For the first time in over 13 years, the UConn football team (5-2) has beaten a Power Four opponent on the road, defeating Boston College (1-6, 0-4 ACC), 38-23.
UConn quarterback Joe Fagnano continued to shine out of the bye week, completing 23 of 31 passes for a career-high 362 yards and four touchdowns, including a rushing touchdown in the first half.
“Joe’s playing at a high level right now, and it’s because of the work he does, the confidence he has in what we’re doing, the repetitions that he’s gotten in college football and in this system, he has tremendous trust in the receivers,” UConn head coach Jim Mora said.
A pair of receivers made the win over Boston College memorable, as John Neider and Juice Vereen each had their first career touchdown receptions.
Vereen had the Huskies’ first scoring play of the game with a 50-yard catch-and-run touchdown with 6:06 left in the first quarter. He followed up with a 14-yard catch in the end zone with 49 seconds left in the third quarter for his first two receiving touchdowns of his career.
“There’s a lot of weight that came off my shoulders,” Vereen said. “Emotions I can’t even explain.”
Both the rushing offense and defense were dismal in the first half.
On offense, the Huskies rushed for just 29 yards, with Fagnano leading the way with 19 rushing yards and a touchdown. His second rushing touchdown of the season came early in the second quarter, giving UConn a 14-6 lead.
The Huskies looked slightly better on the ground in the second half, rushing for 64 yards to bring their final total to 93. UConn running back Cam Edwards led the way overall with 57 yards on 12 carries.
It would be an understatement to say Connecticut’s rushing defense did not show up in the first half. For a team that gives up 155 yards on the ground per game, Boston College nearly matched that in just 30 minutes of action with 152 rushing yards. In the first half, running back Jordan McDonald led the way with 93 yards, breaking one tackle after another.
Boston College slowed tremendously on the ground in the second half, with Connecticut holding the Eagles to just 39 rushing yards. McDonald only had 30 rushing yards in the second half, with the Huskies stifling the explosive first half he had.
“They were kind of dragging us around in the first half, running the football, and they made a concerted effort to run the football, and they were doing it well, and we weren’t playing it right,” Mora said. “It was huge to get the run under control in the second half.”
Mora has continually emphasized that UConn has to improve its two-minute defense. That did not seem to improve on Saturday. Boston College took its first lead of the game with 21 seconds left in the first half after a 39-yard touchdown catch by wide receiver Reed Harris, who, at the last second, got past UConn cornerback Devin Pringle. With the extra point good, the Eagles took a 20-17 lead into the locker room.
“The end of the first half didn’t end like we wanted it to,” Mora said. “We lost [the] momentum that we kind of captured through the first half…We gave up the long 39-yard touchdown on first-and-25, and that could bury some teams, especially when you’re on the road, you’re up all half and then you go down.”
Connecticut’s pass rush was excellent, with a season-high seven sacks in the win. Linebacker Bryun Parham led the way with 2.0 sacks, followed by linebackers Amir Renwick, Oumar Diomande and Aaron Key, who combined for 3.5 sacks. Pringle also had a sack, while defensive lineman Trent Jones wrapped up the list with 0.5 sacks. Parham led the way with 14 total tackles, nine of which were solo tackles.
“We’re getting really good production out of a lot of different players in terms of our pass rush, and that’s what we like to do,” Mora said.
Despite the defense keeping Boston College in the game at times in the second half, star wide receiver Skyler Bell sealed the game with a 38-yard touchdown with just over five minutes remaining in the game.
“I haven’t really seen [anything] like him,” Vereen said. “He (in addition to Fagnano) is also a pro.”
The Huskies have now won two of the last three meetings against Boston College. Saturday marked the program’s first road win against the Eagles. Boston College remains in front of the all-time series, leading 13-2-2. UConn improved to 1-8 at Boston College.
“This isn’t about BC,” Mora said. “We prepare in a way that we expect to win no matter who we’re playing—if we play the work [that] we’re capable of playing. I have a lot of respect for [Bill] O’Brien and his football team.”
UConn will stay on the road next week with a trip to Houston, Texas to take on the Rice Owls on Saturday afternoon.