The struggles in pass defense have been well documented but it's time to break it down statistically.

Since UConn made the move to the FBS level in 2002, the most passing yards per game allowed in a season was by California which gave up 4,406 yards in 12 games, an average of 367.2 per game. The Bears also gave up a staggering 42 touchdown passes that season with five games with at least 5 TD passes surrendered. Last season Arizona State allowed 357.4 passing yards per contest and in 2002 Purdue gave up 356.5 yards a game and those are the only teams I could find allowing at least 350 passing yards per game. Well, with three games left to play the Huskies are sitting at 378.6 passing yards allowed per contest heading into tomorrow's showdown with UCF, which happens to be the highest scoring team in FBS.

I looked back at that Cal team, the Bears had nine defensive backs with at least 15 tackles and five of them were either freshmen or sophomores which is somewhat similar to what UConn is dealing with this season. It should be noted that two years later when the sophomores and freshmen were seniors and juniors, Cal allowed only 245 passing yards per game, 12 fewer TD passes and the passing completion percentage of the opponents dropped from 65.4 to 59.7 percent.

At Tuesday's media availability, we got to interview the two coordinators for the first time since the season began. Obviously there were plenty of questions to be asked and I thought one of the best points that defensive coordinator Billy Crocker made is that as young as the Huskies are in the secondary (5 freshman and 1 sophomore are among 11 defensive backs with at least 10 tackles this season) it's made it difficult to disguise the defensive looks because the players are still learning the defense. That doesn't even take into account that the Huskies will likely be starting their eighth different combination in the secondary this season although much of that is by UConn's doing as they move players in and out of the starting lineup.

With a death in the family resulting in Brayden Brown returning home to be with his family and Jordan Swann no longer a starting cornerback, UConn is not expected to have a true freshman starting on defense for the first time since the Virginia game. We'll see if having a more experienced group of defensive backs will aid the cause of the struggling defense.

There are so many frightening numbers associated with this year's defense. Here are some:

UConn is giving up an average of 22 plays from scrimmage of at least 10 yards which is not only the most at the FBS level but the highest total in the last eight seasons.

UConn has already given up more passing yards, completions and touchdowns in its program history with three games left to play

From 2002-2016, UConn allowed opposing teams to have a passer rater higher than 190.0 four times but it has already happened four times this season. With UCF ranking second nationally in passing efficiency, the Huskies will have their work cut out for them to keep from adding to the tally.

If there is a silver lining, it should be noted that Boston College ranks 13th among 14 ACC teams in passing yards per game and completion percentage trailing only the triple-option Georgia Tech team that has only attempted 11 passes per game this season while Cincinnati has the lowest passer rating of any team in the American Athletic Conference so perhaps there will be a chance for Huskies' struggling secondary to catch their breath after tomorrow's game.

Unfortunately, the practice of not releasing kickoff times until a week or two before the game will prevent me from covering tomorrow's game. I also cover the UConn women's basketball team and at the time that I needed to book my flight to Columbus, Ohio for Sunday's season opening basketball game, I had no idea what time the football game would be starting. If I had known it was going to be a noon start, I might have been able to be in Orlando tomorrow and then fly to Columbus Saturday night.

Former UConn offensive lineman Alex Mateas was named to the Canadian Football League's East Division all-star team.

Mateas, who made the team as a guard although he has moved to center recently due to some injuries on the line, was one of five offensive players from the Ottawa RedBlacks named to the team as Ottawa joins the BC Lions as the only CFL teams to rank in the top five in both passing and rushing yardage.

Mateas was the No. 1 pick in the 2015 CFL Draft and has played in 53 regular season games in three CFL seasons. He is the first former UConn player to earn CFL all-division honors since Larry Taylor was the West Division pick as special teams performer in 2013.

Mateas was a key member of Ottawa's 2016 Grey Cup championship squad. The RedBlacks play Saskatchewan in the first round of the playoffs on Sunday with the winner to meet Toronto in the semifinals.

Looking at the rosters for the six CFL playoff teams, I was surprised to see former UConn tight end John Delahunt on the roster for West Division semifinalist Edmonton. Knee issues forced Delahunt to retire in 2015 but he was signed by Edmonton as a free agent last month and played in the Oct. 9 game against Montreal although he is currently on the six-game injured list. Also, Reuben Frank has played in six games for West Division finalist Calgary and is currently on the Stampeders' practice squad.

Perhaps if the Huskies had been playing a quarterback not named Quinton Flowers, the 24 players honored before their final game at Rentschler Field would have left their home away from home with a victory to celebrate.

However, Flowers racked up a South Florida program record 516 yards of total offense. It was the sixth most by an FBS player this season and fourth most in American Athletic Conference history.
Still, there were plays that the seniors will get to remember for the rest of their lives.

Tight end Tommy Myers isn't targeted often in UConn's offense and perhaps that was why no USF defender paid attention to him on a 4th and goal play that resulted in the first of UConn's three touchdowns.

