Here's a scary thought for football coaches in the Atlantic 10 Conference: Liam Coen, the UMass quarterback who dazzled opponents for four years at La Salle Academy, is just beginning to show how good he can be in college.

Coen is the A-10 Offensive Player of the Week for his superb 21-for-28, 350-yard, two-touchdown, zero-interception performance Saturday in the Minutemen's 31-21 victory at Villanova.

"Liam Coen played really well," UMass coach Don Brown said Monday in the understatement of the week. Coen's passing yardage was the second-highest of his career and the eighth-highest in UMass history.

It was just a year ago that Coen, a red-shirt freshman at the time, took over as the starting quarterback. He finished with 2,175 passing yards, a 217.5 average that placed him fifth in the league. He was also fifth in passing efficiency. This season he has passed for 654 yards in three games, a 218-yard average, third in the league. He is also third in passing efficiency.

"He's more experienced. He has played in big A-10 games," Brown said. "He's a lot more cool and calm. He has a good cast around him, and he manages the game extremely well. He's not forcing things. If you make a mistake, he'll make you pay for it."

At 6-foot-2, 205 pounds and possessing a sound arm, Coen has the physical tools to play quarterback at the I-AA level. But Brown is equally impressed by his mental tools.

"He's a very cool customer. He loves the game of football. He loves to watch tape," the coach said.

He also loves to project an image of calm in the maelstrom that is a college football game.

"We got excitable guys, and he brings a calming influence to that group," Brown said. "You're starting to see the tip of the iceberg as far as how good he can be."

Another player striving to reach his potential is Lorenzo Perry (Providence/La Salle), the Bryant tailback who is the Northeast-10 Offensive Player of the Week for the second time this season. He ran for 233 yards on 21 carries and scored two touchdowns in Bryant's 34-7 Homecoming victory over Merrimack. Two weeks earlier, he ran for 190 yards and four touchdowns in a season-opening romp over Southern Connecticut.

Perry rushed for 1,335 yards last season, the school record. He has 555 yards this season and leads the NE-10 in rushing (185 per game), yards per rush (11.1) and touchdowns, rushing touchdowns and points in a game (4, 4, 24 vs. Southern Connecticut).

Bryant coach Marty Fine praises Perry and his accomplishment but is not effusive in his compliments. It's nothing against Perry, he insists; he resents the star system so entrenched in sports.

"It rankles my insides when everyone throws the limelight on one guy," he said, noting that if the offensive line doesn't block, Perry doesn't rush for 100 yards. If the fullbacks don't clear out the linebackers, Perry doesn't run for 100 yards. If Perry can't break into the secondary, where he is virtually unstoppable, he doesn't ring up big numbers.

"He's a cog in the wheel," Fine said. A cog, perhaps, but a big cog.

"Lorenzo is a very good football player with the ball in his hands," Fine said. "He has four seniors on the offensive line and at tight end. He's surrounded by guys as old and as experienced as he. They do a good job getting him into the secondary, where he really excels. He is tough to tackle in open space."

Fine doesn't want people to think that Perry, who transferred from UMass, is not a very good back.

"He is the best football player I've seen at this level in my three years here," the coach said.

Perry is the best because he works hard and because he has these seniors working hard in front of him: tight end Alex Chapparo, tackle Mike Thompson, guard Wes Nottingham, center Junior Jabbie and fullbacks Casey Factor (West Warwick) and Dew Shaw. Let's not forget guard Ralph Squitieri and tackle Barrington Little, both juniors, and tackle Dave Soranno, a senior and starting tackle until an appendicitis attack earlier this month.

Perry recognizes that he owes a lot to his teammates. If he didn't, he wouldn't be playing because Fine places a higher value on teamwork and character than he does on pure skill.

"We recruited Lorenzo because he's a dean's-list student and his character references were impeccable," Fine said.

Extra points

Tough break for Bryant linebacker Justin Benevides (Portsmouth), who broke his arm during a fourth-quarter goal-line stand in the Merrimack game. He had a date with an orthopedic specialist yesterday. "He has been such an important part of what we're building here. He's a wonderful kid, a great leader and has a great work ethic," Fine said. . . . Matt Mullenax, the Brown cornerback who suffered a lower-leg injury with three minutes to play in the Georgetown game and was assisted from the field, is walking and feeling better; no word on his status for Harvard Saturday. . . . URI halfback Jerell Jones, who suffered a high ankle sprain during training camp, is doubtful for Delaware Saturday but may be ready for Brown Sept. 30. . . . New England Football Conference honor roll recognition went to Salve Regina wide receiver Andre Willis (6 catches, 50 yards, 2 TDs) and defensive back Joe Leafe (5 tackles, 1 interception, 1 blocked field-goal attempt), UMass Dartmouth running back J.T. Harold (35-179-2 TDs) and linebacker Eric Meza (17 tackles, 10 solo) and Curry quarterback Ryan Van De Glesen (North Attleboro, 138 passing yards, 3 TDs). . . . Ivy League honor roll nods went to Brown lineback Zak DeOssie (13 tackles) and quarterback Joe DiGiacomo (206 passing yards, 2 TDs). . . . The NE-10 recognized Bryant safety Chris Wohlheter, who returned an interception 74 yards for a TD.

mszostak@projo.com/ (401) 277-7340