We have a football team too... Guru's UConn Huskies (NCAA 14)

[RoundingThird]

Re: We have a football team too... Guru's UConn Huskies (NCAA 14)

Most of the time, you either stop the option completely or not at all. As is the case here, there is no in between.

[thesportsguru11]

Re: We have a football team too... Guru's UConn Huskies (NCAA 14)

Better luck next week against Army. No excuses this time, you just had a practice game

Yeah, sure hope it's that way. I wish we had Army before Navy with Navy being in the AAC and all..I'm going to be so sick of the option by the end of this game, I know it.

Most of the time, you either stop the option completely or not at all. As is the case here, there is no in between.

Yeah, I mean look back to last year's Army game. We did almost as badly then, haha. Our rush defense has been non existent this year, so fingers crossed.

[RoundingThird]

Re: We have a football team too... Guru's UConn Huskies (NCAA 14)

Yeah, NCAA seems weird about that. Even my best Bowling Green teams couldn't stop the run whatsoever.

[thesportsguru11]

Re: We have a football team too... Guru's UConn Huskies (NCAA 14)

Second verse, same as the first

Army, led by rushing attack, pounds UConn in rematch


Matt Giachinta rumbles for a TD.

Going to keep this short, there isn't much to say here really. The title speaks for itself.

I'm sensing a strange feeling of de ja vu.

Oh wait....

Army, coming to E. Hartford on Military Appreciation Day, must have really enjoyed the ceremony or something. Because, much like last year, Army crushed UConn and exposed the Huskies' weak rush defense all game long en route to a convincing 40-24 win. They now push their record to 4-0, equaling their impressive start from last year.

With Army's second consecutive win over the Huskies, Army has now accounted for something like 600 yards of rushing offense in those two games. Yeah...

Sad part is, as I mentioned this game was eerily like Navy last week and even last year's game vs. the Knights. It was never really close.

The game was tied at 3 after one, but Army really broke things open in the second quarter. A.J. Schurr ran Army inside the red zone at the outset of the frame, and Joe Walker took the lead with a 10 yard run.

After a UConn 3 and out, Army took 3 plays before Walker punched in another TD, 17-3. Daniel Grochowski's field goal at the end of the half made it 20-3, and capped a 17-0 run from the Knights.

With UConn's offense completely drowning, Army continued to score. With their defense ranked 7th in the nation in points per game (13.7) coming in, Bryant Shirreffs and Tim Boyle (brief injury sub) both struggled mightily, throwing incompletions galore and 3 picks between them.

With Max DeLorenzo unable to get anything going (only 15 yards on 8 carries, UConn abandoned ship early), this wasn't really good as the Huskies needed to get something going on offense, somewhere to contend with their bad defensive counterparts.

While UConn pulled within 2 scores at a few stages late in the game, (including a beautiful play action TD pass to Thomas Lucas from 80 yards out) Walker's 30 yard TD run at the start of the 4th helped Army build on their lead. Matt Giachinta's 75 yard TD run after a UConn score ultimately iced the game.

Arkeel Newsome returned a kick for a TD, but it was no use.

The UConn offense completely floundered all game, not as much as the defense though. However, I think that is a consequence of the option offense, and I hope this doesn't happen next week against a surprisingly good Tulsa team. Because if something goes wrong, oh boy.

Army Black Knights at Connecticut Huskies
Sep 26, 2015	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	SCORE
Army Black Knights (4-0)	3	17	3	17	40
Connecticut Huskies (2-2)	3	0	7	14	24

