This week
The UCONN Huskies will host their former Yankee Conference rivals the Maine Black Bears in their home opener at 7 PM.
Here are the rosters for the Huskies and the Black Bears.
The Line/Prediction
According to Chip Malafronte of the New Haven Register, UCONN is favored by 22.
My prediction is UCONN 55 Maine 14.
Tickets
As of the time of this post, there are tickets available.
Tickets to game, if available, may be purchased through Ticketmaster. You can check the availability here.
Getting To The Game
Here is all the parking info you will need for the game, this link includes directions to Rentschler Field. Here is a Rentschler Field seating chart.
The parking lots will open up 4 hours before kickoff. Here is a list of the tailgating rules at the Rent.
BROADCAST INFORMATION
Television
ESPN Regional has the television rights to the Big East Football games not being broadcast nationally. WTNH8 in New Haven and SNY will broadcast the game locally. Bob Picozzi and Doug Graber will be calling the game. The game can also be seen on Cox3 in Rhode Island, Altitude Sports in Denver and MASN in the Baltimore/Washington DC area.
Radio
For the 16th consecutive season, WTIC 1080-AM in Hartford serves as the flagship station for the UConn Radio Network. WTIC is the state’s only 50,000 watt signal and can be heard in 23 states and parts of Canada. Veteran UConn announcers Joe D’Ambrosio (play-by-play) and Wayne Norman (color commentary) return to call the action with Kevin Nathan on the sidelines. The UConn pregame show begins 90 minutes prior to kickoff and is hosted by Bob Joyce, while at home games, the UConn Tailgate Show will air two and a half hours prior to the game with Arnold Dean. UConn football games are also broadcast over the internet at WTIC.com. For a full list of stations on the WTIC/UCONN radio network, click here.
If you live in Maine, here is list of stations where to catch the game as well.
Last Week
UCONN beat Duke 45-14 to open up their season while Maine won 21-14 over Monmouth
History
This will be the 73rd time, the two teams have met. UCONN holds a 38-31-3 advantage. All those matchups came when the Huskies were a 1-AA team and both were members of the former Yankee Conference.
Connections
- UCONN DB coach Scott Lakatos was an assistant under current Maine head coach Jack Cosgrove from 1995-99
- Maine has five Connecticut natives on their roster. Dominic Cusano, Bruno Dorismond, Kenneth Fersner, Bryan Grier, and Lionel Nixon.
- Nixon’s brother is former WR Brandon McLean and 2007 signee James Nixon.
- Maine QB Adam Farke’s brother, Josh, was a member of the UCONN baseball team from 2005-07.
Other News:
UCONN will institute a “Husky Walk” at all home games starting this Saturday. Here is a copy of the press release.
The University of Connecticut football team will debut a new pregame ritual by participating in a “Husky Walk†prior to its home game on Saturday night, allowing fans to cheer on the Huskies as they first arrive at Rentschler Field.
The walk will be held about two hours prior to kickoff. Thus, the inaugural event on Saturday will occur at about 5:00 p.m. with the team’s game against Maine slated for a 7:00 p.m. kickoff.
UConn’s team buses will unload for the Husky Walk near Gate D. The team will walk along the road on the east side of the stadium (near the FanFest and blue parking lot) from Gate D to Gate C before entering the stadium at Gate C. Fans are encouraged to arrive in advance of the 5:00 p.m. start time to line up along the path and cheer on both the team and a procession that will also include the UConn cheerleaders and marching band. Paw prints are being painted along the walk route which will begin with the team coming through a large “Husky Walk†banner.
To see a map of where this will start click here.
Next Week
UCONN will host the Temple Owls next Saturday at 12 noon.
