This week:
The UConn Huskies football team kicks off its 2012 schedule on Thursday night as they’ll host the UMass Minutemen at Rentschler Field in East Hartford, CT.
Here are the rosters for the Huskies and the Minutemen.
The Line/Prediction:
According to Rivals.com odds, UConn is favored by 24.5 points.
My prediction is UConn 45 UMass 17.
Tickets:
According to Ticketmaster.com, there are still some tickets available for the game.
Getting To The Game:
Here is link for the weather report. 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 and here is some general information for Rentschler Field.
The parking lots will open up 4 hours before kickoff. Here is a list of the tailgating rules at the Rent.
At UConn home games, FanFest takes place starting four hours before kickoff up until 30 minutes before the game. It takes place between Gates A and B outside the stadium gates.
The offerings change each game, but activities typically include inflatable games for children, live bands, promotional vehicles and UConn student-athletes from various teams signing autographs.
The “Husky Walk” is a chance for fans to welcome the UConn team as they get off the team buses and head to the stadium. That takes place approximately two hours and 15 minutes before kickoff between Gates A and B.
Once again this season at the end of home games, the UConn team will sing the “UConn Husky” fight song in front of the student section at Rentschler Field.
BROADCAST INFORMATION
Television:
Thursday night’s game is being televised live by SNY and ESPN Regional Television. Bob Picozzi is on play-by-play with former NFL offensive lineman David Diaz-Infante on color.
The game will also be replayed on SNY in a condensed mode on the “Husky Power Hour” on Friday, August 31 at 7 a.m. and 9 a.m. and Saturday, September 1 at noon. The game will be replayed it is entirety on Saturday, September 1 at 3:30 p.m. and on Sunday, September 2 at 7:00 p.m.
Radio:
For the 21st consecutive season, WTIC 1080-AM in Hartford serves as the flagship station for the IMG/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.
For Thursday’s opening game, WTIC will begin its programming at Rentschler Field with former Connecticut Governor John Rowland from 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. The UConn Tailgate Show will air from 5:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. with Kevin Nathan and Bob Joyce. The pregame shows begins at 6:00 p.m. followed by the game and then postgame “Husky Talk” with Kevin Nathan.
UConn football games are also broadcast over the internet at WTIC.com. Here is a full list of stations on the WTIC/UCONN radio network.
The game will also be available on SIRIUS 137.
UMass Minutemen Radio:
All University of Massachusetts football games can be heard live on the UMass Sports Network, with WEEI 105.5 FM (Springfield/Western Massachusetts) serving as the flagship station.
Josh Maurer is in his fifth season as the play-by-play announcer. He is joined by veteran color commentator Matt Goldstein, now in his 10th season calling games at UMass.
Here is the list of this year’s affiliates on the UMass Sports Network:
• WEEI FM 105.5 FM (Springfield/Western Mass.)
• WVEI 1440 AM (Worcester)
• WATD 95.9 FM (Marshfield/Boston)
• All games will be streamed with live audio on UMassAthletics.com.
• In addition, WMUA 91.1 FM, the UMass student station, will carry most Minuteman football games during the season.
To continue reading the UMass Minutemen @ UConn Huskies preview, click on the read more button below if you’re on the home page.
Last Week:
This is the first game of the season for both teams. UConn went 5-7 last season while UMass was 5-6.
History:
The UConn vs. UMass series is the second-oldest intercollegiate series in the history of the Huskies. UConn and UMass have met 71 previous times and the Minutemen lead the series by a 36-33-2 count. They last met in 1999 which was UConn’s last game as a FCS team.
Connections:
UConn defensive coordinator Don Brown was the head coach at UMass from 2004-08 as the team advanced to the NCAA championship game in 2006 and also played in the I-AA tournament in 2007. Brown was the defensive coordinator at UMass in the national championship year of 1998 and also 1999.
