UConn Football

In an embarrassing display of self-hatred and stupidity, the University of Connecticut agreed to play a long-term football series with Notre Dame, which includes home games for Notre Dame, but none for Connecticut.

In either a six or 10-game series (it's not clear at this time), UConn showed a lack of respect for itself and the Big East Conference by allowing Notre Dame to push them around so easily.

The first game of this series will be played this coming year, in South Bend.

At one time, this series was to be 10 games with Notre Dame getting home games in 2009, 2011, 2014, 2016, and 2018. UConn had agreed to play the other five games at neutral sites—2013, 2017, and 2020 at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, Massachusetts, and 2015 and 2019 in Giants Stadium, in New Jersey.

UConn's coach, Randy Edsall, said, "These games will be a tremendous recruiting tool for our program, enhance our national television exposure and increase visibility in two metropolitan areas in which we have significant alumni."

This statement is so off-line because the fact is, UConn has already become a big-time program and doesn't need to play Notre Dame to showcase their product.

Most of the college football world takes notice when you win a Big East Championship, play in multiple bowl games and have three players drafted in the first two rounds of the 2009 NFL draft.

If this is some kind of ploy by Edsall to put pressure on the state to enlarge Rentschler Field, it's not going to work.

It's not going to work because if 15 or 20 thousand seats were added, Notre Dame would still say: "We're not playing there."

Rutgers and Notre Dame had arranged a six-game deal, but Notre Dame wanted to play their three road games in Giants Stadium instead of Rutgers Stadium, which will have 56,000 seats in a couple of months.

The difference between UConn and Rutgers: UConn officials said, "Playing Notre Dame would be a big boost for UConn's up-and-coming football program." Rutgers AD Bob Mulcahy said, "We feel Rutgers games should be played on campus." 

Rutgers called off the series.

UConn didn't just betray its fans, it put the Big East Conference in a bad light.

UConn made the conference look weak, and if Rutgers, Pitt, or Syracuse were asked to join the Big Ten as the 12th team, Connecticut's choice to give up home field would be one reason to get out now.

What was the University of Connecticut thinking? 

Were they thinking of the money? Because they sure weren't thinking of their fans. 

If it was about the money that these larger stadiums would generate, let's see if Connecticut ever sees any of it. 

This is such a bad deal that it's flat out embarrassing.

This is comparable to Jim Calhoun contacting Notre Dame officials and insisting that any time his team has to play them on the road, because Notre Dame's building only holds 10,000, the games must be played in Pittsburgh.

Well that's not going to happen because the Big East Conference has rules.

And what about the Big East Conference?

Note Dame, a member in all sports except football, seems not to care too much about helping out fellow members when it comes to football. 

They quickly forget that it wasn't too long ago when their stadium only seated 55,000 fans.

UConn really blew this one and they should get out while they can, even if it means paying some kind of penalty. 

Unlike the fortitude and foresight Rutgers showed, Connecticut showed a horrible lack of judgement—and a horrible lack of balls!

Donald Brown is a running back from the University of Connecticut. He is short at 5'10'', but since he is 210 pounds his height doesn't matter. He doesn't have anything special that appeals to scouts, but it's hard to find something he can't do.

His early entry in this year's draft came after leading the nation with 2,083 rushing yards and scoring 18 touchdowns in his junior campaign. Including a game of 261 rushing yards in the 2009 International bowl. 

This year he was named All-American and the Big East Player of the Year for his great junior campaign. His first two years on campus he accounted for 1,717 yards because of injuries.

He has been contributing these numbers since high school, when he rushed for 2,032 yards as a senior and 27 touchdowns. He was also named for countless awards and honors.

His speed has helped his draft stock when he ran a 4.51 in the NFL Scouting Combine. His draft stock has been increasing since the NFL Scouting Combine and will still most likely continue to rise. 

He will have his doubters on draft day, but will be an early second-round pick. He has a arm span of 31 1/2 inches and a hand span of nine inches.

