Here is a press release from the Boston Red Sox about the 2011 Rookie Development Program which will start next week:

The Red Sox 2011 Rookie Program will begin January 10, 2011 in Boston. Eleven of Boston’s top prospects will take part in the two-week program, which is designed to expose the players to the expectations of being Major Leaguers for the Red Sox.

Ten of the participants in the Rookie Program spent all of 2010 in the Red Sox organization: pitchers Robert Coello, Stephen Fife, Stolmy Pimentel, Jason Rice, Alex Wilson; catchers Tim Federowicz and Ryan Lavarnway; infielders Will Middlebrooks and Oscar Tejeda; and outfielder Juan Linares. Also taking part will be pitcher Clevelan Santeliz, who was signed as a free agent in December 2010 after playing for the White Sox Triple-A Charlotte club.

The program includes two workouts daily that emphasize conditioning and strength training as well as concentration on fundamentals. In addition, the players are attending a number of seminars that will focus on the assimilation into Major League life off the field and will visit the Dana Faber Cancer Institute to meet with young patients receiving treatments at the Jimmy Fund. They will also participate in a community service project with the Red Sox Foundation at The Children’s Services of Roxbury Day Care facility.

A number of individuals will speak to the group, including President/CEO Larry Lucchino, General Manager Theo Epstein, manager Terry Francona, Major League coaches Dave Magadan and Curt Young, and Boston Celtics head coach Doc Rivers.

I know this first part is old news but I’ve been away for a bit and really haven’t had internet access (if you ever find yourself sitting in the airport in Phoenix don’t plan on their free internet helping you out). But I wanted to get this news posted up and it actually works out because there is a little more from today concerning the Boston Red Sox.

The Red Sox have re-signed Hideki Okajima to a one-year major league contract. He was non-tendered by the Red Sox back in December.

Okajima will have to compete for his spot in the bullpen with the likes of Lenny DiNardo, Felix Doubront, Rich Hill and Andrew Miller. As of right now, there is no sure left-hander in the Red Sox bullpen.

According to Jon Morosi of FOXSports.com, the Red Sox have also signed utility man Hector Luna to a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training.

And finally, Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com is reporting that the Red Sox have signed Tony Pena Jr. to a minor league contract as well.

I’ll have some more current Red Sox news coming up shortly as well so be sure to check back.

HARTFORD, Conn. (January 5, 2010) – Connecticut Public Television (CPTV) is pleased to announce that New York Life Insurance Company has become a Signature Sponsor for the station’s broadcasts of the University of Connecticut women’s basketball games during the 2010-2011 season.

As part of the agreement, New York Life is sponsoring a new segment in UConn Huskies broadcasts called “The Play That Secured the Win,” which will air at the end of each of the remaining games.

The company is also Presenting Sponsor of Hoop Streams, CPTV’s live and on-demand source for CPTV-produced UConn games, The Geno Auriemma Show, and archived games. The subscription-only service boasts improved video quality and streaming speeds over years past and now has more subscribers than ever in its history.

Executive Vice President of U.S. Life and Agency Mark W. Pfaff said, “New York Life takes great pride in supporting the UConn Huskies women’s basketball team on CPTV.  The company’s sponsorship reminds loyal viewers that, similar to the Huskies, New York Life has a strong track record of solid performance and is proud to be providing financial protection to Connecticut families and businesses for over 165 years.”

This season, CPTV will have broadcast at least twenty UConn women’s basketball games; ten editions of the coach’s interview program, The Geno Auriemma Show; as well as additional coverage and special programming celebrating the team’s accomplishments.

CPTV is the TV broadcast home of UConn Women’s Basketball and has been broadcasting the team’s games since 1994. With some of the consistently highest ratings and strongest membership levels of any program on public television over the past 15 years, UConn Women’s Basketball on CPTV is considered by many to be the most successful local franchise in public television history.

New York Life joins the roster of CPTV’s UConn women’s basketball sponsors, including Founding Sponsors: Big Y World Class Market and Yankee Gas, and additional Signature Sponsors: Saint Francis Hospital and Medical Center and People’s United Bank.

