Once Again, Huskies Are Defenseless

[Ricky the Bull]

Once Again, Huskies Are Defenseless

October 7, 2006

By DESMOND CONNER, Courant Football Columnist

TAMPA, Fla. -- There shouldn't be any excuses as to why the UConn defense played so poorly other than they were just manhandled up front, beaten by the receivers and couldn't stop a redshirt freshman quarterback who ran and threw the ball all over the yard.

That's what happened, and this, too: South Florida 38, UConn 16. Probably not the outcome you expected, but it was certainly possible. The Huskies defense simply isn't as good as it once was cracked up to be.

The excuse last week was the option offense Navy used in gaining 605 total yards. It's tricky, very hard to defend. The few teams that use it now do so because it neutralizes a weakness. In the Midshipmen's case, it was size. Still, good assignment football can shut it down.

South Florida had size, but Matt Grothe neutralized the Huskies all by himself Saturday night at Raymond James Stadium.

Whatever way he decided to torch the Huskies, they just couldn't put out the fire.

Grothe completed 12 of 15 for 146 yards and a touchdown. He ran for another 82 yards on 15 carries and three TDs - just like Navy quarterback Brian Hampton last weekend. Grothe accounted for 208 of the Bulls' 353 yards in total offense.

UConn coach Randy Edsall and his staff must put their faith in the defense to win because the offense is not going to be able to do it unless they get an effective passer to break up the carries between Terry Caulley, Lou Allen and Donald Brown, the last two steadily showing they need more carries.

But until those things happen - if they happen - the defense has to do the job and Saturday it was incapable and looked bad against a team that is hardly in the upper echelon in the Big East. That doesn't bode well for the rest of the season now, does it?

"All of us have to be a part of the solution," Edsall said. "We're all part of the reason why we're not winning, but we've all got to be part of what we're going to do. What are we going to do to work to come back and keep getting better each and every day? That's what we have to strive for. That's what we have to continually do as coaches, to look and see with the personnel we have, are we doing all the things that we can to put them in the right positions to be able to make plays."

UConn was kept off balance by a team that managed 20 points against Rutgers last week.

"I thought our offense came out and played much better than it did against Rutgers," USF coach Jim Leavitt said.

And before we forget, it should be noted neither UConn's defense nor offense played with the fire required to win.

And once again, as against Wake Forest and Navy, big plays did in the Huskies defense.

Grothe made them. From his 16-yard touchdown run on the Bulls' first play following a blocked punt, to his 31-yard strike to S.J. Green that helped put the Bulls up 21-9 in the third quarter. The disturbing thing is that Green was wide open in the middle of the field.

Grothe finished that drive with an 8-yard scoring run. And if there was any play that typified how off the mark UConn's defense was, it was that play. On third-and-8, Grothe dropped back to pass and no one was open. Good job, right? Well, defensive end Dan Davis, a reliable tackler, broke through and had a clear shot at Grothe. But he didn't scramble. His pump-fake froze Davis, then Grothe spun to his left and scampered into the end zone. That was a back-breaker.

The Huskies weren't getting a whole lot of pressure on Grothe. The disturbing thing about that? USF was going with its fifth different starting offensive line in six games. And UConn's defense didn't cause too many problems for them.

They made holes for sophomore running back Ben Williams, who rushed for a career-high 108 yards - his first 100-yard game - on 22 carries. He scored his first career touchdown with 9:13 left in the first quarter when he fired right up the middle and was in the end zone before half the UConn team noticed.

UConn coaches got a chance to look at some of Florida's high school talent Friday night, and some of those recruits might have been in the stands Saturday. If they were leaning toward UConn, the Huskies didn't do a lot to impress any Sunshine State players.

If any played defense, the Huskies could have used them against South Florida. Maybe they'll be playing for the Bulls next year and, if UConn doesn't get back in the groove, they could be a part of a repeat when the teams meet in East Hartford. . For now, there are six other Big East teams waiting to take advantage of the struggling Huskies.

Contact Desmond Conner at

dconner@courant.com

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