Positives

He has a compact build. He runs with a low center of gravity, which keeps him from being less vulnerable from weak tackles. He has great speed to and through the hole. He might have the best vision and stopping-and-starting ability in the entire draft.

He is extremely fast when he goes to his second level. He has great balance to appear to lean one way to deceive the oncoming safety, only to bounce another. He has soft hands when coming out of the backfield. He will always give his best effort when playing.

Negatives

He is a bit narrow in the shoulders and might not have the frame to gain much weight. He lacks breakaway speed to pull away from NFL defenders. He has marginal size and strength as a pass blocker.

Past UConn running backs' success are not going to help Mr. Brown at all because they have all been busts in the NFL. I have Donald Brown going in the early second round to the Cleveland Browns, 36 overall.

UConn’s Donald Brown led the nation in rushing last year with 2,083 yards. Not surprisingly, the junior decided to leave school on a high note and bolt for the NFL.

But can the Huskies produce another top-shelf fantasy running back in 2009? Let's dive into this issue and examine who might be up to the task.

Cast of Characters: 
Andre Dixon (senior)
Jordan Todman (sophomore)

What’s the scoop?

We’re just going to cut to the chase here: we don’t think UConn will produce a fantasy stud at the running back position this fall. Well, at least not one nearly the caliber of a Donald Brown. 

There are a couple reasons for this:

1. The Huskies have a new offensive coordinator in Joe Moorhead (Akron’s O.C. from 2007-2008). They are scrapping their conservative, run-heavy offense for a more wide open, no-huddle attack. 

This isn’t crippling news for the running game, but there is no doubt the passing game will be emphasized in greater fashion this fall.

2. History doesn’t suggest it.  Contrary to popular perception, UConn isn’t exactly a running back factory.  Coach Randy Edsall has used a split-back attack more often than not.  Since joining the Big East in 2004, the Huskies have produced only two 1,000-yard rushers:  Brown in 2008 and Cornell Brockington in 2004. 

Leading UConn rushers in the Big East era:

2008
Donald Brown—367 carries, 2083 yards, 18 TDs
Jordan Todman—47 carries, 296 yards, 3 TDs
Andre Dixon—9 carries, 37 yards, 0 TDs

2007
Andre Dixon—167 carries, 828 yards, 3 TDs
Donald Brown—170 carries, 821 yards, 8 TDs

2006
Donald Brown—161 carries, 896 yards, 7 TDs
Terry Caulley—120 carries, 674 yards, 3 TDs

2005
Terry Caulley—141 carries, 659 yards, 6 TDs
Lou Allen—86 carries, 381 yards, 3 TDs
Cornell Brockington—85 carries, 337 carries, 4 TDs

2004
Cornell Brockington—238 carries, 1,218 yards, 11 TDs
Chris Bellamy—71 carries, 296 yards, 3 TDs

The candidates to tote the rock for the Huskies in 2009 boil down to Andre Dixon and Jordan Todman. 

Dixon lead the team in rushing in 2007, but is 2008 campaign was riddled with bad luck and poor decisions.  Slowed by injury, he watched from the sideline as Donald Brown grabbed the headlines. 

Then, in December he was arrested on a drunken driving charge and was suspended from the team indefinitely. 

This marked the second time in two years Dixon had been disciplined by Coach Edsall.  If he can keep his nose clean this offseason, he will be in the mix for carries this fall.

Sophomore-to-be Jordan Todman made the most of his opportunity in the No. 2 role last fall, averaging over six yards per carry. 

He is a smaller, shiftier back who could be a nice fit in the new offense.

If your fantasy draft was today (03/11/09)....
Dixon and Todman are both worthy of draft consideration in the late rounds.  It’s certainly possible that one could emerge as a 1,000-yard rusher, but don’t expect Donald Brown-like production. 

History doesn’t suggest it, and the new offensive philosophy won’t help either.

Todd DeVries is the founder of CollegeFootballGeek.com, your premier resource for college fantasy football information. Check us out.

Donald Brown continues to show why he's going to become a premier running back in the NFL. He's one of the hardest to tackle 5'10", 210-lb. running backs to enter the NFL Draft in a long time. 