Scoring Summary
FIRST QUARTER SCORING		ARMY	CONN
4:05	(ARMY) Grochowski 49 FG	3	0
:46	(CONN) Puyol 21 FG	3	3
SECOND QUARTER SCORING		ARMY	CONN
6:42	(ARMY) Walker 10 rush (Grochowski kick)	10	3
4:56	(ARMY) Walker 18 rush (Grochowski kick)	17	3
:00	(ARMY) Grochowski 44 FG	20	3
THIRD QUARTER SCORING		ARMY	CONN
3:03	(ARMY) Grochowski 35 FG	23	3
2:50	(CONN) Shirreffs 80 pass Lucas (Puyol kick)	23	10
FOURTH QUARTER SCORING		ARMY	CONN
5:47	(ARMY) Walker 30 rush (Grochowski kick)	30	10
4:06	(CONN) Shirreffs 2 pass Myers (Puyol kick)	30	17
3:46	(ARMY) Giachinta 75 rush (Grochowski kick)	37	17
3:35	(CONN) Newsome 92 return (Puyol kick)	37	24
1:04	(ARMY) Grochowski 29 FG	40	24

Army Black Knights PASSING C/A YDS TD INT A.J. Schurr 7-9 132 0 0 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD A.J. Schurr 27 106 3.9 0 Matt Giachinta 12 131 10.9 1 Joe Walker 7 96 13.7 3 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD Lewis Johnson 2 46 24.0 0 Edgar Poe 2 44 22.0 0 Xavier Moss 2 37 18.5 0 DEFENSE TACK SACK INT TD Jeremy Timpf 5 0 1 0 Ryan Alexander 4 2 0 0 Stephen Johnson 3 0 1 0

Connecticut Huskies PASSING C/A YDS TD INT Bryant Shirreffs 14-29 216 2 2 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD Max DeLorenzo 8 15 1.8 0 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD Noel Thomas 5 68 13.6 0 Thomas Lucas 3 124 41.3 1 Sean McQuillan 3 22 7.3 0 DEFENSE TACK SACK INT TD Obi Melifonwu 13 0 0 0 Graham Stewart 8 0 0 0 Marquise Vann 3 1 0 0

Yeah, NCAA seems weird about that. Even my best Bowling Green teams couldn't stop the run whatsoever.

After today, I have no idea how to stop it. Thank god we never play Army. Ever again.

[whughes]

Re: We have a football team too... Guru's UConn Huskies (NCAA 14)

Tough couple of weeks for your boys. I personally think it hurts more to lose after giving up a ton of rushing yards than it does after giving up a ton of passing yards. I'd rather lose to a guy that threw for 400 yards than a team that ran for 200+

[thesportsguru11]

Re: We have a football team too... Guru's UConn Huskies (NCAA 14)

NCAA Players of the Week

Tough couple of weeks for your boys. I personally think it hurts more to lose after giving up a ton of rushing yards than it does after giving up a ton of passing yards. I'd rather lose to a guy that threw for 400 yards than a team that ran for 200+

This is definitely going to sting, as I felt that BYU and Missou were our toughest games, not Army and Navy. At least we never play Army again. Ever.

[whughes]

Re: We have a football team too... Guru's UConn Huskies (NCAA 14)

At least you're not the only team that struggles against the option. Georgia Tech beat up on Louisville too

[thesportsguru11]

Re: We have a football team too... Guru's UConn Huskies (NCAA 14)

UConn Recruiting Check-In; 4 commits and more offers

We have reached that point in the year where we need to start looking at recruiting. Already UConn has landed 4 recruits, and are looking at several others who could contribute early. Today we will look at the 4 commits and 2 of the most important players that haven't yet committed.

UConn has landed three linebackers, all of whom could contribute down the line as the Huskies lose three starters to graduation after this season. While none are studs, they still have potential nonetheless, and fill obvious holes on the defense immediately.

Chase has solid size, and is different from any of UConn's current starters, as he excels in coverage. UConn's linebackers today are all run stoppers, and if Chase develops into a starter, Diaco could stick him at middle linebacker and have him help in the secondary. Chase could also move to safety if a need arises.

Coleman is more of a typical UConn linebacker, as he is balanced he reminds the staff of Jefferson Ashiru. Coleman projects to play on the outside, and because of depth he could crack the two deep as early as 2017.

French is similar to Chase (coverage skills), but I think he projects to play outside. French appears to be the biggest project of the 3 (if the coaches stick him at linebacker), but again could play and be successful down the line.






