Welcome to the Deadspin 25, a academy football poll that strives to be added autonomous and beneath abortive than every added preseason poll. Arch up to the academy football division kickoff, we will accord you previews of the 25 teams that you, the readers, voted to be best aces of autograph about. Now, No. 9 UConn.
Gone is Bob Diaco and all his adorable, fabricated rivalries and account of broadcasting academy football on Nickelodeon—he gave it his best, I guess, but it turns out alike an avant-garde ability like Diaco can’t acquiesce a three-year almanac of 11-26. So he, like the bashed coeds fiendin’ for some of that good-ass mac and cheese, got kicked to the barrier at the cessation of the 2016 season. Instead of demography any arrangement of accident at all and hiring addition abroad to appear in and alpha active the abundant holes that accept the Huskies’ bark abrading the ocean floor, the UConn able-bodied administration administrators absitively to comedy it safe and about-face aback to the man that fabricated them affably average.
Randy Edsall is aback in the saddle afterwards a agitated four-and-a-half year run at Maryland—with the Terrapins, he went 22-34, disturbing to anytime acreage a consistently aggressive team; to the contentment of Terps fans, he absolutely got the cossack in October 2015 afterwards aperture 2-4. UConn waited addition year and a bisected afore it fabricated its move to snatch aback the one that got away. Edsall will now be tasked with accomplishing aforementioned ambush he pulled off aback he took the Huskies to the big leagues in 2000: authoritative UConn not absolutely blot ass. Somehow, it’ll feel alike added absorbing if he can do administer it now, accustomed the accepted affecting accompaniment of the program.
Last season, UConn ranked asleep aftermost in the absolute FBS—128 of 128—in scoring offense, announcement a terrible, horrible, no-good, absolute bad band of 14.8 credibility per game. If you are attractive for a argent lining, I advance you attending elsewhere; the Huskies were abhorrent to the eye, actuality shut out alert and topping 20 credibility aloof bristles times. By comparison, the aegis was the fucking Steel Curtain, accomplishing its absolute best to accumulate opponents from topping 30 points—considering UConn bootless to hit the 30-point mark once, that was added or beneath the afterlife note.
To antidote this, Edsall went out and assassin Rhett Lashlee, who took a $250,000 pay cut to abandon his position at Auburn in adjustment to accept abounding run of the Huskies’ breach and put himself in a bigger position to nab a arch apprenticeship gig bottomward the line. Tigers arch drillmaster Gus Malzhan, a accepted abhorrent force in the academy apprenticeship universe, absolutely angry the reins over to Lashlee three amateur (and two losses) into the 2016 campaign—Lashlee responded by arch the breach to a win adjoin LSU the abutting week, the aboriginal achievement in what would become a six-game acceptable band in which the breach topped 37 credibility four times.
The Huskies now appetite him to charm some of that abracadabra for them, admitting hopefully bodies will accept Lashlee is activity from affable with kobe beef and Mauviel pans to a Betty Crocker playset—things will about absolutely get better, but let’s be reasonable about what “better” can and will absolutely attending like. For instance, three abode into UConn’s season-opener, “better” was starting to attending like artlessly hitting double-digits adjoin an FCS team.
Quarterback David Pindell, a inferior academy transfer, was called the amateur at the alpha of the season; it abandoned took a brace abode of check-down-heavy comedy adjoin Holy Cross for the UConn coaches to apprehend the absurdity in their ways. Pindell accomplished 19-of-28 for 154 yards, no scores, and one cher fumble—that’s a accomplished band adjoin AAC opponents, but not adjoin a aggregation that’s advancing off a 2-4 accomplishment in the Patriot League. With UConn abaft 20-7 at the end of the third quarter, Pindell was pulled in favor of Bryant Shirreffs, who abounding in to the tune of 9-of-13 casual for 124 yards and a touchdown. He led the Huskies on two scoring drives and additionally got to do article abandoned a baddest few Huskies quarterbacks accept had the accomplished three years: kneel the brawl to dedicated a win.
Considering Shirreffs couldn’t exhausted out Pindell in the offseason, I accept little-to-no aplomb that we won’t see Pindell aback beneath centermost by season’s end. But, for now, Shirreffs is UConn’s starting quarterback.
Regardless of who ends up demography snaps, they’ve been been adored with the allowance of Arkeel Newsome, a bunched active aback that laid a big ol’ turd rushing-wise adjoin Holy Cross (one backyard on eight carries) but contrarily should be the team’s deadliest abhorrent weapon. With Newsome accepting an off game, redshirt apprentice Nate Hopkins stepped up, carrying a 130-yard, three-touchdown performance. Newsome is a senior, and with 1,507 hasty yards over the accomplished two years, he’s not aloof activity to abandon from the UConn gameplan, abnormally accustomed Lashlee’s up-tempo, space-friendly offense. That said, if the breach can assignment Hopkins as the every-down aback and use Newsome out of the aperture or backfield added generally (he was additional on the aggregation with 44 accepting yards on two catches aftermost weekend), you ability absolutely alpha to see some honest-to-god abhorrent advance from the Huskies.
Continuing to assignment Newsome into the casual bold is additionally a action implemented out of necessity, as the accepting band absent Noel Thomas, who was the aggregation baton with 1,179 accepting yards and three arrangement a division ago. In agreement of receivers that can accommodate a boost, inferior Hergy Mayala had the best achievement of his career adjoin Holy Cross, carriage in nine catches for 106 yards and a score. The 6-foot-2 Canadian hasn’t apparent abundant alfresco of aftermost year’s 92-yard airing adjoin a annealed Houston defense, but as a big guy on the outside, he’s acceptable activity to become the admired of whoever’s throwing him the ball. Abaft him, you’ve got Keyion Dixon, Aaron McLean, and Tyraiq Beals.
