Connecticut loses heartbreaker to Rutgers

Connecticut Huskies 2009 ... Head Coach: Randy Edsall

2009 Schedule
CFN Prediction: 6-6
2009 Record: 4-4

9/5 at Ohio W 23-16
9/12 North Carolina L 12-0
9/19 at Baylor W 30-22
9/26 Rhode Island W 52-10
10/3 OPEN DATE
10/10 at Pitt L 24-21
10/17 Louisville W 38-25
10/24 at West Va L 28-24
10/31 Rutgers L 28-24
11/7 at Cincinnati
11/14 OPEN DATE
11/21 at Notre Dame
11/28 Syracuse
12/5 USF

2008 Schedule
CFN Prediction: 6-6
2008 Record: 8-5

8/28 Hofstra W 35-3
9/6 at Temple W 12-9 OT
9/13 Virginia W 45-10
9/19 Baylor W 31-28
9/27 at Louisville W 26-21
10/4 at North Carolina L 38-12
10/11 OPEN DATE
10/18 at Rutgers L 12-10
10/25 Cincinnati W 40-16
11/1 West Virginia L 35-13
11/8 OPEN DATE
11/15 at Syracuse W 39-14
11/22 at South Florida L 17-13
11/29 OPEN DATE
12/6 Pitt L 34-10
International Bowl
1/3 Buffalo W 38-20

Connecticut Huskies

Oct. 31
Rutgers 28 … at Connecticut 24
In an emotional game, it was UConn’s first game back home after the death of Jasper Howard, the storybook ending appeared complete as Jordan Todman gave the Huskies the lead on a two-yard touchdown run with 38 seconds to play. But Rutgers managed to pull out the win with an 81-yard pass play to Tim Brown for the win in the final seconds. Brown also caught a 37-yard touchdown pass and Tom Savage, who finished with three touchdown passes, connected with Mark Harrison for a 20-yard score. Devin McCourty gave the Scarlet Knights an early lead with a 98-yard kickoff return for a score, but UConn got a big special teams play of its own with a 100-yard kickoff return for a touchdown from Robbie Frey in the second quarter.
Player of the Game: Rutgers WR Tim Brown caught five passes for 162 yards and two scores.
Connecticut: Passing: Zach Frazer, 21-46, 333 yds, 1 TD, 3 INT
Rushing: Jordan Todman, 13-68, 1 TD, Receiving: Ryan Griffin, 6-80
Rutgers: Passing: Tom Savage, 13-24, 236 yds, 3 TD
Rushing: Joe Martinek, 12-28, Receiving: Tim Brown, 5-162, 2 TD 
What It All Means: Very quietly, Rutgers has positioned itself for a possible No. 3 slot in the Big East pecking order. Any shot at the title is gone with losses to Cincinnati and Pitt, but with the big win over UConn, the Scarlet Knights now have two tough games left, South Florida and West Virginia, and they’re both at home. The team is getting the job done with timely plays, good play from QB Tom Savage, and turnovers. Rutgers is first in the nation in turnover margin, forcing four and not giving any away against the Huskies.

Oct. 24
at West Virginia 28 … Connecticut 24
In a game played in the memory of the late Jasper Howard, the UConn corner who died in a stabbing incident last week, West Virginia took the lead right away on a 98-yard kickoff return for a touchdown from Tavon Austin to start a wild game. Jarrett Brown ran for a five-yard score and hit Tyler Urban for a one-yard score to give the Mountaineers a 21-17 lead, but UConn came up with the big play late on a 88-yard Marcus Easley touchdown catch with just under four minutes to play. And then Noel Devine broke the Huskies’ hearts with a brilliant 56-yard touchdown run, tightroping the right sideline most of the way, to give the Mountaineers the win.
Player of the Game: West Virginia RB Noel Devine ran 23 times for 178 yards and a score, and he caught a pass for 13 yards.
Connecticut: Passing: Cody Endres, 25-41, 378 yds, 2 TD, 3 INT
Rushing: Jordan Todman, 20-94, 1 TD, Receiving: Marcus Easley, 5-157, 1 TD
West Virginia: Passing: Jarrett Brown, 16-27, 153 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Noel Devine, 23-178, 1 TD, Receiving: Jock Sanders, 8-81
What It All Means: Connecticut played an inspired game considering the circumstances, and it can obviously be forgiven if the team was a bit sloppy. There were four turnovers and missed field goals which proved to be too costly, but the passing game clicked, outside of the interceptions, and the chance was there late to come up with the tremendous road win. Now the team has to deal with the grief as the entire squad is going to Miami for the funeral. It’s going to be a tough week to focus on Rutgers, but with road games at Cincinnati and Notre Dame to follow, the home game against the Scarlet Knights will be a must win.