Brantell Webb, a mammoth offensive tackle, has also committed to UConn. An imposing man at 6'6 327 pounds, Webb is a powerful run blocker who has a bright future with UConn's promising young running back corps. With depth a desperate concern going forward, Webb is much welcomed and could start early for the Huskies.





Two other big targets for UConn who have not yet committed are offensive guard Josh Parrish, the #2 guard prospect in the land, and JUCO Athlete Quintin Harrell.

Parrish, if he sticks with UConn and commits, will most likely start immediately next year. It's just so hard to ignore his obvious talents in the trenches. Especially when you look at UConn's O-Line play in 2015 (not very good).

Harrell is a major wildcard, but a gem nonetheless. The local prospect projects as a defensive lineman, but could play offensive line in emergencies. With Kenton Adeyemi graduating, UConn has a little depth behind him. However, Harrell could be in line to start immediately as well. What's better about Harrell is that he can play end or tackle, making him even more useful should he commit.

At least you're not the only team that struggles against the option. Georgia Tech beat up on Louisville too

Ha, yeah. I'll be interested to see how GT fares going forward, remember they peaked at #10 in the polls last season, lost a bunch of games late and fell out of national headlines..

[whughes]

Re: We have a football team too... Guru's UConn Huskies (NCAA 14)

Ha, yeah. I'll be interested to see how GT fares going forward, remember they peaked at #10 in the polls last season, lost a bunch of games late and fell out of national headlines..

Ya they seem to do that quite a bit in all of my dynasties too. Not sure what's up with that

[thesportsguru11]

Re: We have a football team too... Guru's UConn Huskies (NCAA 14)

[thesportsguru11]

Re: We have a football team too... Guru's UConn Huskies (NCAA 14)

Pete Carroll would have ran...

UConn implodes in 4th, lose in OT




(TOP) Josh Atkinson's winning TD in Overtime sealed heartbreak for East Hartford. (BOTTOM) Will Barrow takes full advantage of our stupidity. Need I say more?

Bob Diaco's decision to throw on 3rd and short with a minute left in the game (with one Tulsa timeout left, no less), will forever haunt me. It'll haunt Pete Carroll too.

Because it allowed Will Barrow to step in front of Thomas Lucas, as a pass (on 3rd and short) came to him, ran it all the way back 80 yards to tie the game, and allowed UConn's faltering defense to blow it in OT.

Oy vey.

UConn actually struggled right out of the gate, falling behind 14-7 (Dane Evans threw both TD passes) after the first quarter, as the offense really struggled to find their bearing.

However, the tide really turned when Bryant Shirreffs, forced out of the pocket on a 3rd down (2 plays after Junior Joseph recovered a fumble deep in UConn territory), floated up a pass and was picked off by C.J Gooden, who brought it to the UConn 10. With the ball so close, Tulsa had a great chance to jump out to a two score lead early.

Instead, at the start of the second quarter UConn stuffed Tulsa and Henry Bass, the Hurricane's freshman kicker, missed a 22 yard chip shot.

Wow.

Regardless, UConn found some spring in their step after that.

Kamal Abrams' 25 yard catch led the way for a Max DeLorenzo 13 yard TD grab on a 3rd down, tying the game.

The teams traded punts, and Tulsa ended up with the ball right before half.

Conner Floyd's 17 yard catch set the Hurricane up in field goal range, but lost 7 yards on their next 3 plays, and Bass missed a deep field goal.

Shirreffs, with only 8 seconds left, got risky and hit Sean McQuillan for a 44 yard gain, giving Bobby Puyol a chance at a go-ahead 45 yard field goal right before half....

He missed short.


Puyol would redeem himself and hit a chip shot to give UConn the 17-14 lead out of the half, and after a Tulsa punt DeLorenzo's career long 34 yard run and a 25 yard Lucas catch and run set up scatback Josh Marriner's 6 yard run, giving UConn a 10 point lead.

Into the 4th quarter, Tavarreon Dickerson, the tailback who had been held mostly in check to this point, busted out a 59 yard TD run (breaking off 3 tackles in the process). After two quarters of being dead silent, Tulsa had chipped the lead to 3 just like that.

