Boise State LB #20 Tanner Vallejo scoops up an Arkeel Newsome fumble and returns it for a touchdown against the UConn Huskies in the first quarter at Rentschler Field on September 13, 2014.

For the third straight week, the UConn Huskies shot themselves in the foot. Last week, they were fortunate enough to sneak out a victory. This week, not so much.

The Boise State Broncos took advantage of three UConn turnovers turning them into 21 points as they went on to a 38-21 road win in front of 30,098 at Rentschler Field in East Hartford, CT on Saturday afternoon.

UConn falls to 1-2 on the season while Boise State improves to 2-1.

“14 uncontested points where the defense or the special teams is not on the field against any opponent we are going to play, it becomes impossible to win the games, let alone a nationally branded powerhouse.” said UConn head coach Bob Diaco. “When you factor in another plus-field turnover, you’re talking about 21 points. That has to get solved. We are working hard to solve it and it’s hard to win football games when you do that. Those are the things that cause losing.”

In the game against BYU, Max DeLorenzo fumbled and BYU scored on it. Last week, Joshua Marriner fumbled and Stony Brook scored on it. This week, it was Arkeel Newsome who fumbled and Boise’s Tanner Vallejo scooped it up and took it to the end zone to put Boise out in front.

Give the Huskies credit though, they didn’t lay down or fold their cards.

They battled back and took the lead in the second quarter at 10-7 when Chandler Whitmer found Alec Bloom for a 16 yard touchdown. Unfortunately, the lead didn’t last as Boise scored 14 unanswered points to enjoy a 21-10 halftime lead.

After the kickers exchanged field goals during the third quarter, the Huskies cut the lead to eight when Whitmer hit Geremy Davis for a 10 yard pass and then hooked up with Newsome on a pass for the two point conversion. This got the Rent rocking.

The UConn defense did its job in holding Boise. But the offense went three and out. Again the defense stepped up and kept the Broncos from pay dirt.

Then the one thing that has plagued Whitmer during his career at UConn, untimely interceptions, happened. He tried to hit Deshon Foxx but Jonathan Moxey under cut the route and picked it up. Boise made the Huskies pay when Grant Hedrick hit Matt Miller for the second time to put the visitors up 31-21.

Any chance of a comeback took a hit when Donte Deayon picked off Whitmer (actually ripped the ball out of Davis’ hands) and returned it 50 yards for the touchdown.

Honestly, UConn had its chances but the things that cause losing happened. They had the crowd behind them after scoring to make it 24-21 and then they go three and out. They need to find a way to score points. They need to find a way to protect their quarterbacks. The combo of Whitmer and Tim Boyle were sacked eight times (Whitmer 7, Boyle 1).

Most importantly, they need to hold on to the football.

As Diaco said, you can’t spot the team a lead. UConn did its best to keep the Boise offense off the field early on. The problem was when they took the field for the first time, the Broncos were leading 7-0.

“We fought.” said Whitmer. “We were competitive. We overcame adversity. It is a four-quarter game and we have to find a way to finish in the end. We just can’t let it fall apart. We have to put this behind us.”

The Huskies now enter conference play starting next Friday night when they travel to Tampa, FL for a matchup with the South Florida Bulls. Kickoff is scheduled for 8 p.m.

Scoring:

1st quarter

BSU – 12:24 – Tanner Vallejo 31 Yd Fumble Return (Dan Goodale Kick)

CON – 6:46 – Bobby Puyol 39 Yd Field Goal

2nd quarter

CON – 9:54 – Alec Bloom 16 Yd pass from Chandler Whitmer (Bobby Puyol Kick)

BSU – 5:03 – Matt Miller 35 Yd pass from Grant Hedrick (Dan Goodale Kick)

BSU – 0:32 – Grant Hedrick 7 Yd pass from Matt Miller (Dan Goodale Kick)

3rd quarter

CON – 7:30 – Bobby Puyol 24 Yd Field Goal

BSU – 3:26 – Dan Goodale 38 Yd Field Goal

CON – 1:09 – Geremy Davis 10 Yd pass from Chandler Whitmer (Chandler Whitmer Pass to Arkeel Newsome for Two-Point Conversion)

4th quarter

BSU – 9:19 – Matt Miller 9 Yd pass from Grant Hedrick (Dan Goodale Kick)

BSU – 4:00 – Donte Deayon 50 Yd Interception Return (Dan Goodale Kick)

Offensive Players of the Game:

Boise State WR Matt Miller had five catches for 74 yards and two touchdowns. He also had one touchdown pass for seven yards to his quarterback Grant Hedrick.

