After losing a razor-close showdown at Duke, 26-21, last Saturday, the UConn football team is heading back home to Rentschler Field this weekend. The Huskies will first host Florida Atlantic University in the first of a six-game homestand.
While some are quick to point to the scoreboard, which was not in Connecticut’s favor last weekend, there were many positives from that matchup that can be applied to this weekend. The first thing that fans will want to be on the lookout for this Saturday is what the offensive dynamic will look like; after all, Cam Edwards was a force to be reckoned with in Durham, N.C. The Norwalk native had 106 yards on 21 runs, taking one of those in for a score. This was a performance in the making for Edwards. While the sophomore running back has had shining moments in the Huskies’ first two games, he only ran the ball 11 times. Watch to see how Edwards gets started early in this one, as the Owls’ run defense got torched in the first two weeks of the season. FAU surrendered 179 and a whopping 405 yards rushing to Michigan State and Army, respectively.
Nick Evers is another player who is a threat with his legs and could provide a crucial spark to the UConn offense. The sophomore signal caller returned to action last week after sitting out a week with an injury. While his passing stats weren’t the most eyepopping, he provided embers that could spark into solid, sustained offense this week against FAU.
Evers finished with 60 yards on the ground, including one burst for 23 yards. With the Owls being as susceptible as they are to the run game at times, watch out for all the different ways Jim Mora and the rest of the UConn coaching staff will try and scheme Evers’ ability to pick up chunks of yards on both designed and broken plays. Not only will Mora and his staff certainly employ the running game for this matchup, but the air attack will likely be in full force, especially with how well Skyler Bell has performed up to this point.
Bell had an unbelievable two-game stretch to kick off the Huskies’ campaign. The junior started his UConn career in impressive fashion, gaining 246 receiving yards on just seven catches. However, against Duke, Bell was clearly schemed for, and as a result, it took the Bronx, N.Y., native a bit to get going but when he did, he set Connecticut up nicely. Bell finished with seven catches for 58 yards, including one 22-yard snag in the third quarter that put UConn in the red zone for the first time all night.
Connecticut’s matchup against the Owls is expected to be uncomfortably close, with FAU coming in as two-and-a-half point favorites. Despite this, Bell is a gamechanger for the program. Even though he only had 58 yards receiving a week ago, he accumulated those yards when UConn needed it most and set up scoring drives. If Bell can get loose and succeed like he did in the first two weeks of this season, it will open up the entire playbook for Connecticut and make it even easier for Edwards to break off big runs. Bell has the potential this weekend to add yet another highlight to his ever-growing reel, and if he does, it could become difficult for the FAU secondary to sustain.
The Owls are coming off a solid 38-20 win against the Florida International Panthers, and there were some aspects in this game that, if they carry over, could spell trouble for UConn. Zuberi Mobley is a player that Connecticut fans will want to keep tabs on this week. Similar to Edwards at Duke, Mobley feasted on the run defense a week ago. The Miami native accumulated 134 yards and three touchdowns in 20 rushing attempts. One of those scores came on a 72-yard rush where Mobley turned on the jets and could not be caught. While the Huskies’ run defense has gotten progressively better as the season has passed, don’t be surprised if FAU calls Mobley’s number early and often to create sparks for his side. Not only will Mobley play a significant role in the run game, but the Owls as a whole are very committed to the running attack. In their matchup against FIU, quarterback Cam Fancher had 14 carries, 64 yards and a score a week ago. Not to mention junior running back CJ Campbell Jr. carried the rock nearly 20 times, picking up over 60 yards and finding the back of the endzone for his troubles.
The battle in the trenches between the FAU offensive line and UConn defensive line is crucial to both programs’ success, and the team that dominates this will have a massive advantage over its opponent.
No doubt UConn fans feel heartbroken over last week’s nail-biting loss, and after this week, UConn nation may not have any more nails to bite. This matchup is expected to be close, and the Huskies will need to play well on both sides of the ball in order to win.
UConn will have their home crowd behind them this weekend, as kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. in East Hartford, Conn.