Brown is hoping to become the highest selected player ever out of the University of Connecticut. The leading rusher this past season in the FBS, Brown just kept adding the accolades to his name.

After a slow sophomore season, an injury to RB Andre Dixon opened the job to be Brown's alone, and he didn't disappoint. After all was done, Brown became the university's first ever All-American and offensive Big East Player of the Year. The decision to enter the NFL Draft early after his junior year was a tough one, but who could blame him?

What amazes me about Donald Brown is how he knew teams were targeting him game in and game out, but that never once stopped him. He would grind out each and every carry, usually picking up a solid five yards.

On a team that had a lot of trouble throwing the ball in the air, Brown was the ultimate workhorse. Oftentimes Brown would carry the ball 30 to 40 times a game.  He ran for a record-setting 262 yards on his way to the International Bowl MVP against Buffalo.

As the NFL Combine continues, Brown is still competing to prove to scouts why he's the top running back in this year's draft. You can say what you want about his size or speed but one NFL team is going to be very happy to have his services come this April.

Brown was the fifth-fastest running back in the 40-yard dash, a drill that often gives scouts an idea of the speed a running back has. What's more impressive is he placed second in the 20-yard shuttle and first in the 60-yard shuttle. These drills show the cuts and explosiveness of a runner. Lastly, Brown was able to finish second in the broad jump and first in the long jump at an astonishing 41.5-inch vertical jump. 

Brown is the total package and will be impressing somewhere on Sundays in the future. He's never gotten the real credit that he deserves. There are other top backs in this draft who have been ranked higher than him, but he gave it his all at the NFL Combine this weekend in Indianapolis.

Donald Brown continues to reach levels of success that many people believed he never would. That's what's going to lead him to a successful career playing on Sundays. 

The International Bowl   Rogers Centre   Toronto, ON

Buffalo (8-5) vs. Connecticut (7-5)

January 3, 2009    12 EST   The Line: Connecticut -6

Overview:

When I think International I didn't exactly think Canada, I was thinking more along the lines of how the NFL plays a game in Europe every year. Well in College Football apparently International is Canada, Toronto to be exact.

While one of the arguments for the bowl system is to reward the teams for a good season, I'm not so sure Toronto in early January is such a fantastic prize.

Buffalo are the MAC Champions. The Bulls shocked the world by knocking off a then undefeated Ball State team as 15 point underdogs in the championship game to get to this point.

Turner Gil and his coaching staff are unknown no longer as his name has already become a regular on the lists every time a big time coach is canned or decides to leave. In just a few short years Gil has turned a perennial doormat into a bowl team, no small feat.

Connecticut started the season by winning their first five games and then went on to win only twice in their last seven, while one of those wins was a blowout of eventual conference champion Cincinnati, the trademark of the second half was games lost to team with a decent record. While UConnn was right in a lot of those games, they didn't do what they needed in order to walk away with the win.They will need to play well in order to win this one.

See Mitch's International Bowl Pick against the spread

Fifty years ago, halfback Willie Evans and the 1958 Buffalo Bulls football team had to turn down a bowl-bid to the Tangerine Bowl, leading the program into a downward spiral that would haunt the school well into the next millennium.

Half a century later, the Bulls are finally stampeding into the spotlight.

After an improbable 42-24 victory in the Mid-American Conference (MAC) Championship game against then-No. 12 Ball State, the Bulls (8-5) are finally going to their first bowl game on their own terms. On Jan. 3, the Bulls will faceoff against Connecticut (7-5) in the International Bowl, held at the Rogers Centre in Toronto.

"I'm just proud," said Buffalo head coach Turner Gill. "We came to a program where there wasn't a lot of hope or expectations. We came together as a unit and that's why this football team is successful."

After losing four of their first six games, the Bulls erupted with a five-game winning streak, beginning with a 27-24 overtime victory against Army. Following were key victories against Akron and Bowling Green, putting the Bulls in their first ever championship game.
   