Defensive Player of the Game:

Boise State’s Donte Deayon had six tackles and a 50 yard interception return for a touchdown.

Turning Point(s) of the Game:

With UConn trailing by just three points, Boise’s Jonathan Moxey picked off UConn QB Chandler Whitmer at the UConn 37. Boise needed four plays after that to find the end zone and take the wind out of the sails for the Huskies.

Offensive Notes:

Chandler Whitmer was 16-of-29 for 209 yards and two touchdowns. He also had two interceptions and was sacked seven times. Tim Boyle saw his first action of 2014 and was 6-of-9 for 33 yards. Two of the misses were drops by wide receivers that should have been caught including one in the end zone by Dhameer Bradley. Max DeLorenzo had 10 carries for 43 yards. Deshon Foxx led the Huskies with six catches for 107 yards. Thomas Lucas had five catches for 35 yards while Geremy Davis had catches for 47 yards and a touchdown. Alec Bloom caught the other touchdown pass from Whitmer.

Defensive Notes:

Obi Melifonwu led UConn with 10 tackles while his safety partner Andrew Adams had nine. Marquise Vann had nine tackles of his own while Graham Stewart had seven. Cole Ormsby had the only Huskies sack of the day.

Special Teams Notes:

Bobby Puyol hit both of his field goals (39 and 24 yards). He had one kickoff go out-of-bounds which is unacceptable. Justin Wain averaged 42 yards on seven punts. Fortunately for him, the one he shanked didn’t cost the team. Jon Hicks had a fumble recovery on a punt when it a Boise player.

Game Notes:

Boise State Broncos @ UConn Huskies 9/13/14 box score

Here are the postgame quotes from UConn head coach Bob Diaco and Boise State head coach Brian Harsin.

Here are the postgame notes courtesy of the UConn Athletic Communications Department:

Saturday marked the first game between Boise State and UConn.

• UConn is now 49-26 all-time at Rentschler Field and 27-13 in non-conference games there.
• With his 12-yard catch in the first quarter, Connecticut wide receiver Geremy Davis extended his streak of games with at least one catch to 29.
• Wide receiver Thomas Lucas’s 10-yard reception in the first quarter was his first career catch. Lucas finished the day with five catches for 35 yards.
• Sean McQuillan recorded his longest catch (15 yards) of the season in the opening quarter.
• Davis became the seventh receiver in program history to eclipse 2,000 career receiving yards after a 25-yard catch in the first quarter.
• Connecticut kicker Bobby Puyol, who connected on field goals of 24 and 39 yards today, remains a perfect 5-for-5 in field goal attempts this year.
• Redshirt freshman linebacker Cole Ormsby recorded his first career sack in the second quarter, taking down quarterback Grant Hedrick for an 11-yard loss to force a Boise State punt.
• UConn quarterback Chandler Whitmer’s 48-yard completion to wide receiver Deshon Foxx in the first half was the longest play from scrimmage for the Huskies this season. It was also a yard shy of Foxx’s longest career reception.
• Freshman tight end Alec Bloom hauled in his first career touchdown in the second quarter on a 16-yard pass from Whitmer.
• Running back Max DeLorenzo’s 19-yard run in the third quarter was his longest rush of the season.
• Foxx registered his third career 100-yard game on Saturday, finishing the contest with six catches for 107 yards.
• The Broncos, who came in averaging 537.5 yards per game, gained just 292 total yards against the Huskies.
• In the last two games, UConn’s opponents (Boise State and Stony Brook) have converted a combined 7-for-31 third down plays.
• The Huskies held Boise State running back Jay Ajayi to 39 rushing yards and 52 total yards today. He came into the game averaging 152.5 yards rushing and 229.5 total yards a contest this season.
• Freshman Ron Johnson’s 13-yard run in the fourth quarter marked his longest career rush.
• Marquise Vann recorded nine tackles, and has at least nine stops in every game this season. He leads the huskies with 29 tackles through three games.

Injuries:

Graham Stewart suffered an undisclosed injury during the first half but returned to the game.