UConn's final defensive play was capped by a hustling Vontae Diggs knocking the ball out of Darius Tice's hands. The ball hit in the end zone and then caromed out of bounds giving the ball back to the Huskies and preventing another touchdown by the Bulls.

Junior Joseph finished with nine tackles giving him 295 in his career. He moved by Abbott Burrell, Mark Michaels and Uyi Osunde and into 15th place on UConn's career tackles list. He's got some work to do to move up even further as next up is Brad Keatley's 311 tackles.

Joseph reflected on the day's festivities and his run at UConn following the game.

"I've played with a lot of guys and have seen their senior days and different guys that I have played with since I have been here and it is special," said Joseph, who made his 37th career start matching the UConn record for a defensive player set by Dwayne Gratz and also accomplished by Jhavon Williams. "It is kind of surreal that it is my last time in this stadium all the memories I made with guys like Byron, Andrew, Obi guys who are in the NFL and it is a privilege playing with those guys and playing my last game here is surreal. I soaked it in before the game, just tried to focus on the game."

It's been a tough year injury wise for the senior class as running back Arkeel Newsome, linebacker E.J. Levenberry and safety Brice McAllister were unable to play. Quarterback Bryant Shirreffs and running back Jason Thompson were knocked out of the game with concussions.

With UConn's home game against Boston College on Nov. 18 at Fenway Park, there will be no more Rentschler Field experiences for the senior class.

Now the goal is to avoid making the wrong kind of history. UConn came into the season with six straight losing seasons, the longest streak in program history. It was first accomplished from 1930-35, again from 1974-79. One more loss would make it a program record seven straight losing campaigns and next up is undefeated UCF on the road. In the last four seasons, UConn has lost 32 games which is tied for the third most in a four-year span at UConn. If the Huskies lose their final three games, it will match the record for losses in a four-year run set two years ago.

Speaking of unwanted history, Marquez Valdes-Scantling's 95-yard touchdown reception is the longest given up by UConn during the FBS era. It's been reported Tres Moses of Rutgers' 87-yard TD catch in 2004 was the record but that is not true. Actually it isn't even the longest play by a Rutger receiver against UConn as in 2011 Brandon Coleman went 94 yards for a touchdown. If anybody is wondering, the 95-yard catch and run is the longest offensive TD by a UConn opponent since New Hampshire's Jerry Azumah had a 96 yard scoring run in 1996.

It wasn't all bad news. Quayvon Skanes had 172 yards on kickoff returns, the most by a UConn player since Tyvon Branch's 184 yards against Rutgers in 2007. Speaking of Skanes, he also had two catches giving him 30 this season. That is a program record for freshman as Kashif Moore had 27 receptions in 2008. With Keyion Dixon now at 20 receptions, it marks the first time since 2002 that more than one UConn freshman has 20 catches. Terry Caulley, Jason Williams and Brandon Young all topped the 20-catch plateau that season.

With Kevin Mensah getting the start at tailback, six true freshmen have started on offense or defense which is a program record. Mensah finished with 95 yards rushing including a 23-yard TD run. He did a much better job running up the field after having too many East-West type runs in recent weeks.

"You never go East-West," Mensah said. "He (running backs coach Terry Richardson) tells me to hit the hole and go, get as much yardage as I could. He has been telling me to relax, I am a (perfectionist). He tells me that can't happen, he said I have to be patient, being in your comfort zone and be relaxed. When that comes all together, you play your best."

It's very possible that UConn could be without Newsome, Thompson and Nate Hopkins against UCF meaning an even bigger workload for Mensah. Seeing Thompson on the sideline and unable to return to the game hit Mensah pretty hard.

"He is my roommate so everything he does I follow because he works so hard, being a walk-on and getting a scholarship, you can tell he loves this games and he wants to be on the field. Him not being on the field hurts all of us."

In its brief history one of the things I've noticed about football programs in the American Athletic Conference is just how many homegrown prospects make significant impacts.

By my count, there are 125 AAC players who are on teams in the city of their birth. Houston leads the way with 20 players from the city of Houston. South Florida, set to play at UConn tomorrow, has 18 from Tampa, Cincinnati (17), Memphis (16), Tulsa (14) and Temple (13) also feature more than 10 hometown products on their rosters.

We're not talking about marginal prospects either. Anthony Miller of Memphis is second in the conference in receptions and receiving yards, USF's Bruce Hector and Ed Oliver of Houston are two of 11 AAC players with at least nine tackles for loss, Houston's Duke Catalon is 10th in the conference in rushing, Tony Pollard of Memphis is the national leader in yards per kickoff return,  while USF center Cameron Ruff is a candidate for the Rimington Award presented annually to the nation's best center.

Why am I mentioning all of this now? Well, it just so happens to tomorrow is the final game at Rentschler Field for UConn's seniors. While UConn and Navy are the only AAC teams without a player on its roster from the town or city when the university is located, Coventry native Tommy Myers is about as close to a homegrown of a player that the Huskies have ever had.