Oct. 17
at Connecticut 38 … Louisville 25
Andre Dixon ran for a 16-yard touchdown and two one-yard scores, and Jordan Todman put the game out of reach with a two-yard touchdown run as Connecticut ran past the Cardinals. Louisville got two short scores from Bilal Powell and a two-yard touchdown run from Victor Anderson, but four turnovers proved too costly to overcome. Lawrence Wilson made 16 tackles for the Huskies.
Player of the Game: Connecticut RB Andre Dixon ran 33 times for 153 yards and three touchdowns and LB Lawrence Wilson made 16 tackles, a tackles for loss, and recovered a fumble Louisville: Passing: Adam Froman, 24-31, 295, 1 TD, 2 INT
Rushing: Bilal Powell, 29-87, 2 TD , Receiving: Scott Long, 5-58
Connecticut: Passing: Cody Endres, 14-21, 273 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Andre Dixon, 33-153, 3 TD, Receiving: Marcus Easley, 6-108, 1 TD
What It All Means: The UConn defense had a rocky day, having major problems on third downs while allowing 457 yards of Louisville offense, but it came up with the four turnovers needed to help make it a blowout going into the fourth quarter. Cody Endres came up with a nice day throwing the ball with Andre Dixon and the running game controlling the offense for long stretches, and the balance will be a must at West Virginia next week. 

Oct. 10
at Pitt 24 … Connecticut 21
Dan Hutchins nailed an 18-yard field goal to complete an impressive comeback for the Pitt win. Panther QB Bill Stull was awful early, throwing an interception to Robert Vaughn that was returned for a score, but he got hot late as he hit Jonathan Baldwin for a 26-yard score and Dorin Dickerson for a 27-yard touchdown as part of the 18 unanswered points for the win. UConn got in the end zone first on a 79-yard Marcus Easley touchdown catch in the second quarter, but the offense sputtered and stalled in the fourth quarter.
Player of the Game: Pitt QB Bill Stull completed 21-of-31 passes for 268 yards and two touchdowns with two interceptions.
Connecticut: Passing: Cody Endres, 17-23, 197 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: Andre Dixon, 16-95, 1 TD, Receiving: Isiah Moore, 4-36
Pitt: Passing: Bill Stull, 21-31, 268 yds, 2 TD, 2 INT
Rushing: Dion Lewis, 24-158, Receiving: Jonathan Baldwin, 8-104, 1 TD 
What It All Means: Greg Lloyd made 15 tackles and Robert Vaughn made ten tackles with two picks, but the defense went bye-bye in crunch time. UConn can’t win too many games, if any, when it gets outgained on the ground, and it lost to Pitt 221 yards to 106. The Huskies all but gave this one away, and now it can’t make any mistakes against Louisville and Rutgers in two home games in the next three weeks, while the team will have to be perfect to challenge West Virginia, Cincinnati, and Notre Dame on the road.

Sept. 26
at Connecticut 52 … Rhode Island 10
Connecticut got two touchdown passes from Cody Endres and two interceptions from Robert McClain in an easy win. Jordan Todman ran for scores from three, eight, and two yards out and Andre Dixon took a pass 18 yards for a score on the way to a 31-7 lead, and then Endres put it well out of reach with a 51-yard scoring pass to Mike Lang. URI was held to 154 yards and five touchdowns.
Player of the Game: Connecticut QB Cody Endres completed 23-of-30 passes for 292 yards and two touchdowns
Rhode Island: Passing: Chris Paul-Etienne, 13-20, 107 yds, 1 TD, 2 INT
Rushing: Anthony Ferrer, 9-23, Receiving: Shawn Leonard, 4-22
Connecticut: Passing: Cody Endres, 23-30, 202 yds, 2 TD
Rushing: Andre Dixon, 17-97, Receiving: Michael Smith, 8-84
What It All Means: It wasn’t a perfect performance from UConn, there were three turnovers all on fumbles, but at least the quarterback situation became more secure with Cody Endres showing he can be a playmaker whether or not injured starter Zach Frazer is ready to go. As always, the running game dominated, but this game was about tuning up the passing game a bit before getting a week off. Now the team gets two weeks to focus on Pitt.