“UConn Women’s Basketball on CPTV has become wonderful part of Connecticut life and it wouldn’t be possible without strong corporate leadership.  We are grateful for the on-going support of our long standing signature sponsors and we are very excited to add New York Life, another outstanding organization to our roster,” commented Dean Orton, Vice President of Development and Media Services at Connecticut Public Broadcasting Network.

New York Life Insurance Company, a Fortune 100 company founded in 1845, is the largest mutual life insurance company in the United States* and one of the largest life insurers in the world. New York Life has the highest possible financial strength ratings from all four of the major credit rating agencies. Headquartered in New York City, New York Life’s family of companies offers life insurance, retirement income, investments and long-term care insurance. New York Life Investments** provides institutional asset management and retirement plan services. Other New York Life affiliates provide an array of securities products and services, as well as institutional and retail mutual funds. Please visit New York Life’s Web site at www.newyorklife.com for more information.

*New York Life is the largest mutual life insurance company based on the Fortune 500, ranked within industries, Insurance:  Life, Health (Mutual), Fortune magazine, May 3, 2010.

**New York Life Investments is a service mark used by New York Life Investment Management Holdings LLC and its subsidiary, New York Life Investment Management LLC.

Click on the read more button below to continue reading.

About Connecticut Public Television

CPTV is a media service of the Connecticut Public Broadcasting Network. It is a locally and nationally recognized producer and presenter of quality public television programming, including

UConn Women’s Basketball, original documentaries and educational programming. CPTV has built a reputation as a leader in children’s programming, including playing an historic role in bringing Barney & Friends™, Bob the Builder™ and Thomas & Friends™ to public television.

The station offers 11 hours of positive, nurturing children’s programs each weekday, reaching 50,000 to 70,000 households daily. The Connecticut Public Broadcasting Network (CBPN) also includes WNPR. WNPR is an affiliate of National Public Radio, Public Radio International and American Public Media. WNPR serves over 200,000 listeners weekly in Connecticut, New York and Rhode Island with news and information. Its award-winning local programming includes The Faith Middleton Show and Where We Live hosted by John Dankosky. CPBN also serves its audience with two broadcast and cable channels: CPTV4U, a channel featuring drama, performance, international news, independent film and more; and CTSN, a 24/7 broadcast service offering coverage of the state’s high school and college sports. Overall the network brings a broad spectrum of public affairs, entertainment, sports and educational programming to viewers, listeners and readers. For more information, visit www.cptv.org.

I try and go enjoy the sights out here in Arizona and I come home to complete chaos for the UConn Huskies football program.

Earlier on Sunday afternoon, ESPN reported that Huskies head coach Randy Edsall was leaving to become the new head coach for the Maryland Terrapins. It was later confirmed in a press release from Maryland with a press conference scheduled for Monday afternoon in College Park, MD.

But from everything I can gather at this point, Edsall didn’t exactly handle this all too well.

One unidentified freshman emailed Desmond Conner of the Hartford Courant to let him know his feelings. And let’s just say that they weren’t good ones.

“We were on hold for a half-hour, with the operations manager telling us Edsall would be coming on in a few minutes. When Edsall came on he was like, “I just wanted to tell you that I’m sorry I can’t do this in person, but due to circumstances … I just want to let you know that it’s not because of you guys. But it’s an opportunity for my family. … I can move on feeling like I’ve accomplished things here and I’m leaving the program in a good way.”

“A couple of coaches said that was BS. … They didn’t know about it. He hadn’t told any of us.”

“It really pisses me off because he made Jordan (Todman) address the team last night to say he was leaving. And he isn’t man enough to do it face to face to us?”

Conner adds in that email that Edsall had apparently begun negotiations with Maryland last week.

Wide receiver Kashif Moore also talked with Conner about Edsall leaving.

“First of all, finding out on the plane and hearing it from people as I’m landing and stuff was kind of disappointing,” said receiver Kashif Moore, who was allowed to wear No.6, the jersey number of slain teammate Jasper Howard, his close friend.

“For being like a leader on this team, I’ve been here awhile, it’s disappointing but at the same time, Coach Edsall has done so much for the program. I love him as a person and what he did for us after Jazz [Howard] was killed. I respect him for that but at the end of the day, and I learned this when I was getting recruited, this is a business. We can’t ever forget that.”

