It was a game that South Florida desperately needed to win. For the UConn Huskies, it was a game that was needed to keep their slim Big East title hopes alive and a chance at a better bowl game.
In the end, it was the South Florida Bulls who came out on top as they got a 4th quarter touchdown run for Jamar Taylor to beat Huskies 17-13 in front of 42,422 at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, FL.
The loss for the Huskies drops them to 7-4 and 3-3 in the Big East while the Bulls are now 7-4 and 2-4 in conference. Even though the Bulls were bowl eligible, this win pretty much guarantees them a spot in the inaugural St. Petersburg Bowl. For the Huskies, it could be a trip to Toronto or parts unknown.
To be honest with you, I didn’t really see that great of an effort from the Huskies tonight. If anything, I’d call their play uninspiring except maybe for the flea-flicker touchdown pass from Tyler Lorenzen to Ellis Gaulden. When the Huskies are unable to run the ball, their limited passing game with Lorenzen at the helm suffers.
The Huskies came into the game knowing that rushing yards would be hard to come by against the No. 5 rushing defense in the country. The Huskies brought in the nation’s leading rusher in Donald Brown so something had to give. And in the end it was UConn’s running game that lost out as the Bulls held Brown to 96 yards, his first game under 100 all season.
Once again the special teams of head coach Randy Edsall’s squad failed him as the Bulls took the opening kickoff back 70 yards to set up the short field. The Bulls captialized on the short field to take a 7-0 lead out of the gate. After a field goal late in the first half, the swiss cheese kickoff team of UConn gave up a 71 yard return. This time they were bailed out when Aaron Bagsby picked off Matt Grothe at the 2 yard line.
I’d love to question the play calling of UConn because to me it didn’t seem like they knew what they were doing at times. Edsall and offensive coordinator Rob Ambrose didn’t do enough to help out Brown. They rarely called any play action at all to maybe try and fool the defense. Other than the flea flicker it was really an uninspiring night from the Huskies.
Sure they showed heart and they never gave up. The fumble by Lorenzen was huge late in the 4th quarter. Could the call have gone either way? Sure but with the ruling on the field being a fumble and not down by contact, the evidence wasn’t clear enough to over turn the call.
Either way, the Huskies need to play better football. They have one game left against Pittsburgh and a likely bowl appearance. They will need to play inspired ball on Senior Day to have a chance against Pittsburgh.
Scoring:
| Team | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | Final |
| UConn Huskies | 0 | 3 | 7 | 3 | 13 |
| South Florida Bulls | 7 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 17 |
1st quarter
USF – Benjamin Williams 3 yard run (Maikon Bonani PAT) – USF 7 UConn 0
2nd quarter
USF – Bonani 29 yard field goal – USF 10 UConn 0
CON – Dave Teggart 21 yard field goal – USF 10 UConn 3
3rd quarter
CON – Tyler Lorenzen 43 yard pass to Ellis Gaulden (Teggart PAT) – UConn 10 USF 10
4th quarter
USF – Jamar Taylor 25 yard run (Bonani PAT) – USF 17 UConn 10
CON – Teggart 35 yard field goal – USF 17 UConn 13
Offensive Player of the Game:
Just pick a player who had good stats. I really don’t think anyone deserved player of the game in my humble opinion.
Defensive Player(s) of the Game:
UConn Huskies linebacker Scott Lutrus was everywhere tonight as he had 14 tackles (12 solo and 2 assisted).
Turning Point(s) of the Game:
With USF up 17-13 and UConn driving with ease midway through the 4th quarter, a fumble by Tyler Lorenzen when he was going to the ground and a recovery by the Bulls killed the Huskies momentum for the rest of the game.
Offensive Notes:
Donald Brown had 28 carries for 96 yards while Tyler Lorenzen was 10-of-24 for 119 yards. Fullback Anthony Sherman was the leading receiver with 4 catches for 49 yards. For a detailed look at the plays, you can check out the live blog replay. For a detailed look at the plays, you can check out the live blog replay.
Defensive Notes:
Scott Lutrus led the way for the Huskies with 14 tackles. Kendall Reyes and Julius Williams both had a sack while Aaron Bagsby added a key interception.
Special Teams Notes:
The Bulls took the opening kickoff back 70 yards. They would add another 71 yarder later in the game.
Desi Cullen drew a 5 yard roughing the kicker penalty to give UConn a first down.
Jordan Todman had a 35 yard kickoff return.
Injuries:
No significant injuries were suffered by any UConn players.
Officials:
The officials missed a few calls here and there but they were right on with the calls that went to the replay booth.
Game Notes:
UConn Huskies @ South Florida Bulls 11.23.08 boxscore
The Huskies were playing without sophomore linebacker Greg Lloyd who stayed behind for personal reasons. It’s quite likely he’ll miss the final game of the season too.
Dave Teggart is now 11-for-11 on field goals this season which breaks the record of most consecutive field goals to start the season as well as to start a career as Husky.
This was the first time Donald Brown had been held under 100 yards in a game all season.
The touchdown reception for Ellis Gaulden was the first of his career.
The Huskies had 258 total yards to USF’s 247.
UConn dominated the time of possession 33:40 to 25:41.
The Huskies were 6-of-16 on third downs while USF was 6-of-13.
Big East Games and Results:
11/22:
West Virginia 35
Louisville 21
Army 3
Rutgers 30
Syracuse 24
Notre Dame 23
Pittsburgh 21
Cincinnati 28
Things to Work On:
The Huskies need to work on their kick return coverage. It was AWFUL tonight.
Up Next:
The UConn Huskies are off next week and will return home to Rentschler Field on December 6th to take on the Pittsburgh Panthers. The game time has not been announced as of yet.
