This week:
The UConn Huskies look to improve to 2-0 in the Big East and 6-1 on the season as they head to Piscataway, NJ to take on the Rutgers Scarlet Knights at 12 Noon on Saturday. A win would make the Huskies bowl eligible for the second straight season.
Here are the rosters for the Huskies and the Scarlet Knights.
The Line/Prediction:
According to Yahoo! Sports odds, the Huskies are 1 point favorites. The over/under is 43 points.
My prediction is UConn 24 Rutgers 10.
Tickets:
As of the time of this post, there are still tickets available for the game.
Getting To The Game:
Here is a weather report for the Piscataway, NJ area. Here are directions to Rutgers stadium, parking information, a seating chart and the stadium policies.
BROADCAST INFORMATION
Television:
The UConn vs. Rutgers game will be televised nationally on ESPNU. Dave Armstrong is on play-by-play while former Miami (Fla.) head coach Larry Coker is the color announcer. Melissa Knowles is on the sidelines.
Radio:
For the 17th 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. Nathan will also serve as a features producer for “UConn Football Magazine,” the halftime show, and also play host to a post-game call-in show after home games with Joyce filling that role for road contests. 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.
Rutgers Radio: All Rutgers football games will be broadcast over the Rutgers Radio Network to 50,000 watt WOR 710 AM and Central Jersey’s WCTC 1450 AM.
Last Week:
The Huskies were off last week and lost their last game played on October 4th 38-12 to the North Carolina Tar Heels. The Scarlet Knights are coming off a 13-10 loss to the Cincinnati Bearcats last Saturday.
History:
This is the 28th meeting between the two teams with Rutgers holding an 18-9 advantage. UConn has won 4 of the last 6 games between them.
Connections:
The UConn roster features eight players from New Jersey in Donald Brown (Atlantic Highlands), Andre Dixon (New Brunswick), Dwayne Gratz (Piscataway, N.J.), Alex LaMagdelaine (Rumson), Kashif Moore (Burlington, N.J.), Scott Schultz (Wayne), Jerome Williams (Burlington Township) and Ryan Wirth (Medford).
The Scarlet Knights have one player from Connecticut in Marcus Cooper (Bloomfield).
There are also a combined 23 Floridians between the two teams, most of them hailing from Dade and Broward Counties (metro Miami/Fort Lauderdale).
In addition to the many Florida and New Jersey-based connections, UConn’s William Beatty and Rutgers’ Richard Muldrow both played line at William Penn HS in York,Pa.
Amongst coaching staff connections, UConn defensive backs coach Scott Lakatos coached at Rutgers from 2001-03.
Rutgers offensive coordinator John McNulty was an assistant at UConn from 1995-97 under Skip Holtz.
UConn offensive line coach Mike Foley worked alongside RU linebackers coach Bob Fraser at Colgate from 1998-2005.
Other News:
Here are some quotes from Randy Edsall’s press conference on Tuesday and some from quotes from Greg Schiano.
Since Connecticut made the move to the FBS in 2002, the only other time UConn started a year 6-1 was last year. Prior to 2007, the last 6-1 start for UConn football was in 1998
UConn owns an all-time mark of 3-11 in BIG?EAST Conference road games, since joining the league in 2004, after the win at Louisville.
UConn is now 17-10 in games following a loss since Oct. 26, 2002, with its 35-3 win over Hofstra on August 28.
Here’s the categories where UConn is in the top 30 in the latest NCAA?statistics:
Rushing Offense – 11th at 240.50
Pass Defense – 28th at 176.67
Scoring Defense – 29th at 18.17
Interceptions – t18th with 9
Sacks – t29th with 2.33
Sacks Allowed t14th at 1.00
UConn junior running back Donald Brown currently leads the nation in rushing yards at 177.83 yards per game. Javon Ringer of Michigan State is second at 158.86 per game and Kendall Hunter of Oklahoma State is third at 143.67. The next BIG EAST Conference performer is Noel Devine who is 16th at 107.00 per contest.
Brown is also tied for third in the country in scoring at 12.00 points per game, trailing Derrick Washington (13.0) of Missouri and Josh Freeman of Kansas State with 12.33. He is tied for third with He is Ringer and Antone Smith of Florida State. He is fifth in all-purpose running.
Donald Brown is the leading rusher and scorer in the BIG EAST and is sixth in total offense. He is also first in all purpose yards (186.8) per game.
Donald Brown has rushed for 100 yards in all six games this season and 12 in his career. He has rushed for 200 yards in two games this year (214 vs. Temple and 206 vs. Virginia) and now has three 200-yard rushing games, the other vs. Pittsburgh in 2006 with 205.
Darius Butler is a triple threat option for the Huskies.
Zach Frazer has maintained his composure while preparing for his second start.
Donald Brown is looking forward to playing Rutgers tomorrow.
Greg Schiano is staying positive despite Rutgers 1-5 record.
Donald Brown may lead the country in rushing but he is lacking in the Heisman Trophy buzz department.
Rob Lunn checks in again at Thoughts From a Fat White Guy.
Neill Ostrout has his UConn football notebook as well as the edge chart for the game.
Rutgers QB Mike Teel is no longer a secret weapon.
Jasper Howard knows he will busy during tomorrow’s game.
Zach Frazer strives for perfection.
John Silver of the Journal Inquirer has some notes from Thursday’s conference call with Randy Edsall as does Desmond Conner of the Hartford Courant.
Despite 3 blocked punts against UNC, the Huskies are not making changes to their punt protection.
Next Week:
After 3 straight games on the road, the Huskies return to Rentschler Field next Saturday to take on the Cincinnati Bearcats. Kickoff is scheduled for 12 Noon.