“To all the UConn fans and people who have been out there supporting us, with or without Coach Edsall, we’re trying to come back to the BCS. I’m going to step up and be a leader, be more vocal. We just want the fans to continue to support us. We’re still going to play our hearts out for them.”

To continue reading, click the read more button below if you’re on the home page.

I don’t know to whom or where I said it but I remember saying that Edsall would probably leave UConn after this season because it would have been Jasper Howard’s final season at UConn. Edsall did a great job of handling that situation and probably wanted to see everything through. But now that Howard would have played his last game in the Fiesta Bowl, Edsall doesn’t have that holding him down.

I’ve seen a few different reasons for Edsall leaving, stricter admission guidelines at UConn, his assistants being some of the lowest paid in all of college football. Well whatever the reason is, we may never know.

I think we were all kidding ourselves if Edsall was going to stay here forever. He has to do what’s right for him and his family.

There’s probably not more he could do at UConn anyways. They are still light years from actually winning a national championship but he built a solid program from the ground up and got them to a BCS bowl faster than any other school who moved up divisions.

The Huskies have some of the finest facilities in the Big East but Edsall was never able to get the playmakers he needed to take it to the next level. Sure getting to a BCS game will help but you won’t see the benefits for a few years.

And now you have a program that’s in flux.

There will be transfers from the team, there will be guys that who have given a verbal commitment back out of said commitment and of course there’s the whole matter of who will coach the Huskies.

And what happens when the new coach comes in?

What kind of offense does he run? What kind of defense does he play?  He’ll have 3-4 more years of guys Edsall recruited mixed in with some of his own recruits.

Athletic director Jeff Hathaway now has a big job to do. And that’s get a coach to Storrs who can continue the success of Edsall and bring the UConn football program to whole nother level that Edsall couldn’t reach.

Interesting times now for the Huskies.

Photo credit: John Woike – Hartford Courant (No. 2)

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 some of the other sports. We will do our best to bring you the links from all of the media that covers the Huskies on a daily basis. As always, links can be found by clicking on the read more button below.

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

Hurd ready for the next challenge [Chuck Banning – The Day]

Randy Edsall Needs More Playmakers – And He Said So [Desmond Conner – Hartford Courant]

Jordan Todman: If He Stunk It Up In Fiesta Bowl… [Desmond Conner – Hartford Courant]

So long Fiesta, so long Jordan [Ed Daigneault – The Republican-American]

Fiesta Wrap –Todman leaving [John Silver – Journal Inquirer]

Fiesta Bowl fallout [Neill Ostrout – CT Post]

Instant analysis: Oklahoma 48, UConn 20 [Ted Miller – ESPN.com]

Video: UConn linebacker Scott Lutrus [Ted Miller – ESPN.com]

UConn sees Fiesta Bowl positives [Ted Miller – ESPN.com]

Video: How Oklahoma won the Fiesta Bowl [Ted Miller – ESPN.com]

Oklahoma too tough an obstacle for UConn in Fiesta Bowl [CT Post]

UConn doesn’t have nearly enough stops vs. Sooners [CT Post]

Todman announces he’s leaving UConn for NFL [CT Post]

UConn football notebook: [CT Post]

UConn’s key wins, bowl appearances [CT Post]

Sooners Too Much For Huskies In Fiesta Bowl [Hartford Courant]

Kashif Moore First To Wear Jasper Howard’s No. 6 [Hartford Courant]

Gratz Scores On Interception Return, Giving Huskies Early Hope [Hartford Courant]

Todman Turning Pro [Hartford Courant]

A Stay-At-Home Fan [Hartford Courant]

UConn Supporters Join The Party Before The Fiesta [Hartford Courant]

Huskies fall to Oklahoma in Fiesta Bowl [New Haven Register]

NOTEBOOK: Jordan Todman declares for NFL Draft [New Haven Register]

Todman’s youth football coach cheers him on from stands [Norwich Bulletin]

Sooners’ spurt ends UConn’s dreams in the desert [The Day]

Fiesta: Sooners too explosive for punchless UConn [The Republican-American]

BCS recruiting boost could take a few years [The Republican-American]

Big East’s worst fears hold true as UConn falls hard to Oklahoma [College Football Talk]

