Historic is the word that everyone will use to describe the UConn football team’s (9-3) season this year. After all, the Huskies’ 9-win season marks the first time in program history that Connecticut has accomplished the feat in back-to-back seasons.
This season will end as last year’s season did: at the Wasabi Fenway Bowl. Last year’s glorious win over North Carolina was UConn’s first bowl win since defeating South Carolina in the 2010 Papajohns.com Bowl. More is at stake as the Huskies take on the Army Black Knights (6-6, 4-4 American).
There has only been one season in the program’s history where Connecticut has notched double-digit wins in a season: 1998. If the Huskies can accomplish that feat this year, it would be the first time in the program’s FBS era.
However, UConn will look quite different on Saturday afternoon. Quarterback Joe Fagnano, who had one of the greatest seasons in program history, will not suit up for the Huskies and will instead turn his attention to a potential NFL career. However, the identity of the starting quarterback is still unknown. The two-deep shows redshirt sophomore Tucker McDonald and true freshman Ksaan Farrar as the options.
Along with him, Jim Mora has also coached his last game in Storrs, accepting the job at Colorado State, which caused a lot of shake-ups within the program. Offensive coordinator Gordon Sammis will have head coaching duties at America’s Most Beloved Ballpark before moving to Fort Worth, Texas, to become the new offensive coordinator at TCU. He will have a decision to make on who starts at quarterback and how the team approaches the game from an offensive standpoint.
“We have a couple of options,” Sammis said on the quarterback situation in a press conference Friday morning. “If I have to, I’ll go out there to finish the game. I can still hand it off and not pull something for a couple plays.”
There was a rumor that went around that star receiver Skyler Bell would not suit up for the final time in his collegiate career. However, the Biletnikoff Award finalist (also UConn’s first consensus All-American) denied the rumors and indicated he would play in the bowl game.
“I’d be remiss to leave [UConn] and look back at that last game and say, ‘Why didn’t I suit up with my guys one last time?’” Bell said on why he plans to play in the bowl game in a media availability last week.
So who will play and for how long? That is still a mystery. However, all signs point towards tight end Louis Hansen playing in what will be the final game of his career. The former Michigan Wolverine grew up in nearby Needham, Mass., and went to St. Sebastian’s School.
“For me personally, I’ll have close to 100 people at this game,” Hansen said on Friday morning. “This is my last game as a college football player, so to be able to do that at home and go through this last week in Boston and be home for the holidays is something really special, and running out there onto a field that I’ve been to countless Red Sox games at, it’s something that I’ll never forget…I’m definitely excited to be able to play my last game close to home.”
Army enters the bowl following a 17-16 loss to Navy. The Black Knights pose a challenge with their triple-option offense, averaging 245.5 rushing yards per game (6th nationally) and leading the nation in time of possession at 34:27 per game. UConn has seen similar offenses, having defeated Air Force 26-16 this season.
Army is the least penalized team in the country, with just 34 penalties this season, displaying their strong discipline.
To make things harder on Connecticut coming in, both starting offensive tackles—Ben Murawski and Carsten Casady—have already left the team, according to starting center Wes Hoeh. Their replacements look to be Ty Chan and Toriyan Johnson, respectively.
There are a lot of offensive records on the line, with total yards of offense (5,521), passing touchdowns (30), first downs (263) and total points (443) all within reach.
UConn is 7-4 against teams from the American Conference since going independent in 2021, with a 2-1 record this season. UConn is 5-4 against Army but has not had a win away from home since a 47-13 win at Michie Stadium on Oct. 1, 2005. Army is 1-0 in ballparks in the series, with the lone neutral site coming at Yankee Stadium on Nov. 8, 2014. Connecticut is looking for its first win over the Black Knights since Sept. 12, 2015.
Kick-off from Fenway Park on Saturday is set for 2:15 p.m. and is available to watch on ESPN.