2010 Connecticut Huskies Football Preview

2009 Results: 8-5, Won Papa John’s Bowl vs. South Carolina

Head Coach: Randy Edsall (12th year, 66-65 Overall)

Home Venue: Rentschler Field (40,000)

No team in the Big East ended their season on higher note last year than the Huskies. Their dominating victory over South Carolina of the SEC opened a lot of eyes around the country and should serve as a reminder to those who don’t think highly of the Big East that this conference features some pretty good football teams. I give a ton of credit to Head Coach Randy Edsall, who for my money is the best coach in the conference. The Huskies are always rock solid fundamentally and are growing yearly as a football school. Is 2010 the year that UConn wins the Big East and earns its first BCS Bowl berth?

OFFENSE

UConn’s offense is typically loaded up to run the football. Two years ago, former Connecticut tailback Donald Brown was a 1st round pick in the NFL draft and last season the Huskies had two players run for over 1,000 yards. Their reputation is so strong that USC junior D.J. Shoemate transferred over the summer after the NCAA handed down sanctions that allowed Trojan upperclassmen to not have to sit out a year. He reason that he headed east was because he wanted the chance to carry the football in this offense. Shoemate also transferred knowing full well that the run-first attack would have room for a 2nd tailback next to junior Jordan Todman (1,188 yards, 14 TDs), who was a 2nd Team All-Big East selection in 2009. Expect both players to have excellent chances at breaking the 1,000 yard barrier this fall.

One major plus for the running game is the presence of a very veteran O-Line that returns four starters. UConn has quickly gained a reputation as a school where under recruited linemen go to thrive, similar to schools like Iowa and Wisconsin. What do all three have in common? They build their entire offense around the running game. Senior guard Zach Hurd and junior center Moe Petrus were both 1st Team All-Big East selections last season and neither player was considered more than a low 2 star prospect upon arrival in Storrs. I firmly believe that they will anchor the strongest O-Line in the Big East this fall.

Where there is concern about the Huskies is in the passing game. Unlike Iowa or Wisconsin, Connecticut hasn’t yet managed to build a solid yet unspectacular passing game to compliment their heavy-handed running game. Senior quarterback Zach Frazer (1,461 yards, 10 TDs, 9 INT) struggled in the early going before getting hurt last season but a solid job down the stretch after returning from injury leads me to believe that he is going to be a much more effective quarterback this season. However, his top returning receiver is junior Isaih Moore, who only had 24 catches last season! Clearly, the Huskies are thin at wide receiver. In fact, I would not be surprised if they took another page out of Wisconsin’s playbook and ended up using sophomore Tight End Ryan Griffin (23 catches, 272 yards) as a primary receiver on many plays.

Here is the bottom line for the Huskies: If they can establish a remotely threatening passing game, this offense is going to be miserable to deal with. The transfer of Shoemate gives Connecticut two strong tailbacks that should thrive behind the bedrock foundation of the league’s top O-Line. In theory, that should open up play action for Frazer, so I think that UConn will see a few players emerge as pass catchers this season. Keep an eye on Griffin because the Husky coaches have visited Wisconsin recently and there was reportedly a great deal of discussion about how to effective use the tight end in a run-first offense. I expect Connecticut to have a very productive (and time-consuming) attack in 2010.

DEFENSE

While the Huskies were by no means terrible defensively last season, they did allow more points than in either of the previous two campaigns. In theory, playing defense for UConn should be a great gig because the offense is going to run so much of the clock with their power attack and keep the defense well rested. With eight starters returning this season, can the Huskies produce one of the league’s best defenses?

Things look good up front. Three starters return from a unit that should see improvement across the board this season as all three were underclassmen last fall. Senior Greg Lloyd (91 tackles) slides down from linebacker to fill the pass-rushing shoes of departed senior Lindsey Witten and should have a good year terrorizing quarterbacks. Meanwhile, both starting DTs are juniors and both should benefit from another year of adding size (both are less than 300 pounds). I fully expect the D-Line to have a strong campaign.

Meanwhile, linebacker will be the strength of this defense. Seniors Lawrence Wilson (140 tackles, 5 sacks, 1st Team All-Big East) and Scott Lutrus (69 tackles, 3.5 sacks, 2nd Team All-Big East, only 8 games) are probably the best pair of linebackers in the league as both seem to be good candidates to make 100 tackles if they remain healthy. I would also not be surprised if both were elected as captains since both are 4th year starters. I expect the heart (literally and figuratively) of the defense to have a big season.

The only part of the defense that concerns me is the secondary. The Huskies, who tragically lost starting corner Jasper Howard in a campus stabbing incident at midseason, must now also replace two 2nd Team All-Big East players who combined for 127 tackles and 9 interceptions last fall. On top of that, both remaining starters are sophomores, which means that corner Blidi Wreh-Wilson (40 tackles,1 INT) and safety Jerome Junior (48 tackles, 1 INT) must evolve into leaders quickly. There is no question that opponents will try to beat the Huskies through the air this fall and I wouldn’t be surprised if they had some success, especially early.

Overall, Connecticut appears to have a solid run D-Line and great linebackers, which are usually the ingredients for a very good run defense. With so much talent up front, you would expect to see a pass rush develop, especially from the reassigned Lloyd. That should help a young secondary get some confidence and that will be the key to a successful campaign. If the pass defense holds up, Connecticut will have a great defense.

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SCHEDULE

This is such an interesting schedule because the Huskies open the season at Michigan. Talk about a game that could define which direction both schools go in 2010! Personally, I think the Huskies have the edge in this game with their power running game up against Michigan’s questionable run defense and that could be the kick-start to a great season. The only other interesting game on the non-league slate is a visit from SEC minnow Vanderbilt in early October, a game that the Huskies should win.

In the Big East, Connecticut only has three home league games but they come against West Virginia, Pitt and Cincinnati, the other three teams that I think have the potential to win the league in 2010. That’s a major edge and if the Huskies can take two out of those three then they could find themselves in the driver’s seat in the Big East.

OUTLOOK

There is certainly a lot to like about this Connecticut team. Their game plan is straight forward: They’re going to run the ball down your throat, melt the clock, take care of the football, and play great defense. With a very highly respected coach like Edsall in charge, expect the Huskies to show the discipline necessary to win games in that fashion.

One of the interesting subplots of the offseason was speculation that Connecticut could be a candidate for Big Ten expansion. That’s especially relevant right now because the Huskies play what I consider to be traditional ‘Big Ten Football.’ Much like Big Ten comparables Iowa and Wisconsin, the Huskies aren’t the favorite to win the league in any given season as programs with bigger names like Pitt and West Virginia (Ohio State and Penn State) are generally considered the favorites. However, much like their Big Ten doppelgangers, this Connecticut team is fully capable of running the life out of any team it plays and is a very legitimate threat to win the conference title.

I fully expect Connecticut to open the season up by playing ‘Big Ten Football’ and running the ball right now Michigan’s throat en route to a victory in the Big House. This is appropriately symbolic as Rich Rodriguez has tried to play the Big East’s brand of finesse football in the Big Ten and should serve as a warning to the rest of the league that the Huskies are for real. While I still believe that Pittsburgh is the favorite to win the league thanks to their great talent, their visit to Connecticut is the most likely game on their schedule (and they play Miami this season) to end in a loss. That said, the lack of a passing game and concerns about their aerial defense will be enough to cost the Huskies a game or two in league play and that will prevent them from winning the conference this season. However, I still think that Connecticut will end up winning ten games this season and finish tied for 2nd place in the Big East.

PREDICTED RESULT: 10-2 (5-2 Big East)