UMaine grads take part in Super Bowl, World Cup races

Fans of the University of the Maine have a lot to cheer about.

Former Black Bear football star Trevor Bates is a practice player for the New England Patriots, who square off with Atlanta on Sunday, Feb. 5 in Super Bowl LI.

If the Patriots win, Bates will earn a Super Bowl ring. The December 2015 graduate is in Houston prepping the Patriots offense for what the Falcons defense may do at NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas. The Portland Press Herald spoke with Bates this week in Houston.

The linebacker from Westbrook has been a member of the team’s practice squad since November. He has twice been named a Practice Player of the Week.

Bates was a three-time All-Colonial Athletic Association player for the Black Bears.

In mid-December at Olympic Village in Lake Placid, New York, UMaine graduates James Reed and Frank Del Duca excelled in their respective four-person bobsled World Cup races.

Both are members of the USA Bobsled National Team. They live and train in Lake Placid and are striving to make the 2018 U.S. Olympic team that will compete in South Korea.

Reed was a hurdler at UMaine. The 2013 graduate earned his first World Cup silver medal with teammates Steven Holcomb, Carlo Valdes and Sam McGuffie.

Del Duca was a sprinter and long jumper for the Black Bears. The 2013 graduate’s four-person bobsled team placed fourth in Lake Placid.

Four UMaine alums — Jim Geary, Douglas “Ben” Reed, Lauren Reed and Geraldine (Geary) Reed — cheered on Reed and Del Duca in Lake Placid during the Dec. 12–17 competition.