AAC Games and Results:

Thursday, September 11

Houston 25
(25) BYU 33

Friday, September 12

Toledo 34
Cincinnati 58

Saturday, September 13

Central Florida 10
Missouri 38

East Carolina 28
(17) Virginia Tech 21

North Carolina State
South Florida, 3:30 p.m.

Tulsa
Florida Atlantic, 7 p.m.

SE Louisiana
Tulane, 8 p.m.

Things to Work On:

• Continue to work with the offensive line as they were ineffective allowing eight sacks
• Continue to eliminate the things that cause losing

Up Next:

UConn takes to the road for the first time this season as they open up American Athletic Conference play against the South Florida Bulls on Friday night at 8 p.m.

photo credit: ian bethune – sox & dawgs

Paw Prints is our daily look at the happenings for the UConn Huskies football, men’s basketball and women’s basketball teams as well as the other sports the student-athletes engage in. We will do our best to bring you the links from all of the media that covers the Huskies on a DAILY basis.

Thank you for stopping by and making SOX & Dawgs your home for UConn Huskies news.

It’s game day for the UConn Huskies football team as they’ll host the Boise State Broncos at 12 p.m. at Rentschler Field in East Hartford, CT. If you missed our Boise State vs UConn preview be sure to check that out.

To open the links up in a new tab or window, use Control+click

UConn Football links

Video: UConn Football Bob Diaco Talks About Tim Boyle [sox & dawgs]

Boise State’s Ajayi a problem for UConn [jim fuller – new haven register]

Game preview: UConn hosts Boise State [ed daigneault – the republican-american]

Preview: UConn vs. Boise State [john silver – sny uconn]

UConn Hosts Boise State in Noon Matchup Saturday [the american]

Norwalk’s Thomas has matured into promising player at UConn [ct post]

Spotlight On QBs Whitmer, Boyle As UConn Hosts Boise State [hartford courant]

UConn looks to limit juggernaut Boise State offense [new haven register]

Can Huskies keep pace with Boise? [the day]

UConn Women’s Basketball links

New Husky Kia Nurse Named To Canadian National Team [sox & dawgs]

Another WNBA title for former UConn star [jim fuller – new haven register]

Former UConn Players Pleased To Be Coached By Geno Again [hartford courant]

UConn Men’s Basketball links

Omar Calhoun’s Dedication To UConn Program Impresses Ollie [hartford courant]

Other UConn related links

Softball. McIntyre Receives National Coaching Honor [uconn huskies]

W. Cross Country. Women’s Cross Country Heads To Amherst For The 2014 Minutemen Invitational [uconn huskies]

Field Hockey. Field Hockey Picks Up First Road Win of the Season, Moves to 4-0 [uconn huskies]

W. Volleyball. Volleyball Sweeps Cornell on Friday Night [uconn huskies]

W. Soccer. Hill Strikes Twice In 4-1 Win Over St. John’s [uconn huskies]

M. Soccer. UConn Drops Match Against No. 10 Washington, 3-1 [uconn huskies]

STORRS, Conn. – University of Connecticut freshman guard Kia Nurse has earned a spot on Canadian Women’s National Team that is set to compete in the 2014 FIBA World Championships from Sept. 27-Oct. 5 in Turkey, as announced on Friday afternoon.

Nurse, one of five newcomers to the 2014-15 Husky squad, made her debut for Team Canada at the 2011 FIBA U-16 Americas tournament and averaged 14.6 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 2.2 assists as the team finished third and qualified for the 2012 FIBA U-17 world championships. In high school, Nurse Led St. Thomas Moore to gold at the AAAA OFSAA Championship in 2012 and 2013 and also won five-straight Provincial Championships with her Transway team and two National Championships with Team Ontario.

“After a fantastic summer of preparation, we are excited to have selected our team that will represent Canada at Worlds”, said Canadian head coach Lisa Thomaidis. “These women have shown tremendous dedication and commitment to our program, and we are excited to go and showcase what we’ve been working towards. We have a great mix of youth and experience on this team. We have several players who have experience playing at a World Championship and Olympic Games, and others who will be experiencing this level of competition for the first time in their careers. We are looking forward to a fantastic tournament.”

The announcement comes as Canada prepares to compete against Team USA in an exhibition game on September 15^th (Live on ESPN2, 7PM ET), before closing out their pre-World Championship schedule in Logrono, Spain, where the Women will face off against both Cuba and Spain.