Tavarreon Dickerson falls into the end zone on his 59 yard rumble.

UConn had a chance to put the game away on the next drive, but were held at the goal line and had to settle for another short field goal.

Again, UConn's defense forced Tulsa into a 3 and out, and a pair of Noel Thomas (the leading receiver on the day) long catches set up a DeLorenzo 1 yard TD dive. With the 2 point conversion good, UConn had a 14 point lead with only 2:32 to spare.

In the clear!........ not quite.

Kenton Adeyemi, called for two roughing the passer penalties on separate third downs, helped Tulsa drive inside the 5, where Evans ran in a score from 4 yards out.

Tulsa failed to recover the ensuing onside kick (Thomas did and was hurt on the play, more on that in a minute), and UConn appeared to be in the clear (FINALLY!) after picking up 9 yards in 2 plays. Only needing the 1 yard on a 3rd down in Tulsa territory, one would assume DeLorenzo would get the call. He did, UConn got the first and ran out the rest of the clock. UConn wins!

Uh... that's not quite how it went though.

For reasons no one seems to know, there was some "confusion" in the play call (sound familiar?; was a load of crap anyway with all 3 timeouts available) and Shirreffs dropped to throw on a play Diaco calls "O Stick", where everyone stays short and curls in.

Thomas was supposed to be the intended receiver, but he bruised his foot and couldn't be on the field. He normally stays just in front of the left tackle, and draws the mike linebacker away for an easy catch.

Instead, Thom Lucas ended up in Thomas' spot. Shirreffs indicated in the huddle Lucas was to stay short and try to create separation somehow. Lucas was unable to do that, and Shirreffs was about to get sacked. Needing to get the ball away, he just threw it in his general direction.

Problem is, Will Barrow was in that direction, not Lucas.

Barrow, with no one in front of him, was able to go the distance and tie it up.

Oh no...

Each team had a chance to win with a minute to go, but neither could score, and we went to OT.

UConn got ball and got into a 3rd and 3. Shirreffs couldn't hook up with Dhameer Bradley. Puyol had a chance to give UConn the lead with a 35 yard field goal.

He pushed it right.

After missing no field goals in 2014, Puyol doubled that in one game. Go figure.

Dickerson rumbled 7 yards and Evans hit Josh Atkinson, who was wide open, for the dagger. Tulsa wins (again) 41-35.

Congrats, UConn, you pulled off the biggest choke job in recent memory (minus that Super Bowl). And in the process, you've completely ruined the perfect 2-0 start we had.

With a bye looming, Diaco needs to figure something out. Fast.

#DoWeWantBoyle?

FAST FACTS: Shirreffs now sits in first place in the UConn record books for most yards in a game, topping Casey Cochran. However, because of his -20 rush yards, Shirreffs is second in total offense, trailing Cochran by 16 yards.

Connecticut Huskies at Tulsa Golden Hurricane
Oct 3, 2015	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	OT	SCORE
Connecticut Huskies (2-3 (0-2))	7	7	10	11	0	35
Tulsa Golden Hurricane (4-1 (2-1))	14	0	0	21	6	41

Scoring Summary
FIRST QUARTER SCORING		CONN	TLSA
3:21	(TLSA) Evans 11 pass Lucas (Bass kick)	0	7
2:37	(CONN) Shirreffs 17 pass Abrams (Puyol kick)	7	7
1:52	(TLSA) Evans 5 pass Floyd (Bass kick)	7	14
SECOND QUARTER SCORING		CONN	TLSA
4:38	(CONN) Shirreffs 13 pass DeLorenzo (Puyol kick)	14	14
THIRD QUARTER SCORING		CONN	TLSA
2:36	(CONN) Puyol 20 FG	17	14
:36	(CONN) Marriner 6 run (Puyol kick)	24	14
FOURTH QUARTER SCORING		CONN	TLSA
6:43	(TLSA) Dickerson 59 run (Bass kick)	24	21
4:07	(CONN) Puyol 20 FG	27	21
2:32	(CONN) DeLorenzo 1 run (Conversion good)	35	21
1:45	(TLSA) Evans 4 run (Bass kick)	35	28
1:20	(TLSA) Barrow 80 INT Return (Bass kick)	35	35
OVERTIME SCORING		CONN	TLSA
	(TLSA) Evans 18 pass Atkinson	35	41

