Don Brown has never been a moral victory kind of guy.

But the veteran coach was at least a bit encouraged by an improved performance from a UMass football team that badly needed it on Saturday.

The Minutemen did some of the things needed to win a football game. But again, they did too many of the things you can’t do to win a football game.

Host Toledo utilized some big plays at opportune times, frustrating the Minutemen en route to a 38-23 victory at the Glass Bowl in Toledo, Ohio.

UMass dropped to 0-2 on the season, while perennial MAC heavyweight Toledo moved to 2-0.

“We’ve got to eliminate the mistakes,” said Brown afterward. “The penalties (UMass was flagged for 97 yards on nine penalties), those are the things that kill us. We have a young team and we’re trying to bring them together. I believe in them. We’re much more competitive, but that’s over now. We know we can compete in these games, there’s just a lot of situational stuff [to fix].”

The Minutemen held a 384-258 edge in offense and picked up 23 first downs to just 12 for the Rockets, but Toledo scored three touchdowns on plays of 40 yards or more. That included a back-breaking 73-yard TD pass from Tyler Gleason to Junior Vandeross with 4:08 remaining in the third quarter that came just one play after UMass quarterback Taisun Phommachanh was intercepted at the Toledo 27 with his team trailing just 17-16. The Rockets made it a two-score game shortly thereafter, as Willie Shaw scampered in from 4 yards out with 12:30 left in the fourth quarter to make it 31-16.

UMass clawed back to make it a one-score game again with 2:56 remaining in regulation. Phommachanh used his legs on an impressive drive, carrying the ball six times for 51 yards and capping it with an 8-yard TD scamper to get the Minutemen within 31-23.

Brown decided to try an onside kick, but Toledo recovered and quickly scored an insurance touchdown with 2:26 left when Gleason hit Anthony Torres from 7 yards out to make it 38-23.

UMass turned it over on downs on its ensuing possession, and Toledo ran out the clock from there to cap off the victory against their future MAC foes.

Phommachanh finished 26-of-40 for 259 yards with one touchdown and one interception, and added 44 yards on 22 carries and a score on the ground.

“I’m sure he’ll tell you the interception has to go away but I thought he had really good moments during the course of the game and at times we needed to do a better job,” Brown said of his QB. “But I think he’s moving and progressing, trending in a positive direction.”

Phommachanh’s favorite target of the day was Jakobie Keeney-James, who caught six passes (on a team-high 11 targets) for 93 yards and a TD. Jacquon Gibson also caught six passes for 72 yards, and tight end Matt Smith went for 38 yards on three receptions.

“I thought Jacquon and [Keeney-James] solidified themselves to be on the field and to be playing in critical times now,” said Brown. “That was a positive for those guys.”

The Minutemen held possession of the ball for a whopping 44 minutes, 31 seconds, compared to just 15:29 for Toledo.

Neither team recorded a first down until late in the first quarter, when Toledo struck first on a 40-yard touchdown via a jet sweep push-pass from Gleason to Jerjuan Newton that made it 7-0 with 3:19 remaining.

Jacob Lurie kicked his first of three field goals to get UMass on the board with 11:52 to play in the second quarter, and after a Toledo field goal later in the period, the Minutemen pulled even when Phommachanh connected with Keeney-James on a 14-yard touchdown pass with 2:44 to go before the half to make it 10-10. Phommachanh was 5-for-5 on the drive, hitting Keeney-James three times to help the Minutemen find paydirt.

With momentum back with UMass, Toledo immediately snatched it back. The Minutemen’s struggles on special teams continued to plague the team on the ensuing kickoff, as Jacquez Stuart ripped off a 98-yard touchdown to regain the lead and put the Rockets ahead 17-10.

“I thought our guys really competed hard,” Brown said. “I felt good about our second quarter and into the third quarter, the performance of our offense, I thought we did some good things… same thing defensively. [Toledo] had two big plays that really hurt us, and the [kickoff] return for a touchdown. Those things kill you.”

UMass marched down the field thanks to some key third and fourth down conversions, and Lurie drilled a 42-yard field goal just before the gun to make it 17-13 going into the break.

The visitors cut into the deficit further, pulling within 17-16 when Lurie added a 30-yard field goal with 6:44 to go in the third quarter. The Minutemen forced a quick three-and-out on the next possession and got the ball back with a chance to take their first lead of the game, but Phommachanh’s interception, followed by the 73-yard touchdown pass on the next play put UMass behind the eight-ball the rest of the way.

Gleason completed just 8-of-23 passes for 175 yards, but the Minutemen were unable to record a sack for the second straight week. The Rockets managed just 83 yards on 22 carries.

Next up for UMass is another road game against a MAC program. The Minutemen will head to Buffalo on Saturday for a 1 p.m. kickoff against the Bulls. The teams last played in 2022, a 34-7 Buffalo victory.

NOTES: Phommachanh was without a few weapons as the game progressed. Top wide receiver Anthony Simpson suffered a lower body injury diving for a pass in the first half and never returned. Tight end Dom Mazotti also exited the game due to a lower body injury. … The Minutemen ran 88 plays on offense to just 45 for Toledo. ... It was quite a day for the MAC – UMass’ soon-to-be conference home. Northern Illinois went into Notre Dame Stadium and pulled the shocker of Week 2, kicking a late field goal for a 16-14 win over the Fighting Irish. The Minutemen travel to NIU on Oct. 5. … UMass lost linebacker Gerrell Johnson, who was ejected after picking up unsportsmanlike and targeting penalties in the first half. … UMass covered the 18-point spread, and the game went over the 51.5-point total. … Toledo’s defense was a stout unit in 2023. The Rockets were 27th nationally in yards allowed and 23rd in points allowed per game (20.3).