Boston Sunday Globe. Boston, Mass. p. 56 – via Newspapers.com.
^ Eisenberg, Harry (September 27, 1981). "UMass Dumps Dartmouth Again". Boston Sunday Globe. Boston, Mass. p. 78 – via Newspapers.com.
^ Monahan, Bob (October 11, 1981). "UMass Thumped". Boston Sunday Globe. Boston, Mass. p. 71 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "At Chestnut Hill, Mass". The Courier-Journal. November 8, 1981. p. C2 – via Newspapers.com.

v t e UMass Minutemen football
Venues	Alumni Field (1879–1964) Warren McGuirk Alumni Stadium (1965–2011, 2014–) Gillette Stadium (alternate) (2012–2016)
Bowls & rivalries	Bowl games Boston College New Hampshire: Colonial Clash (Bill Knight Trophy) UConn
Culture & lore	Sam the Minuteman "Fight Mass" University of Massachusetts Minuteman Marching Band
People	Head coaches NFL draftees Statistical leaders
Seasons	1879 1880 1881 1882 1883 1884 1885 1886 1887 1888 1889 1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917–1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943–1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
National championship seasons in bold

Yankee Conference football champions