Sooners end BCS bowl skid with 48-20 Fiesta Bowl win [NewsOK.com]

Oklahoma tops UConn in Fiesta Bowl [Arizona Republic]

Fans party despite cold [Arizona Republic]

UConn Women’s Basketball links

Front Row Seat To UConn Women’s Streak [Hartford Courant]

UConn Men’s Basketball links

New Year, Old Team [UConn Huskies Basketball]

Sophomore sheds frustrating slump [The Day]

Other UConn related links

W. Ice Hockey. Murphy And Blain Score In Loss At Dartmouth [UConnHuskies.com]

During the postgame press conference after the UConn Huskies 48-20 loss to the Oklahoma Sooners in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl, running back Jordan Todman announced his intentions to skip his senior season and declare for the 2011 NFL Draft.

“My reasons are personal, but I feel it’s the right time for me. It’s pretty much my dream come true.”

Todman had 121 yards on 32 carries in the loss. He finishes the 2010 season with 1,695 yards and 14 touchdowns.

He ends his UConn career as the number two all-time rusher with 3,179 yards, trailing just Donald Brown’s 3,800. He finishes third in career rushing touchdowns with 31 and second in carries with 616.

While it’s still early in the process especially since Todman just delcared, there hasn’t been much speculation as to where he might get drafted. But I’d have to think since he’s coming out that he could be a late first round pick or early second round. Otherwise, it wouldn’t have made much sense for him to come out.

Photo credit: AP Photo (No. 17 in gallery)

Joining the Bloguin Network has been great for many things. Amongst them is being able to talk with other blogs from the opposing teams. It gives us the ability to pick the brains of some great writers.

With the UConn Huskies playing the Oklahoma Sooners in tonight’s Tostitos Fiesta Bowl, I was able to catch up with Allen from Blatant Homerism earlier in the week. Allen does a great job of covering the Oklahoma Sooners for Blatant Homerism so be sure to check out his site for a view from the enemy.

Many thanks to Allen for taking the time to answer some questions from me for tonight’s game.

1. Oklahoma has had good seasons in the past only to falter in the BCS bowl games. Is there any reason why?

Blantant Homerism: If I knew the answer to that, I bet I could convince Bob Stoops to split one of those BCS bonus checks he gets with me.

Part of OU’s BCS struggles can be attributed to simply playing really good teams in tough circumstances. For example, I have a hard time believing any team can beat LSU in a national championship game in the Superdome.

That’s not a very satisfying answer, though. In terms of what OU can actually control, it seems like the Sooners have sometimes put so much emphasis on the conference championship game that they lose focus during the holiday break. I think that was a factor in the losses to Boise State in 2007 and West Virginia in 2008.

To continue reading the Q&A, click on the read more button below.

2.   We all know about the high powered offense of Oklahoma. Will it look any different under new co-offensive coordinator Josh Heupel. And how can UConn stop them?

BH: Heupel hasn’t had much time to put his own stamp on things from a “look” standpoint. Any major changes in that respect would likely come in the offseason, and I don’t think many in Sooner Nation expect any significant tweaks.

The main concern I’ve heard expressed is that as a former quarterback, Heupel may lean too heavily to the pass in his play selection. Obviously that remains to be seen.

The teams that have had the most success slowing down OU’s offense have worked to put pressure on Landry Jones and confuse him with blitzes coming from multiple angles. The goal is to force Jones into mistakes and capitalize on his tendency to stare down receivers on hot reads.

It’s difficult to keep OU from moving the ball – better to focus on taking chances to create opportunities for turnovers and negative plays.

3. Give us a player or two who isn’t a star but could be a factor in the game for the non-Oklahoma fan.

BH: Middle linebacker Austin Box missed the first half of the year with a back injury, but he seemed to make lots of big plays for OU’s defense late in the season. A fourth-year junior, Box understands the Sooners’ defensive scheme as well as anyone, and his coverage skills have made him a valuable asset on passing downs.

On offense, senior wide receiver Cameron Kenney really hit his stride late in the season. He has always had an ability to get open, but drops have kept him on the bench in the past. Something clicked in OU’s final two games of the year, as he was instrumental in big wins against Oklahoma State and Nebraska.