"Nobody probably outside of our locker room, our administration and our fans thought we could do this," said Buffalo senior quarterback Drew Willy. "It just feels awesome to know that we are MAC champions."

The Bulls are led by a trio of athletes that are helping the team gain national attention.

Willy has thrown for 3,091 yards, 25 touchdowns and five interceptions heading into the bowl game, while throwing 13 touchdown passes and only one interception in his last seven games.

Junior wide receiver Naaman Roosevelt has been Willy’s go-to-guy throughout the season. He has had 96 receptions for 1,312 yards, earning 13 touchdowns in the process. He is currently ranked eighth in the nation in receiving yards.

For Roosevelt, knowing that his team has won a MAC Championship as well as heading to the International Bowl is something he is still trying to process.

“It's a crazy feeling,” he said. “It's unbelievable.”

Junior running back James Starks has been a monster on the ground, rushing for 1,308 yards and scoring 15 touchdowns. He is currently ranked eighth in the nation in rushing, a statistic which is one reason why the Bulls are playing their first football game ever in the month of January.

"It was, 'UB doesn't win, blah, blah blah.' It was real bad," Starks said. "Now I can talk to those people and say, 'Hey, look at what we did."

While Starks is climbing the national rankings, Huskies running back Donald Brown has singlehandedly been the factor in Connecticut’s offense. The nation’s leading rusher leads the FBS with 1,822 rushing yards and has scored 17 touchdowns throughout the season.

While the International Bowl has yet to be played, Brown is already thinking to the future, announcing he will return to Connecticut for his senior year in hopes to fulfill a dream he has.

“My goal is to go to the Orange Bowl,” Brown said. “That's what I want to do, and next year will be my last shot."

Brown will more than likely carry the offense on his shoulders against the Bulls. Buffalo is ranked 83rd in the nation in rush defense, allowing 158.8 yards per game. Currently, quarterbacks Tyler Lorenzen and Zach Frazer have struggled, combining for only four touchdowns and 14 interceptions throughout the year.

The Huskies trip to Toronto will be the first time in their history that they have earned bowl games in consecutive seasons since joining Division-IA. Because of this, head coach Randy Edsall believes that it only shows how hard his athletes are working.

"For the overall good of the program, it's a significant step to be in back-to-back bowls," Edsall said. "I just want to give the kids a lot of credit for doing what they've done."

Kickoff from the Rogers Centre takes place at noon.

WVU put on another quality second-half performance today, holding UConn to only 72 second-half yards and scoring four touchdowns.

But the key play in a second half full of mistakes for UConn began with a whopper, when WR Kashif Moore, who had beaten Brandon Hogan, who had no help, by five yards, dropped a ball right in his hands. If the ball is delivered on the mark, it’s a walk-in touchdown.

Even if Moore could have hung onto the ball, he’d have been down at the 10-yard line and UConn would have been set up for a TD or at least a FG attempt.

That would have made the score 20-7 and a different game.

But Moore dropped the ball, UConn went backwards on the next play, and the Huskies had to punt.

After that, the Mountaineers went into second-half-Auburn mode. Even though Noel Devine was held to only 60 yards rushing, Pat White rushed and passed for more than 100 yards each, throwing for one touchdown (to Jock Sanders, who had three TDs) and running for two more, both vintage Pat White runs.

It’s amazing that after four years of seeing White, defenders still can’t take the right angle on him. They always take too sharp of an angle at White, which means that when they get to the spot where they think they’re going to tackle White, he’s already passed by.

On the other hand, if you take too shallow of an angle on White, you’re giving up yardage and creating space in front of him, inviting him to juke you.

That was White’s second touchdown run, when he squirted through three UConn defenders, who were certain they had him. On his first touchdown run, White appeared sacked but then sidestepped out of the pocket and glided—that’s the only word for it—down the left sideline.

I don’t know how he managed to not step out of bounds. I think White has the power to turn himself into a two-dimensional shape at will, allowing him to slip through paper-thin slots.

