The Trojans wrapped up their non-conference schedule with a 52-31 win over UMASS on Saturday afternoon.

The win for the Trojans brings their overall record to 7-1 on the season.

“We started slow and overcame some adversity,” said Troy head coach Neal Brown. “We are excited about being 7-1. I thought we were rusty coming off an extended break, with two games in 28 days. But we did play relatively clean, with no fumbles and only four penalties on the day, which is a big improvement from earlier in the season.”

After falling behind 14-0 in the game’s first few minutes, the Trojan offense rattled off 21 straight points. Troy’s 52 points marked the fifth time they have scored 50 or more points under Brown.

Senior quarterback Brandon Silvers threw for 245 yards and contributed with four touchdowns. Jordan Chunn led the Trojans in rushing with 83 yards on 18 carries.

“We have been extremely balanced,” Brown said. “They all feed off each other. Brandon (Silvers) is obviously feeding off the success that Jordan (Chunn) is having because people have to play one safety and get another guy inside the box to account for Jordan. Those guys have been carrying us this season.”

The Trojans decided to mix things up a bit on Saturday afternoon by throwing in a trick play. Receiver John Johnson became the first Troy receiver to throw a pass since Jerrell Jernigan did it in 2008. Johnson received a pitch from Silvers and threw a 16-yard pass to a wide-open Tevaris McCormick for a touchdown.

“We practiced that play a long time,” Brown said. “We actually ran it against Appalachian State last year. We have a group of trick plays that we basically practice a few times each week.”

“We ran that a couple times in practice on Tuesday and Wednesday and I didn’t throw a bad ball so I gave him a lot of confidence to call it,” Johnson said.

Troy’s defense allowed just 17 points in the final three quarters. Troy gave up 44 yards on the ground, which marked the fifth time this season that they have held a team to less than 100 yards rushing.

“They averaged 1.6 yards per rush,” Brown said. “If we can do that, we are going to have success against everyone that we play. We had five sacks and seven tackles for loss. We played with really good energy.”

The Trojans received 28 votes in the latest Associated Press Top 25 poll.

“The rankings are a by-product of winning,” Brown said. “If we get to 8-1 I think our chances improve. What hurt us over the course of last month was only playing two games in 28 days. We were out of the minds of the voters. We have to get back out there and establish ourselves. We have a chance to do that on Saturday.”

The Trojans will have an opportunity to make a big statement on Saturday afternoon when they host the Appalachian State beginning at 2:30 p.m.