4. Jordan Todman has carried UConn all season long on the ground. How will Oklahoma try to stop him?

BH: OU’s line is the weak spot of the defense. The front four struggle to generate a consistent push, which means the Sooners will have to stack the box to keep Todman under wraps.

Defensive coordinator Brent Venables will take his chances with Zach Frazer and count on the secondary to make due with little help.

5.   Your prediction for the game.

BH: OU, 35-14.

Thanks again to Allen for taking the time to answer the questions.

Photo credit: John Woike – Hartford Courant (No. 17)

This week:

After winning the Big East’s BCS berth, the UConn Huskies will take on the Big 12 Champion Oklahoma Sooners on New Year’s Day 2011 in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl at the University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, AZ.

Here are the rosters for the Huskies and the Sooners.

The Line/Prediction:

According to USA Today, the Sooners are favored by 16 points. The over/under is 55.

I’m going to go with my Huskies here as they win 27-24.

Getting To The Game:

Here is link for the weather report. If you’re heading to the game, here is everything you need to know about the University of Phoenix Stadium.  The roof of the stadium will be closed due to the unseasonable temperatures in Glendale.

BROADCAST INFORMATION

Television:

The Tostitos Fiesta Bowl will be televised nationally by ESPN. Sean McDonough is on play-by-play while Matt Millen is on color and Heather Cox is on the sidelines.

There will also be an ESPN 3D telecast with Joe Tessitore on play-by-play and Tim Brown on color while Ray Bentley is on the sidelines.

The game will also be available on ESPN3.com.

Radio:

For the 19th 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 and E.B. Davis on production.

On gameday, coverage will begin at 2:00 p.m. Eastern with Dunaway followed by the pregame show, the game broadcast and a postgame show. UConn football games are also broadcast over the internet at WTIC.com. Here’s a full list of stations on the WTIC/UConn Radio Network.

There will also be national ESPN Radio coverage with Ron Franklin on play-by-play, Ed Cunningham on color and Jeannine Edwards on the sideline.

Oklahoma Radio:

The Sooner Sports Radio Network with Bob Barry Sr., Toby Rowland and Merv Johnson blankets the state of Oklahoma and also delivers Sooner football games to fans and alumni in neighboring states. The flagship stations for the network are 50,000-watt KOKC, AM 1520 and KRXO, 107.7 FM in Oklahoma City.

The Oklahoma broadcast will also be available on Sirius Channel 121 and XM Channel 140.

Last Game:

The Huskies beat the South Florida Bulls 19-16 to clinch the BCS berth from the Big East while the Sooners beat the Nebraska Cornhuskers 23-20 in the Big 12 Championship Game.

History:

The Tostitos Fiesta Bowl is the first meeting between UConn and Oklahoma in the sport of football. UConn has a 3-0 record against the current members of the Big 12 with a 30-22 win at Baylor on Sept. 19, 2009, a home 31-28 win vs. Baylor on Sept. 19, 2008 and a season-ending 37-20 win at Iowa State on Nov. 23, 2002. That game marked UConn’s first ever win over a bowl-bound team.

Connections:

UConn and Oklahoma have one common opponent from this year as both teams beat Cincinnati. Oklahoma beat the Bearcats on the road on Sept. 25 by a 31-29 score while the Huskies won at home vs. UC by a 38-17 score on Nov. 27.

UConn does not have any players from the state of Oklahoma on it nor does Oklahoma even have a player from New England on its roster.

Oklahoma assistant coach James Patton coached at nearby Rhode Island from 1995-97 and faced the Huskies three times, with UConn winning two of those games.

Other UConn News:

Here are quotes from head coach Randy Edsall’s Fiesta Bowl press conference. Here are quotes from UConn’s offensive press conference and defensive press conference. Here are quotes from UConn’s Fiesta Bowl Media Day.

Here is video from the UConn seniors’ final practice.

Randy Edsall was named the Big East Co-Coach of the Year.

When the Huskies face Oklahoma in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl at University of Phoenix Stadium, home of the NFL’s Arizona Cardinals, UConn will be playing in an active (at the time of the game) NFL stadium for the 14th time in its history. UConn owns a 5-8 record in such games – including a loss to Temple this year at Lincoln Financial Field and a win over USF at Raymond James Stadium. In 2009, UConn fell to Pittsburgh at Heinz Field – home of the Pittsburgh Steelers. In 2008, UConn defeated Temple at Lincoln Financial Field and lost to South Florida at Raymond James Stadium.