I guess I know why Coach Stewart moved Hogan to cornerback: His upside is pretty high. If he gets his hands on an interception—he got two today—you’re almost guaranteed at least a 20-yard return. His second return was a speedy upfield knife. And he really can’t learn less about how to play cornerback.

I was glad to see Mortty Ivy get another interception (his third of the season) and Scooter Berry pick up a fumble. Also, the defense held UConn running back Donald Brown—the nation’s second-leading rusher—to less than 100 yards. A nice feat. In addition, the three-man rush of the defensive line is really starting to bring the pressure.

All told, UConn had a whopping five turnovers. UConn seniors have never beaten WVU.

All in all, it was a solid road win against a Big East foe, knocking them out of the conference race. It was, by the way, WVU’s first road win of the season.

WVU is 3-0 in the Big East and the only undefeated team. The only other teams with one loss are Cincy—which comes to Mountaineer Field next Saturday night, where magic things happen—and Pitt, which WVU gets in its second-to-last game and probably is the toughest game remaining, though Cincy’s defense looked pretty disciplined and tough against South Florida on Thursday night.

Weird, ramshackle South Florida is in free-fall with three conference losses, comes to Morgantown in December, and by then probably will have lost interest.

When I think about Connecticut football, I think about the 2007 season: a nice record, but they never really beat anyone.

Yes, they beat South Florida last year. But that was after South Florida turned into a shadow of their former selves.

They played Duke, Maine, Temple, and Akron in four of their first five games. They beat a lesser Louisville team with the help of a fake fair catch. I just didn't see anything that impressed me.

When they had a chance to make a name for themselves and win the outright Big East title, they got completely smoked by West Virginia 66-21. But they were a young team that was just growing into itself.

Fast forward to 2008, and they beat Hofstra, Temple, Virginia, Baylor, Louisville, and Cincinnati—not exactly a murderers' row. They gave one away to Rutgers and got throttled by North Carolina. Outside of the Cincinnati win, there's nothing impressive to look at.

But that Cincinnati game was their last game, and that does concern me. Because up until that game, I thought Cincinnati was going sneak into a BCS berth out of the Big East. Obviously, a lot has changed in the past week.

Any talk about the Huskies' success starts with Donald Brown. He leads the nation in yards per carry, yards per game, and is second in total rushing yards.

Other than that, they don't stick out in any categories that would lead you to think they are doing something sneaky like not turning the ball over or not being penalized. They're 50th in penalty yards per game and 37th in turnover margin at +.50.

Like West Virginia, they are one of the worst passing teams in D-I. They just run the ball very well, and they do it often.

As I say all this, it is with the understanding that West Virginia hasn't been a world-beater outside of the Auburn game.

But Connecticut, with their third string quarterback, overpowered what I thought was a tough Cincinnati team—much in the same fashion West Virginia beat Auburn. Both teams just took over the second half and capitalized on the other team's mistakes.

If you believe West Virginia is just now hitting its stride, you can say the same thing about the Huskies.

What to take from all this? Mistakes will be the difference in this game. Turnovers and penalties...

Maybe no one would have predicted it before the season began, but WVU’s noon game at UConn has turned out to be a showdown between two of the nation’s top 10 running backs.

UConn’s Donald Brown is leading the nation, averaging 166 yards per game.

Based on his past two games, WVU’s Noel Devine has vaulted into the nation’s No. 9 position, averaging 121 yards per game.

So far, Brown has accumulated 1,324 yards to Devine’s 849 yards.

Brown is a strong, fast back, but more of a power runner at 5'10", 208 pounds. He’s averaging 5.6 yards per carry.

We know what kind of a back the small-and-strong Devine is; he’s averaging a whopping 7.4 yards per carry.

Last year, in WVU’s 66-21 victory over UConn, the Mountaineers rushed for more than 500 yards against what was touted as a top defense.

This year, UConn is allowing only 110 yards per game rushing, good for No. 26 nationally. (WVU, ranked No. 48, is allowing 123 yards per game.)