Sept. 19
Connecticut 30 … at Baylor 22
Andre Dixon ran for 149 yards and three touchdowns and Jordan Todman added 103 more yards as Connecticut rumbled its way to the win. Dixon scored on two one-yard runs and a ten-yarder on the way to a 27-7 lead, but Baylor came back with Robert Griffin running for two short scores to make it an eight point game. But the Bears wouldn’t get another shot to pull off the comeback. BU’s other score came on a 72-yard Jay Finley run in the first quarter.
Player of the Game: Connecticut RB Andre Dixon ran 31 times for 149 yards and three touchdowns.
Connecticut: Passing: Cody Endres, 12-23, 147 yds
Rushing: Andre Dixon, 31-149 yds, 3 TD, Receiving: Isiah Moore, 4-76
Baylor: Passing: Robert Griffin, 17-26, 119 yds
Rushing: Jay Finley, 8-121, Receiving: Kendall Wright, 6-67
What It All Means: Connecticut has a nice team again. It’s not going to be flashy, there’s no passing game whatsoever, but the Huskies will continue to do what they do best which is run the ball and play solid D. The linebacking corps did a fantastic job of keeping the dangerous Robert Griffin under wraps, while the 1-2 rushing punch of Andre Dixon and Jordan Todman kept control of the game. With Rhode Island up next, it’s vital to do something to generate a passing game before Big East play kicks in. 

Sept. 12
North Carolina 12 ... at Connecticut 10
North Carolina got a safety thanks to a holding call in the end zone with 1:32 to play to cap off a fourth quarter comeback. Connecticut had a 10-0 lead on a  47-yard Dave Teggart field goal and a four-yard Jordan Todman touchdown run, but the last 11 minutes belonged to UNC with a 22-yard field goal and a two-yard Zack Pianalto touchdown catch with 2:36 to play. Neither offense could get going in the rain with the Tar Heels outgaining the Huskies 268 yards to 196.
Player of the Game: In a losing cause, Connecticut LB Lawrence Wilson made 11 tackles with two tackles for loss, a sack, and a forced fumble
Connecticut: Passing: Zach Frazer, 11-19, 94 yds, 1 INT
Rushing: Jordan Todman, 18-66, 1 TD, Receiving: Brad Kanuch, 4-56
North Carolina: Passing: T.J. Yates, 23-32, 233 yds, 1 TD, 2 INT
Rushing: Ryan Houston, 7-33, Receiving: Greg Little, 8-45
What It All Means: The Huskies simply couldn't get the offense going in the second half and couldn't get the defense off the field. Lawrence Wilson and the defense did a nice job of keeping the UNC ground game in check, and the defensive front did a fantastic job of getting into the backfield with six sacks, but the passing game failed to do anything to get the ball down the field for a second week in a row while UNC bottled up Jordan Todman and the ground attack. The linebackers should do a good job against Baylor and QB Robert Griffin next week, but the O needs to find a spark soon.

Sept. 5
Connecticut 23 ... at Ohio 16
In a dogfight, Connecticut took a 23-7 lead early in the fourth quarter on a five-yard Jordan Todman run, but Ohio fought back with an 11-yard Riley Dunlop catch and a 50-yard Matt Weller field goal. The Bobcats didn't get the ball back until there were eight seconds to play, with Theo Scott's pass intercepted by Robert Vaughn to end the battle.
Player of the Game: Connecticut RBs Jordan Todman and Andre Davis combined to run for 257 yards and a carry on 44 carries.
Connecticut: Passing: Zach Frazer, 11-24, 127 yds, 2 TD, 3 INT
Rushing: Jordan Todman, 25-157, 1 TD, Receiving: Ryan Griffin, 2-26
Ohio: Passing: Boo Jackson, 8-16, 117 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: Boo Jackson, 7-20, Receiving: Riley Dunlop, 3-36, 1 TD
What It All Means: New year, same problems. Connecticut's running game ripped up Ohio with Jordan Todman running for 157 yards and tearing off yards in chunks, and Andre Davis serving as a fantastic running mate, but like last year, the passing game was a disaster. Zach Frazer only completed 11-of-24 passes and threw three interceptions, but the running game saved the offense controlling the game until late in the fourth quarter. There will need to be far more of a balance against North Carolina next week.