Although this is the first game for the UConn football team at University of Phoenix Stadium, it is not the first Husky team to play here. The UConn men’s basketball team won the NCAA West Regional at University of Phoenix Stadium in 2009 with wins over Purdue and Missouri. The Huskies then lost to Michigan State in the national semifinals at Detroit’s Ford Field – where the football team played its first bowl game.

UConn’s trip to the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl marks the fifth time that the Huskies are going bowling and the fourth consecutive.

With UConn’s play in the BCS this season, it becomes…

• The first school from New England to play in a BCS game.
• The first school from New England and the “Tri-State” area, which also includes New York and NewJ ersey since Syracuse played in the 1999 Orange Bowl in the first year of the BCS.
• The quickest school to leave the FCS (then Division I-AA) to a BCS game. UConn made the trip in nine years as a FBS school while Boise State is second at 11.

Jordan Todman has been named to ESPN.com’s 2010 All-America Team, a First-Team All-America by the Sporting News and a First Team All-America by SI.com. Todman has also been named a Second-Team All-America by the Walter Camp Football Foundation and a Second-Team All-America by the AP

In addition, he was named the 2010 Big East Offensive Player of the Year and was also named UConn’s MVP for the 2010 season.

Connecticut enters the bowl season ranked No. 25 in the country by the Associated Press. The ranking in the top 25 is the first for the Huskies this season. UConn was also the top “Also Receiving Votes” team in the USA Today and Harris polls. In its FBS history, UConn has now appeared in the AP poll in seven different weeks.

Here are the categories where UConn was in the top 40 in the 2010 NCAA statistics

• Rushing Offense………………..31st at 179.92 (Second in BIG EAST)
• Pass Eff. Def……………………..16th at 111.42 (Third in BIG EAST)
• Scoring Defense…………………t23rd at 19.83 (Sixth in BIG EAST)
• Kickoff Returns…………………6th at 26.46 (First in BIG EAST)
• Interceptions……………………..t5th at 19 (First in BIG EAST)
• Turnovers Gained……………..t12th at 29 (First in BIG EAST)
• Turnovers Lost………………….t24th at 17 (Third in BIG EAST)
• Tackles For Loss………………..t20th at 6.83 (First in BIG EAST)
• Sacks………………………………..t34th at 2.33 (Tied Fourth in BIG EAST)
• Sacks Allowed……………………t14th at 1.00 (First in BIG EAST)
• Turnover Margin………………t12th at +1.00 (First in BIG EAST)

Here are UConn’s ranked individual leaders

• Jordan Todman – Second in rushing at 143.09 and First in BIG EAST 14th in all-purpose rushing at 156.36 and First in BIG EAST
• Dave Teggart – t23rd in scoring at 8.58 and First in BIG EAST, Tied for fourth in field goals at 1.92 and First in BIG EAST
• Lawrence Wilson – t26th in tackles at 9.58 and First in BIG EAST
• Jesse Joseph – 20th in sacks at 0.77 and Third in BIG EAST, Second in BIG EAST in TFL at 1.15

Here’s a statisical comparison between UConn and Oklahoma.

Notes from this week’s opponent Oklahoma:

Here are quotes from head coach Bob Stoops Fiesta Bowl press conference. Here are quotes from Oklahoma’s offensive press conference and defensive press conference. Here are quotes from Oklahoma’s Fiesta Bowl Media Day.

This is the 12th straight bowl appearance for the Sooners which is how many years head coach Bob Stoops has been there.

WR Ryan Broyles was named a first-team All-American (Walter Camp, Rivals). Quinton Carter was also named a first-team All-American (AFCA).

This Oklahoma team broke or tied 19 school records including a 36-game winning streak.