Paw Prints is our daily look at the happenings for the UConn Huskies football, men’s basketball and women’s basketball teams as well as the other sports the student-athletes engage in. We will do our best to bring you the links from all of the media that covers the Huskies on a DAILY basis.

Thank you for stopping by and making SOX & Dawgs your home for UConn Huskies news.

To open the links up in a new tab or window, use Control+click

UConn Football links

Paw Prints – Boise State Broncos (1-1) @ UConn Huskies (1-1) Preview [sox & dawgs]

Video: UConn Football Players React To The News About Casey Cochran [sox & dawgs]

Video: UConn Football Players On What Kind of Coach Casey Cochran Will Be [sox & dawgs]

Video: The Blitz Episode 3 – Boise State [sox & dawgs]

UConn’s freshmen running backs drawing plenty of praise [jim fuller – new haven register]

Special Attention: Wain Gets Guidance From Diaco [hartford courant]

Bryan Harsin Has Tough Act To Follow At Boise State [hartford courant]

Memorial plans for former UConn football star Jasper Howard moving forward [new haven register]

UConn Women’s Basketball links

Stewart Reaches Double Figures in Team USA Red-White Game [rich elliott – ct post]

Former UConn stars Moore, Taurasi headline All-WNBA team [jim fuller – new haven register]

UConn Men’s Basketball links

Steve Enoch visiting UConn this weekend, expected to commit [david borges – new haven register]

This week:

The UConn Huskies are back in action on Saturday afternoon when they’ll host the Boise State Broncos at Rentschler Field. Kickoff is scheduled for 12 p.m.

The Line:

According to Rivals.com odds, Boise State is favored by 16 points. The over/under is 49 points.

Tickets:

According to UConn Huskies ticket office, there are still tickets available to Saturday’s 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.

There is a new route for the Husky Walk as the team arrives for games at Rentschler Field this year and fans get a chance to greet the team as they get off their buses and make their way to the stadium. The Husky walk, which takes place approximately, two hours and 15 minutes before kickoff, will now start in the Gray Parking Lots and the team will makes its way to the large tunnel near Gate B.

The UConn team will now do its pregame warmup in front of the UConn student section on the South End of the stadium – a change from previous seasons. The Huskies will enter the stadium for pregame warmups on the concourse of Rentschler Field and go through the student section.

Once again, FanFest takes place starting four hours before kickoff up until 30 minutes before the game 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 break between the third and fourth quarter will feature “Coach D’s Playlist” as fans during the game will get to select a song to play based on a list they saw earlier in the game.

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:

Saturday’s game will be televised regionally by ABC with the remainder of the country seeing the game on ESPN2. Beth Mowins is on play-by-play with Joey Galloway on color and Paul Carcaterra on the sidelines.

Here is the coverage map from ESPN for the game as to whether you’ll need to watch on ABC or ESPN2.

Radio:

The UConn IMG Sports Network is the home of Husky football on the radio. WTIC NewsTalk 1080 in Hartford serves as the flagship station and 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.

UConn football on home Saturday dates gets going early with “Breakfast At The Rent” with Ray Dunaway and Scott Gray beginning at 6:00 a.m. For noon games, the UConn Tailgate Show airs from 10:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m with Bob Joyce and Nathan. The pregame show begins at 11:30 a.m. followed by the game and then postgame “Husky Talk” with Nathan.

The Boise State game will also be available on Sirius Radio Channel 108 and XM Channel 201.

Here is a full list of stations on the UConn IMG Radio Network.

Boise State Broncos Radio:

Stony Brook fans can listen to game online at PackNetwork.com/StonyBrook as Andy Towne (PBP) and Curt Hylton (color) will have the call.

Last Week:

UConn beat Stony Brook 19-16 while Boise State beat Colorado State 37-24.

History:

Saturday’s game is the first-ever meeting between UConn and Boise State, a member of the Mountain West Conference.

Connections:

UConn does not have any players from the state of Idaho on its roster, nor does Boise State have any players from Connecticut.

UConn Notes:

Here is the video from UConn head coach Bob Diaco’s press conference. Here is a transcript of some his remarks from the press conference.

UConn head coach Bob Diaco made his UConn and collegiate head coaching debut on August 29th vs. BYU. Diaco served on the Notre Dame coaching staff as the defensive coordinator for the past four years and the assistant head coach for the past two. He was the 2012 winner of the Frank Broyles Award, given to the top assistant college football coach in the country and was the first Irish assistant to receive the prestigious award.