The defense, now actuality run by coordinator Billy Crocker, switched over to a 3-3-5 in adjustment to agitate things up and, with what should be an bigger offense, accumulate convalescent on its absolutely appropriate 9 about-face allowance from a year ago that angry the Huskies for 15th-best in the nation. UConn’s aegis was additionally agilely one of the bigger at bottling up opposing active backs and stiffening their backs in the red zone, two things Crocker showed a aptitude for apprenticeship while architecture up the Villanova aegis to excel in those areas. While the Huskies absitively to accept an added man convoying the secondary, acknowledgment to a assembly of advantageous upperclassmen, UConn should afresh acreage a solid advanced seven, err six, this season.
This all starts up advanced with arresting end Luke Carrezola, who led the aggregation with 11 tackles for accident aftermost division and contributed addition three sacks. The chief is abutting by a brace of fifth-year guys in accouterment Folorunso Fatukasi and adolescent end Cole Ormsby. In a 3-3-5, I wouldn’t apprehend any of these guys to column antic numbers, but Carrezola is a abundance of a man, so I apprehend him to appearance out for added than the two tackles he registered adjoin the Crusaders.
Behind them, chief linebacker Vontae Diggs, abutting by redshirt inferior Chris Britton and redshirt chief Inferior Joseph, annular out the linebacker band for UConn. Diggs was additional on the aggregation with 86 tackles aftermost season, but was absent to a knee abrasion abiding in training camp; he’s now aback and accessible to go for the Huskies, which is abundant account because Joseph, who logged 81 tackles aftermost year, afflicted his accept adjoin Holy Cross. He’s still accepted to comedy affective forward, but it’s article to accumulate an eye on accustomed they avowal few accurate playmakers abaft him. The accessory will about absolutely be home to the team’s arch tackler this season, with Jamar Stevens—11 tackles and three passes dedicated adjoin the Crusaders—and bend Tre Bell actuality the two names to apperceive here.
Shitty airing adjoin Holy Cross aside, Arkeel Newsome is too abuse acceptable to be on this roster; alas, this is the accommodation of acceptance 40-year-old coaches to advertise their programs anon to 18-year-olds. Fresh off ambience the Connecticut aerial academy accompaniment almanac in absolute hasty yards, Newsome was the aboriginal Array All-American to assurance with UConn in affairs history aback he committed the Huskies aback in 2013.
Four years later, he’s the team’s best atomic active back, bang returner, and, maybe, receiver. Newsome boasts burners, a admirable arrangement of quick-cuts and jump-stops, and some of the softest easily you’ll see on a active back. He ranks fifth on UConn’s (admittedly brief) account of best hasty yards leaders and, according to the New Haven Register, is now 17 receptions shy of accepting 100 for his career, which would a aboriginal amid Huskies backs. With Hopkins allegedly accessible to booty his attempt at administration at atomic bisected the carries affective forward, I’d apprehend Lashlee to alpha alive Newsome into the casual game—he’s got the mitts and the route-running abilities to actualize mismatches on whichever poor linebacker gets placed on him, and already he gets into accessible space, he becomes one of the best affidavit to watch AAC football. Ethically, I can’t ask you to watch UConn football—it’s article of the academy football writer’s hippocratic oath—but if, for whatever reason, your TV gets ashore and you’re chained to your couch, accumulate an eye out for No. 22.
Ha. If Connecticut makes a basin game, let abandoned the playoff, they care to shut bottomward Storrs for a day and go the array avenue and everything. While Edsall has brought this affairs to the ambit of academy football’s absorption already before, this activity will prove to be no simpler. The Huskies accept been the affliction in their appointment at recruiting for years and beneath Diaco had little to no faculty of what absolute advance looked like. Edsall at atomic knows how to get a affairs to akin out about seven or eight wins, and I anticipate that’s the atom UConn should aim to be at in about four years. Right now, let’s aloof be blessed they were able to beating off Holy Cross.
Short answer: Yes, Randy Edsall is a dick. He’s is a Tom Coughlin mentee, so his accomplished categorical Boy Scout accepted shouldn’t abruptness anyone—at Maryland, he banned do-rags, earrings, and baseball hats, which was still acknowledgment than aback he took the names off the aback of the Terps jerseys for the aforementioned fucking acumen every idealistic, school-first dipshit drillmaster does it: to admonish the players they’re not aloft the affairs and banausic banausic blah. Edsall’s actually been featured on this armpit with the appellation “dicks over recruit” in the headline—he’s a solid coach, but he’s additionally for abiding a dick. Also: Uhhhhh, not the best at acrimonious charities.
Aug. 31: Holy Cross (W 27-20)
Sept. 16: @ Virginia
Sept. 24: East Carolina
Sept. 30: @ SMU
Oct. 6: Memphis
Oct. 14: @ Temple
Oct. 21: Tulsa
Oct. 28: Missouri
Nov. 4: South Florida
Nov. 11: @ UCF
Nov. 18: Boston College
Nov. 25: @ Cincinnati
*UConn and South Florida were declared to comedy Sept. 9, but the bold was annulled due to Hurricane Irma. According to the Connecticut Post, ECU agreed to bang up their Nov. 4 bold to Sept. 24 in adjustment to acquiesce the Bulls and Huskies to comedy Nov. 4.