Saturday UConn Football Links:

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

Butch Jones breaks down UConn, Sooners [Brian Bennett – ESPN.com]

My Tostitos Fiesta Bowl pick [Brian Bennett – ESPN.com]

(Finally) Ready for the Fiesta [Chip Malafronte – New Haven Register]

Feeling right at home in Scottsdale [Chuck Banning – The Day]

Some Final Words From Randy Edsall Before Game Time [Desmond Conner – Hartford Courant]

Let’s play the game already [Ed Daigneault – The Republican-American]

Fiesta Bowl taste test [Joe Perez – Norwich Bulletin]

Fiesta Bowl New Year’s Eve day edition [John Silver – Journal Inquirer]

Fiesta news: Any respect out there for Huskies? [Lee Lewis – The Republican-American]

Some final Fiesta Bowl words from UConn and OU [Neill Ostrout – CT Post]

Gameday in the desert [Neill Ostrout – CT Post]

Video: UConn’s Blidi Wreh-Wilson [Ted Miller – ESPN.com]

Video: Oklahoma’s offense vs. UConn [Ted Miller – ESPN.com]

Video: Fiesta Bowl predictions [Ted Miller – ESPN.com]

Blog debate: Can UConn hang with OU? [Ted Miller – ESPN.com]

A freshman inspires UConn [Ted Miller – ESPN.com]

Plenty of coaching continuity at UConn [Ted Miller – ESPN.com]

Tradition? Oklahoma, UConn worlds apart [Ted Miller – ESPN.com]

Fiesta Bowl: UConn (8-4) vs. Oklahoma (11-2) [Ted Miller – ESPN.com]

Fiesta Bowl: Three keys for UConn [Ted Miller – ESPN.com]

Fiesta Bowl 2011: Video Chat Day 3 With Zac Boyer From Arizona [Zac Boyer – Hartford Courant]

Friday Football Update From The Fiesta Bowl [UConnHuskies.com]

UConn Fans At The Tostitos Fiesta Bowl [UConnHuskies.com]

Game Preview – Tostitos Fiesta Bowl [BigEast.org]

UConn scrambles to sell some extra tickets [CT Post]

UConn vs. Oklahoma: Who has the edge? [CT Post]

UConn’s Lutrus battles back from stingers to make impact [CT Post]

UConn football notebook [CT Post]

UConn Has Chance To Change Perception [Hartford Courant]

Oklahoma Is Used To Being Short In The Running Game [Hartford Courant]

UConn Will Face More Confident Oklahoma Defense [Hartford Courant]

UConn Will Have Hands Full With Oklahoma’s Uptempo Offense [Hartford Courant]

Huskies’ Improved Mind-Set Forced Momentum To Shift [Hartford Courant]

UConn’s Punter Is Calm, Cole And Collected [Hartford Courant]

Huskies ready for Oklahoma in Fiesta Bowl [New Haven Register]

Waterford’s Hurd stands tall on offensive line [Norwich Bulletin]

Fiesta Bowl: Special teamers key UConn’s surge [Norwich Bulletin]

Fiesta Bowl: UConn optimistic it has a chance to win [Norwich Bulletin]

Fiesta Bowl: Huskies moving upward [Norwich Bulletin]

They’ve come a long way, baby [The Day]

Oklahoma tired of reliving past failures [The Republican-American]

Unsung Huskies will keep outcome close [The Republican-American]

Huskies march into game tired of criticism [The Republican-American]

Huskies keep memory of slain teammate in their hearts [NewsOK.com]

Todman pulls Huskies sled [Boston Globe]

Are heavy underdog Connecticut Huskies worthy of Bowl Championship Series berth? [Arizona Republic]

Connecticut Huskies rely on special teams for scoring boost [Arizona Republic]

UConn quarterback Zach Frazer’s numbers aren’t great, but the results are [NewsOK.com]

Todman’s people back home wouldn’t miss this one for the world [SouthCoastToday.com]

Underdog UConn faces added pressure tonight of representing slumping Big East [The Star-Ledger]

Connecticut’s Jordan Todman Ready for Big Stage of Fiesta Bowl [Fanhouse]

Next Week:

The 2010 season is finished.

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 some of the other sports. We will do our best to bring you the links from all of the media that covers the Huskies on a daily basis. As always, links can be found by clicking on the read more button below.