At the same time, WVU is back to piling up rushing yards and heading toward the top of Div. 1 rushing offenses: Now averaging 231 yards per game, WVU is ranked 10th nationally in rushing. (UConn is No. 17, at 214 yards per game.)

So, both teams come in with a strong rushing attack and tough run defense to square off for a redux of last year’s de facto Big East Conference championship. If WVU wins, it remains undefeated in the Big East and gives UConn its second conference loss, practically knocking the Huskies out of the race for the BCS bowl bid.

UConn is playing musical quarterbacks, but all it needs is someone to hand the ball off to Brown (and this year’s forgotten man, Andre Dixon, who’s had success against WVU). If WVU can throttle UConn’s ground game, it will force the Huskies to go to the air with an inexperienced quarterback. And the way WVU’s defense has been growing on pass defense and pressure, that matchup favors the Mountaineers.

My buddy Rob says that if WVU can go up to UConn and nail down a 45-14 win—just about the team’s average winning score during the 2006-07 seasons—then he’ll believe the Mountaineers, following their thrashing of Auburn, are really back.

Sounds about right. Though I’d take a 20-17 victory, as well.

The Big East Network Game of the Week at noon on Saturday, Nov. 1 is between the West Virginia Mountaineers and the Connecticut Huskies as they fight for sole possession of first place in the Big East Conference.

The Mountaineers are currently atop the Big East Conference, with a 2-0 record after winning their fourth straight game, 34-17, over the Auburn Tigers last Thursday.  Their season record is 5-2.

The Huskies, with a record of 6-2 and 2-1 in the Big East, are fresh off a 40-16 win over the Cincinnati Bearcats.  They will want to avenge last season's 66-21 loss at the hands of Pat White and company in Morgantown.

This year's matchup will be at Rentschler Field where the Huskies have won 11 straight games.  The Mountaineers, however, have been defeated in this year's two road games.

Connecticut will be led by junior Donald Brown, the nation's leading rusher.

Regarding Brown, West Virginia's head coach, Bill Stewart said, "We’re going to face the best running back in our league.  He has close to 1,400 yards in eight games," Stewart said. "Are you kidding me? We better be ready." 

Brown has run the ball 235 times for 1,324 yards this season and has reached the end zone 14 times.

“He is just tough and relentless,” said West Virginia safety Sidney Glover. “He is physical the way he is stiff-arming people right now. It’s just another challenge for us on Saturday to hold him down and that’s what we’re working on.”

The Mountaineers have been running the ball well the past few games. Sophomore Noel Devine has 849 yards this season and has run for 100 yards or more in four games, including a career-high 207-yard performance over Auburn. 

On Thursday night West Virginia proved that quarterback Pat White can pass the ball a little bit, too.

"We were on and Pat was on," Stewart said. "We threw the ball to Wes Lyons, he threw the crossing routes, and he really only made one bad throw—the throw to Dorrell Jalloh when he threw behind him—but it was the same play Dorrell scored on."

White's three touchdowns against the Tigers gave him 12 for the year and he is now just two away from tying his career-high of 14, which he threw last season.

Junior Alric Arnett of West Virginia hauled in a 44 yard touchdown last week for his third of the season and Dorrell Jalloh caught two of White's passes for scores.

"We’re clicking." Arnett said. "The game plan has pretty much been the same. We are going to throw the ball and run the ball. It’s just that we came out and we executed and everyone did their job."

The Mountaineer offense will need to do just that on Saturday, as they will be going up against a Huskies defense that ranks in the top two in the Big East in numerous defensive categories, including scoring defense, total defense, pass efficiency defense, interceptions, sacks, fourth-down defense, and red-zone defense.

West Virginia will take the field with a defense that has seemed to improve since the beginning of the season. Against the Tigers, the Mountaineer defense gave up 260 yards of total offense, but really put the clamps on the offense in the second half.

"I wouldn’t say that all of our kinks are worked out but we were up for the Thursday night game," sophomore linebacker JT Thomas said. "A lot of guys were ready to play but that is in the past. We have to get ready to go up to UConn and have a good outing."