With that in mind, I compiled a list of the top players by position who grew up less than 20 miles from the university they attend. As you can tell, it's a rather impressive list. City names capitalized are same as where university is located. I cheated a little bit and included UConn defensive end Cole Ormsby even if his hometown of Windsor is closer to 30 miles from the campus than the 20 I said I was using as my parameters.



OFFENSE
QB: Zach Abey, Navy (Pasadena, MD) Leads all FBS quarterbacks with 1202 rushing yards
RB: Duke Catalon, Houston (HOUSTON) 519 rushing yards, 7 TDs
RB: Tony Pollard, Memphis (MEMPHIS)  126 rushing yards, 333 yards on 24 receptions
RB: Sherman Badie, Tulane (Metairie, LA) 303 rushing yards this season, 1,470 career rushing yards
WR: Anthony Miller, Memphis (MEMPHIS) 61 catches for 859 yards and 10 TDs as a senior
WR: James Proche, SMU (DALLAS) 466 yards on 23 receptions
TE: Charles Jones, Tulane (NEW ORLEANS) 8 catches for 55 yards
TE: Chris Myarick, Temple (Elkins Park, PA) 6 catches, 46 yards
TE: Tommy Myers, UConn (Coventry) Used primarily for blocking purposes but has 2 catches for 26 yards
OL: Garrett Campbell, Cincinnati (CINCINNATI) Has started all eight games at left guard this season
OL: Jake Hawk, Navy (Severn, MD) Left tackle has seven starts this season
OL: Corey Dublin, Tulane (NEW ORLEANS) True freshman has started all eight games at left guard
OL: David Niehaus, Cincinnati (CINCINNATI) Center has nine career starts, eight coming in 2017
OL: Marcus Oliver, Houston (HOUSTON) Right guard has 23 career starts
OL: Cameron Ruff, USF (TAMPA) Rimington Award candidate as one of nation's top centers has 21 career starts

DEFENSE
DL Dan Archibong, Temple (Springfield, PA) 12 tackles
DL Quinlan Carroll, Tulane (Belle Chasse, LA) 16 tackles, 2.5 TFL
DL: Reggie Chevis, Houston (HOUSTON) 30 tackles, 3 TFL, 0.5s
DL: Kendell Futrell, East Carolina (Winterville, NC) 9 tackles, 1TFL, 1 sack
DL: Mason Gentry, SMU (Plano) 21 tackles, 2 TFL, 2 sacks
DL: Bruce Hector, USF (TAMPA) 23 tackles, 10 TFL 4 sacks
DL: Ed Oliver, Houston (HOUSTON) 49 tackles, 9 TFL, 2.5 sacks
DL Cole Ormsby, UConn (Windsor) 16 tackles, 6 TFL, 6 sacks
DL: Christian Johnson, Memphis (MEMPHIS) 17 tackles, 2.5 TFL, 2.5 sacks
DL: Julian Taylor, Temple (Glenside, PA) 20 tackles, 3.5 TFL
LB: Matthew Adams, Houston (Missouri City, TX) 61 tackles, 4.5 TFL
LB: Josh Blake, USF (TAMPA) 12 tackles 3 TFL
LB: Emeke Egbule Houston (Galena Park, TX) 38 tackles, 3.5 TFL, 2 sacks
LB: Isaiah Graham-Mobley, Temple (King of Prussia, PA) 19 tackles, 2.5 TFL, 2 sacks
LB: Zachery Harris, Tulane (NEW ORLEANS) 42 tackles, 1.5 TFL
DB Sean Chandler Temple (Camden NJ) 47 tackles 1 interception, 1.5 TFL
DB: Tyrell Gilbert, Cincinnati (CINCINNATI) 39 tackles, 3 TFL, 1 sack
DB: Alexander Myres, Houston (HOUSTON) 20 tackles, 1.5 TFL
DB: Parry Nickerson Tulane (Algiers, LA) 39 tackles, 3 interceptions, 2 TFL
DB: Kahlil Williams, Houston (Missouri City, TX) 47 tackles, 8 TFL, 2 sacks
DB: Jarid Ryan, Navy (Glen Burnie, MD) 26 tackles, 0.5 TFL
DB: Mazzi Wilkins USF (TAMPA) 21 tackles, 3 interceptions

SPECIAL TEAMS
(Had to expand region past 20 miles to find a kicker and punter)
K: Josh Williams, SMU (Rowlett, TX) 11/15 FG 38-42 PATs 13 touchbacks
P: Jonathan Hernandez, South Florida (Bradenton) 43.6 yard average on 47 punts
Kickoff returner: Tony Pollard, Memphis (MEMPHIS) Leads all FBS players with 41.9 yards per kickoff return
Punt returner: Tajee Fullwood, USF (TAMPA) 14.4 yards on 8 returns