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

Before we get going here, I just wanted to offer my apologies for not getting anything posted yesterday. It was a crazy day getting out here to Glendale and after almost no sleep the night before heading here, I crashed. The airport internet in Detroit sucked as well so that meant not getting my preview done for the game and not doing the links. Well, I’m going to do my best to get caught up here before heading over the game to do some tailgating.

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UConn Football links

The UConn football links can be found in the Saturday links section of the Oklahoma vs UConn Fiesta Bowl preview. We’ll also have a Q&A upcoming with Allen from Blatant Homerism.

UConn Women’s Basketball links

My take on UConn/Stanford [Jim Fuller – New Haven Register]

Record ratings for UConn/Stanford [Jim Fuller – New Haven Register]

Impressions From The Fall (If That’s What One Loss Is) [John Altavilla – Hartford Courant]

No. 1 Huskies’ Historic Streak Ends At 90 With Loss To Stanford, 71-59 [UConnHuskies.com]

Auriemma Sees UConn’s Loss As Chance To Teach [Hartford Courant]

After streak, what’s next [New Haven Register]

Streak over, UConn now focus on title [The Republican-American]

Will You Remember The UCONN Women’s Record? Probably Not…. [Chicago Now]

UConn Men’s Basketball links

A great escape [Gavin Keefe – The Day]

Kemba Walker Sparks UConn’s Second-Half Run [Mike Anthony – Hartford Courant]

A Good Night For Jamal Coombs-McDaniel [Mike Anthony – Hartford Courant]

Struggling To Stop Gilchrist [Mike Anthony – Hartford Courant]

A Few Other Thoughts From UConn-South Florida [Mike Anthony – Hartford Courant]

Video View: Highlights And Postgame Interviews Following The Win Over South Florida [Shawn Courchesne – Hartford Courant]

UConn Overcomes South Florida Late, Wins 66-61 In Overtime [Hartford Courant]

Gilchrist A Handful For UConn Frontcourt [Hartford Courant]

UConn Extras … From The 66-61 Victory Over South Florida [Hartford Courant]

Huskies survive, defeat South Florida in overtime [New Haven Register]

UConn men finally exhale [The Day]

Other UConn related links

M. Ice Hockey. Huskies Fall To Princeton In Toyota UConn Hockey Classic Championship [UConnHuskies.com]

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 some of the other sports. We will do our best to bring you the links from all of the media that covers the Huskies on a daily basis. As always, links can be found by clicking on the read more button below.

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

Big East power rankings [Brian Bennett – ESPN.com]

And the Big East’s hot team is … [Brian Bennett – ESPN.com]

Little love for Big East in ESPN.com rankings [Brian Bennett – ESPN.com]

Big East mailbag [Brian Bennett – ESPN.com]

As we await the main course … [Chuck Banning – The Day]

Marcus Easley Seriously Injured [Desmond Conner – Hartford Courant]

UConn Coach Randy Edsall On Transfers [Desmond Conner – Hartford Courant]

DC also answered some questions in his mailbag [Desmond Conner – Hartford Courant]

Opening Day thoughts [Joe Perez – Norwich Bulletin]

Season Tickets Shipped; Single-Game Sales Start Wednesday [UConnHuskies.com]

Day Two Of Camp Wrapup; Single-Game Sales Wednesday [UConnHuskies.com]

Bills rookie receiver Easley, from Stratford, out indefinitely [CT Post]

USC transfer Shoemate is starting to settle in at UConn [The Day]

UConn Huskies start season with great expectations [WTNH.com]

Marcus Easley could be out for a long time [National Football Post]

Head games: Winged helmet is UConn’s daily reminder of U-M [The Detroit News]

UConn Women’s Basketball links

Laney drops two Big East schools [Jim Fuller – New Haven Register]

UConn Men’s Basketball links

Josiah Turner to Visit Sept. 10 [David Borges – New Haven Register]

Josiah Turner To Visit; Andre Drummond To Reclassify To Class Of 2011? [Mike Anthony – Hartford Courant]

Other UConn related links

Baseball: USA Baseball Wrap-Up [UConnHuskies.com]

Men’s Soccer: Men’s Soccer Ranked No. 22 in NSCAA Preseason Rankings [UConnHuskies.com]

Women’s Soccer: Women’s Soccer Picked Third In BIG EAST Preseason Poll [UConnHuskies.com]