Connecticut Huskies PASSING C/A YDS TD INT Bryant Shirreffs 24-40 470 2 2 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD Max DeLorenzo 15 77 5.1 1 Josh Marriner 6 20 3.3 1 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD Noel Thomas 8 134 16.7 0 Thomas Lucas 5 126 25.2 0 Kamal Abrams 4 91 22.7 1 DEFENSE TACK SACK INT TD Graham Stewart 10 0 0 0 Obi Melifonwu 7 0 0 0 Junior Joseph 6 0 0 0

Tulsa Golden Hurricane PASSING C/A YDS TD INT Dane Evans 20-34 243 3 0 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD Tavarreon Dickerson 18 149 18.2 1 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD Conner Floyd 6 120 20.0 1 Tavarreon Dickerson 6 25 4.1 0 Keevan Lucas 3 61 20.3 1 DEFENSE TACK SACK INT TD Will Barrow 8 0 1 1 Johnell Celistan 7 0 0 0 C.J. Gooden 6 0 1 0

[RoundingThird]

Re: We have a football team too... Guru's UConn Huskies (NCAA 14)

Classic UConn... Reminds me of the real game vs Army this season.

[whughes]

Re: We have a football team too... Guru's UConn Huskies (NCAA 14)

Tough loss against Tulsa. I think it's too early to pull Sheriffs for Boyle. Although he threw that pick six to basically cost you the win, he hasn't been playing too extremely terrible. You could maybe try and lean on your running backs a bit more? 40 passing attempts to only 21 rushing attempts is pretty unbalanced, but then again I'm biased because I like to pound the rock 35+ times a game through multiple backs.

[thesportsguru11]

Re: We have a football team too... Guru's UConn Huskies (NCAA 14)

Classic UConn... Reminds me of the real game vs Army this season.

Reminds me of the Super Bowl.

Tough loss against Tulsa. I think it's too early to pull Sheriffs for Boyle. Although he threw that pick six to basically cost you the win, he hasn't been playing too extremely terrible. You could maybe try and lean on your running backs a bit more? 40 passing attempts to only 21 rushing attempts is pretty unbalanced, but then again I'm biased because I like to pound the rock 35+ times a game through multiple backs.

Shirreffs had 10 passes in the last 15 plays or so today, as we had two drives turn up empty in the last minute of regulation (after the pick six), so that obviously helped his numbers.

What I meant by Boyle is that his stats weren't much better last year, but he knows how to win games (99 overall in the heart stat), something no one else apparently knows how to do.

The thing with me giving more touches to the RB's is that DeLorenzo has poor stamina, so if I give him 3-4 carries in a drive, he's on the bench resting by the 4th or 5th. He doesn't seem like an every down back.

And when DeLorenzo is on the bench, I just don't have lots of confidence in Marriner. I don't know why.

But, as you'll see in the ECU game after the bye, this actually was the way to go in maximizing productivity on offense. So, you were right there, at least for one game.

[whughes]

Re: We have a football team too... Guru's UConn Huskies (NCAA 14)

Should've taken into consideration that you'd be throwing the ball more late in the game, my bad there.

The heart stat is something you made up right? There's not some hidden stat somewhere that I never realized was there right? Lol

As for DeLorenzo having bad stamina I don't know what to tell you about that, specially if you don't have faith in your 2nd string back. Depending on the offensive sets you run maybe try and throw in some FB dives and WR sweeps? When I'm playing the AI and I want my #1 back to get a break without actually letting my #2 touch the ball I'll spell my HB and then run a WR sweep, or a FB dive. Something along those lines, so that my lead back gets a break but my #2 back doesn't actually get an opportunity to f#ck something up