The UConn roster has nine Massachusetts players on it: freshman DE Brendan Battles-Santos (Eastham), redshirt freshman WR Dalton Gifford (Fairhaven), redshirt junior RB Martin Hyppolite (Wakefield), redshirt sophomore DE Jonathan Louis (Brockton), redshirt sophomore QB Scott McCummings (Natick), freshman S Obi Melifonwu (South Grafton), redshirt freshman OT Paul Nwokeji (Randolph), freshman LS William Oldach (Hopkinton) and redshirt sophomore LB Yawin Smallwood (Worcester).
The UMass roster has three Connecticut players on it: sophomore WR Shawn Campbell (Woodstock), sophomore LB Ryan Delaire (Windsor) and junior defensive lineman Tyler Major (New London).
Other UConn News:
Here is the video of UConn head coach Paul Pasqualoni’s press conference. If you don’t have time to watch, here are the quotes from Pasqualoni’s press conference as well quotes from some of the players.
You can also check out what Pasqualoni had to say on the Big East Coaches teleconference yesterday.
Here is UConn’s depth chart for the game.
Pasqualoni is the all-time winningest coach in BIG EAST Conference league wins with 65 and overall wins with 112.
Connecticut enters Thursday’s meeting vs. Massachusetts with a 17-3 record against opponents from the Mid-American Conference (MAC) since making the move to the Football Bowl Subdivision in 2002. The losses include a 30-16 defeat at Temple in 2010 and a 38-31 loss to Western Michigan last year.
The UConn football team has been bowl eligible for four times in the past five years and in sixth of the past nine. The 2010 UConn football team won the BIG EAST Championship and advanced to play in the school’s first-ever BCS game — the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl.
UConn is 8-2 in season openers since making the jump to then-Division I-A in 2002.
Connecticut boasts a 42-20 record against non-conference opponents in the regular season since making the move to the FBS in 2002.
UConn finished 4-3 at Rentschler Field in 2011.
Four members of the University of Connecticut football team were named to seven major award watch lists over the course of the 2012 preseason.
Senior Tight End Ryan Griffin
- John Mackey Award Watch List
- Lombardi Award Watch List
Sophomore Running Back Lyle McCombs
- Doak Walker Award Watch List
- Maxwell Award Watch List
Senior Linebacker Sio Moore
- Butkus Award Watch List
- Lombardi Award Watch List
Senior Defensive End Trevardo Williams
- Bednarik Award Watch List
- Lombardi Award Watch List
- Nagursky Trophy Watch List
Connecticut boasts a 42-20 record against non-conference opponents in the regular season since making the move to the FBS in 2002.
Notes from this week’s opponent UMass:
Here is the UMass depth chart for the game.
This is the first FBS game for UMass.
UMass will become eligible for the MAC Championship and will be Bowl-Eligible in 2013.
UMass joins UConn (Big East) and Boston College (ACC) as the only New England FBS schools.
UMass will play off all its home games at Gillette Stadium, home of the New England Patriots.
Big East bowl projections: Week 1 [andrea adelson – espn.com]
Big East preseason predictions [andrea adelson – espn.com]
Big East power rankings: Week 1 [andrea adelson – espn.com]
Kashif Moore Talks About Being Waived Today By Bengals [desmond conner – hartford courant]
New Haven Gridiron Club to honor former UConn star [jim fuller – new haven register]
Football. Four Seniors Named Football Captains [uconnhuskies.com]
UConn’s McCombs goes from spectator to dominant force [ct post]
Big East Football Coaches Call: Several Teams, Including UConn, Meet Unfamiliar Foes [hartford courant]
New kid to block [journal inquirer]
Syracuse Orange Semi-Too Early Preview: Connecticut Huskies [Troy Nunes is an Absolute Magician]
Next Week:
The Huskies stay at Rentschler Field next Saturday (Sept. 8) as they’ll host the North Carolina State Wolfpack. Kickoff is scheduled for 12 p.m.
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