Here is UConn’s roster and 2014 schedule.

Here is UConn’s depth chart for the game.

The captains of the 2014 UConn Huskies football team are Geremy Davis, Byron Jones, Alex Mateas and Marquise Vann.

Despite UConn having virtually an entire new staff this year, seven of the Huskies’ full-time coaches have previously worked games at Rentschler Field. Head coach Bob Diaco, defensive coordinator Anthony Poindexter and assistant coach Wayne Lineburg were on the Virginia staff for a 45-10 Husky win on Sept. 13, 2008; Assistant head coach Don Patterson was on the Buffalo staff for a 24-17 UConn win on Sept. 29, 2012; Offensive coordinator Mike Cummings was on the Western Michigan staff for a 41-27 UConn win on Nov. 1, 2003; Assistant coach Kevin Wolthausen was on the Louisville staff for a 30-20 UConn loss on Dec. 3, 2005. UConn assistant coach Mike Foley is the lone holdover on the staff and is entering his ninth season.

Connecticut boasts a 46-27 record against non-conference opponents in the regular season since making the move to the FBS in 2002. The Huskies have won 21 of their last 34 regular season non-league games overall. UConn has posted the following records in non-conference regular season games: 6-6 (2002), 9-3 (2003), 4-1 (2004), 3-1 (2005), 3-2 (2006), 4-1 (2007), 4-1 (2008), 4-1 (2009), 3-2 (2010), 2-3 (2011), 3-2 (2012) and 0-4 (2013), 1-1 (2014).

UConn is now 9-4 in season openers since making the jump to then-Division I-A in 2002. UConn has won nine of its 12 season openers at Rentschler Field (2003-Indiana, 2004-Murray State, 2005-Buffalo, 2006-Rhode Island, 2008-Hofstra, 2010-Texas Southern, 2011-Fordham, 2012-UMass) and also downed Duke, 45-14, in Durham, to open the 2007 season and Ohio University, 23-16 in Athens, to open 2009.

UConn has an all-time record of 49-25 at Rentschler Field and a 27-12 mark in non-conference games.

The Huskies were picked to finish 9th in the American in 2014.

Boise is the third-straight opponent for UConn this season that the Huskies have never played, joining BYU and Stony Brook. The Huskies have upcoming games this season against first-time opponents Tulane (Oct. 11) and East Carolina (Oct. 23) – for a total of five first-time opponents this season.

The Huskies played a total of 57 players against BYU and 20 of them (35.1%) where making their first collegiate appearance. Among the highlights were redshirt freshman Joshua Marriner (Chesapeake, Va.) rushing for UConn’s lone touchdown of the night; freshman Arkeel Newsome (Ansonia, Conn.) making an 18-yard reception the first quarter; redshirt sophomore punter Justin Wain (Wilmington, N.C.) averaging 35.8 yards on four punts; redshirt freshman Tommy Myers (Coventry, Conn.) making his first career reception in the third quarter; redshirt freshman linebacker Cameron Stapleton (Staten Island, N.Y.) combining on a second-quarter sack; freshman tight end Alec Bloom (Ligonier, Pa.) having two receptions for 24 yards.

Other Huskies making their collegiate debuts: redshirt sophomore C Kyle Bockeloh (Houston, Texas), freshman LB Luke Carrezola (Langhorne, Pa.), freshman OL Ryan Crozier (Plantation, Fla.), senior DB Chris DeBerry (Torrington, Conn.), freshman LB Vontae Diggs (Downers Grove, Ill.), redshirt freshman H Blake Feagles (Ridgewood, N.J.), redshirt freshman DL Foley Fatukasi (Far Rockaway, N.Y.), redshirt freshman OL Tommy Hopkins (Hawthorne, N.Y.), redshirt freshman LB Junior Joseph (Sinking Springs, Pa.), freshman TB Ron Johnson (Naples, Fla.), redshirt freshman LB Cole Ormsby (Windsor, Conn.), freshman OL Trey Rutherford (Markham, Ontario) and freshman CB Jamar Summers (East Orange, N.J.).

As we learned earlier this week, Casey Cochran has retired from football due to concussions. Chandler Whitmer is now the starter with Tim Boyle as his backup.

Senior Deshon Foxx  was named the American Athletic Conference Special Teams Player of the Week on Monday for his performance in UConn’s win over Stony Brook on Sept. 6.

