AMHERST — Don Brown and his coaching staff are heading into their third season in Amherst, and defensive coordinator Keith Dudzinski said on Monday that the Minutemen have experienced a culture change since he came to Amherst in the winter of 2021.

“If there’s one area that I think that’s really changed from when I got here three years ago to now, I think there’s just a lot more leadership in the locker room,” Dudzinski said.

Twenty-six players remain from the 2022 Minutemen roster – Brown and Dudzinski’s first season in charge – including 16 on the defensive side of the ball. Safety Tyler Rudolph, defensive back Te’Rai Powell and linebacker Jalen Stewart are three mainstays for UMass that are heading into their third seasons with Brown and Dudzinski as coaches.

UMass lost key defensive linemen Billy Wooden and Cletus Mathurin last year, and Dudzinski admitted the new interior line group is “green.” Linebackers Nahji Logan (transfer to Indiana) and Jerry Roberts (graduation) also departed. But UMass also added to its defense this offseason – with players like defensive lineman Tim Grant-Randall and defensive backs Arsheen Jiles and Jashon Watkins. As Brown likes to say, the transfer portal giveth, and it taketh away.

“The way the rosters change nowadays, it’s hard,” Dudzinski said. “But we do have some veteran guys. A guy like Gerrell Johnson, for instance, who’s working at outside backer. He’s working at a high-level now in his third season, he knows all the ins and outs, he’s started a lot of games, he’s got a lot more confidence in himself.”

Dudzinski said he’s noticed that players are taking more of a coaching role on the sidelines with their teammates instead of just chatting. And when they come up the middle to blow up an offensive play, there’s more of a motivation to talk a little trash. He said players are “100%” holding each other accountable more than when he first arrived in Amherst.

“Sometimes, coaches gotta do that, especially early on when you come in, you try to establish culture, rules and all those type of things,” Dudzinski said. “Coaches are kind of managing that. I think now our players are managing that a lot better. Cleaning up the locker room, taking care of the offices, making sure everything is clean, making sure you’re properly dressed, whatever it is, being on time. If you’re late, the kids are doing the punishments, not the coaches.”

Stewart, now in his third year with the Minutemen, said the defense is as close as it’s ever been. He credited Rudolph and Powell, but also a pair of 2023 Arizona transfers in defensive back Isaiah Rutherford and linebacker Tyler Martin. Though Monday was just the first day of pads, Stewart said he’s excited to see how the newcomers fit in with the established defensive leadership core.

“Not just talk about it,” Stewart said. “Be about it, and hopefully it’ll lead to more wins this year.”