zion turner

Heart and Will Get UConn Back in the Win Column

/ Brian Phair / Leave a comment

For most, watching a UConn football game is torture and not worth the time or energy. Thanks to several season ending injuries to key offensive players in game one, any promise of a strong season for UConn was over before it began and made the already steep hill to wins an even more difficult climb. Despite all the struggles and now 12 players with season ending injuries, the Huskies are looking to prove themselves and establish some momentum moving forward. On Saturday afternoon, they did just that with a 19-14 victory at home over Fresno State. They entered the game as 23.5 point underdogs and pulled off an improbable victory that is sure to inject confidence in the very young group taking the field right now. Despite all the adversity and the incredible inexperience on roster, Jim Mora’s Huskies aren’t about to roll over and die.

Even for a diehard UConn sports fan like myself, I have found it difficult to carve out time to watch football the last few seasons. While I’ve seen parts of most all games, it’s a serious, and sometimes tortuous existence following this program. What I used to consider appointment television, regardless of the product on the field, has now become painful viewing. I’ve been worn down from all the years of complete trash play. Almost every game against an FBS opponent features 20+ point underdog status (often more like 40+) for the Huskies and I’ve found myself rooting for the Huskies to beat the spread more often than actually rooting for a win. Frankly, it’s significantly more likely they beat the spread most weeks than even come within 2 or 3 touchdowns of their opponent.

As I would any other week, I went into this past week against Fresno State with the same routine: check the spread as soon as it’s available. My first reaction, “Oh, it’s only a 23.5 point spread this week, maybe UConn will only lose by 3 touchdowns.” There is no better time to be wrong than when underestimating the team you love. The Huskies showed grit, determination, and a lack of quit against the Bulldogs and thanks to some good play, and some lucky twists and turns, found themselves with a chance to drive down the field and take the lead late in the 4th quarter. True Freshman QB Zion Turner led the Huskies on a long drive downfield, including a 40-yard pass to WR Kevens Clercius, resulting in the game-winning TD. It was the first time this season we’ve seen Turner step up in a big way in a huge spot.

The W was significant in a plethora of ways. It was UConn’s first win against an FBS opponent in nearly 3 years (UMass in 2019) and was a statement that despite injuries and low expectations, the Huskies were going to come into each game prepared and fight like hell, even with the odds massively against them. Additionally, now with 2 wins on the season, the Huskies have matched their season best number since their 3-win 2017 campaign with 6 games to go. While I’m not expecting a ton more victories given some challenging opponents in their near future, Saturday proved that this team has a chance to hang in there and who knows, maybe even win another game or two this season. Most importantly as a fan, this is the first time in a very long time to have a glimmer of optimism.

Jim Mora came to UConn knowing that a rebuild and turnaround was going to take a lot of work and a lot of time. He was dealt a brutally tough hand in year one with his starting QB and WR1 going down for the season in game one and then subsequently losing starters all over the field over the next few weeks. Despite all those factors, he’s kept his team ready and worked hard to get his young players up to speed and playing, many earlier than expected. It’s only win #2 and the first against an FBS opponent, but it’s a confidence builder and an achievement to be proud of as a head coach given all the challenging conditions.

Hopefully, this is just the first step in a significant rebuild for UConn over the next few years. #BleedBlue

Jim Mora is Crushing the Recruiting Trail

/ Brian Phair / Leave a comment

On November 11, Jim Mora was named the head football coach at UConn with 3 games left in the season for the Huskies. In an unusual move, he joined the coaching staff as an Assistant Coach immediately in order to allow him to begin hitting the recruiting trail in an effort to begin the Husky rebuild ASAP. Just 2 months later and a wave of recruits committed, Mora is already making a statement with his ability to turn this program around. What’s that I see? It’s a glimmer of hope for the floundering UConn Huskies football program.

In his short time at the helm, Mora has brought in 17 recruits, 13 who have signed letters of intents, 3 transfers, and 1 top QB who just committed this week but has not officially signed. He began by doing exactly what he promised, keeping CT high school prospects in-state. Of the 13 signees, 5 are from CT which has become a surprisingly solid breeding ground for college football players over the years, most of whom have historically gone elsewhere for college. Once Mora brought in some local talent, he turned his attention to some top names other places in the country, mainly Florida, which has been a hotbed for UConn over the years and has a massive number of high school prospects each year.

Of the non-transfers who have committed, 8 are 3-star prospects (according to ESPN) and the top 2 in the class, DE Donovan Branch from Winter Garden, FL and QB Zion Turner from Fort Lauderdale, FL (just committed this week) are two of the highest graded prospects to commit to UConn in a very long time. Turner is a 78 according to ESPN and an 87.42 according to 247sports and a dual-threat in the backfield. According to 247sports, Turner is the 9th highest ranked recruit of all time for UConn and the highest since 2013. Most amazingly, he turned down offers from big schools like LSU, Maryland, Miami, Texas A&M, and Pittsburgh to become a Husky. Turner will join Penn State transfer QB Ta’Quan Roberson and Northern Arizona transfer QB Cale Millen (began at Oregon) in a room that already has a promising talent in QB Tyler Phommachanh, who unfortunately had his season cut short in 2021 due to injury and may miss the beginning of 2022.

The edge-rush talent of DE Donovan Branch should help anchor the defensive line and force opposing QBs into more rushed decisions. A strong pass-rush will be critical if the defense is to have success, because last season the opposition had plenty of time to make the right read and they gave up way too many big plays. Mora did also sign CB D’Mon Brinson who is a 78.92 according to 247sports and S Derek Spearman who is a 81.04, so a focus on adding secondary depth is there. The Huskies could really use some more top talent on defense if they want to be competitive. One of the remaining 3-star recruits considering UConn is the #8 Junior College CB, Cortez Eatmon, who would be a great piece for the Husky defense.

Just 2 months into his tenure, Mora has improved the UConn recruiting outlook over the previous year. According to 247sports, UConn’s recruiting class is ranked 101 (114th in 2020), 4th amongst independents (5th in 2020) and an average recruit rating of 82.06 (81.43 in 2020) and things are far from over. According to ESPN, there are 9 3-star recruits still considering UConn, including 6 rated as 75+. If UConn can secure a few more 3-star recruits, this class will continue to rise in the rankings and at very least get the fanbase excited for the 2022 season. There is finally real reason for optimism about football in Storrs, CT.