Foxx’s punt return for a TD against Stony Brook was the first for UConn since Nick Williams had an 80-yarder vs. Pittsburgh on Nov. 9, 2012 at Rentschler Field.

UConn senior wide receiver Geremy Davis has 13 receptions for 209 yards this season with seven receptions for 96 yards vs. BYU and six receptions for 113 yards against Stony Brook. He has made a reception in 28-straight games, dating back to the 2011 season, the ninth-longest such streak in the country.

Davis is tied for third in the American Athletic Conference in receptions per game with 6.5 and third in reception yards per game at 104.5 – which is 23rd nationally.

Preseason Award Watch Lists:

Geremy Davis

• Biletnikoff Award Watch List

Casey Cochran

• Allstate AFCA Good Works Team

Notes from this week’s opponent Boise State:

Here is video from Boise State head coach Brian Harsin’s weekly pregame press conference.

Brian Harsin is in his first season as the head coach at Boise State after spending the 2013 season as the head coach at Arkansas State. He led Arkansas State to a 7-5 regular season record and the team played in the GoDaddy Bowl against Ball State.

Here is Boise State’s depth chart for the game.

Here are Boise State’s 2014 roster and 2014 schedule.

Boise State is 8-1 all-time against teams currently in the American Athletic Conference, the only loss coming to East Carolina in the 2007 Sheraton Hawai’i Bowl (41-38; Dec. 23). Boise State is also 6-0 against Tulsa and 2-0 against SMU.

For the first time since 2008, Boise State opened a season unranked in both the Associated Press and Amway Coaches Polls.

Boise State offense ranks 18th nationally in total offense, averaging 537.5 yards per game. The mark also leads the MW. A balanced attack, the Broncos rank 30th in passing offense (308.0) and 33rd in rushing offense (229.5). Boise State also ranks 13th nationally in time of possession (33:48).

Three of the nation’s top 26 reception marks belong to Boise State: Shane Williams-Rhodes is averaging 9.0 catches per game, which ranks seventh nationally; Jay Ajayi ranks 12th with 8.0 per game; and Matt Miller ranks 26th with 5.0 per game.

The Broncos have gained six turnovers (five interceptions and a fumble), the ninth-most in the country. Additionally, the Bronco defense is averaging 9.0 tackles-for-loss per game, a mark that ranks eighth nationally and leads the Mountain West. Sophomore linebacker Tanner Vallejo ranks 16th nationally and leads the MW averaging 2.0 TFLs per game.

Boise State ranks fifth nationally in rush defense, allowing an average of 49.5 yards per game. The Bronco defense has allowed an opponent score just four times in seven red zone trips, ranking 15th nationally in red zone defense (.571).

Boise State awards The Hammer to the individual who makes the best special teams play the previous week, and that player leads the team out onto the field the following game. Blake Renaud won it after their first game and Jay Ajayi won it last week.

Entering 2014, Boise State is riding a streak of 16-consecutive winning seasons.

Per a vote of their teammates, Corey Bell and Matt Miller have been named captains for the entire 2014 season. Two additional captains are selected each week by the coaching staff .

Preseason Watch Lists:

Jay Ajayi:

• Maxwell Award
• Doak Walker Award
• Walter Camp Player of the Year
• Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award

Donte Deayon:

• Jim Thorpe Award

Dan Goodale:

• Lou Groza Award

Grant Hedrick:

• Davey O’Brien Award

Jeremy Ioane:

• Jim Thorpe Award
• Polynesian Player of the Year

Matt Miller:

• Biletnikoff Award

Shane Williams-Rhodes:

• Paul Hornung Award
• Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award

Thursday UConn Football Links:

To open the links up in a new tab or window, use Control+click

Breaking Bread with Bob – 9/9/14 [sox & dawgs]

Boise State OC on UConn’s defense: “It’s like watching the Notre Dame defense already” [jim fuller – new haven register]

UConn players happy to hear of tribute plan for Jasper Howard [jim fuller – new haven register]

UConn football: On Boyle, concussions and second chances [john silver – sny uconn]

CB Byron Jones Knows He Must Step Up Against Boise State [hartford courant]

Boise State coach Mike Sanford, formerly at Yale, returning to Connecticut [new haven register]

Next Week:

UConn heads out on the road for the first time this season next Friday night as they’ll be in Tampa, FL to take on the South Florida Bulls in an American Athletic Conference Game. Kickoff is scheduled for 8 p.m.