A pair of UConn offensive linemen have been signed an undrafted rookie free agents by NFL teams. Just think about that statement for a bit while pondering the well-documented offensive line struggles at UConn in recent years.

Andreas Knappe was signed by the Atlanta Falcons shortly after the NFL draft came to an end. Today came word that after bringing in more than 50 players for tryouts, Richard Levy was one of three tryout players signed as free agents by San Francisco.

Levy was the starting left tackle as a sophomore and junior but with the emergence of redshirt freshman Matthew Peart, he moved to guard as he started all 37 games between 2014-16. I haven't heard whether Levy was playing tackle or guard for the 49ers.

I took over the day to day coverage of UConn football in 2013 and don't recall a rookie offensive lineman being on the 90-man roster of an NFL team during that time. I did some checking and it looks like the last time that happened was in 2012 when Moe Petrus was signed by Tampa Bay and Mike Ryan by Cincinnati.

By my count, 11 players on UConn's 2014 team - a roster that former coach Bob Diaco managed to squeeze one whole win against a Football Bowl Subdivision team - have taken part or will take part in NFL training camps (not including tryouts at rookie camps).

S Andrew Adams: Started 13 games and had 46 tackles as a rookie with New York Giants
DT Kenton Adeyemi: Signed as free agent in 2016 by Chicago and then Cleveland
WR Geremy Davis: Former sixth-round pick by New York Giants had two catches in 10 games in 2016, now on Los Angeles Chargers' roster
WR Deshon Foxx: Current on New York Jets roster, previously with Seattle
CB John Green: Signed as free agent by Tennessee Titans
DB Byron Jones: Starting safety for Dallas Cowboys who had 88 tackles in second NFL season
OT Andreas Knappe: Currently on Atlanta's 90-man roster
OT Richard Levy: Currently on San Francisco's 90-man roster
DL B.J. McBryde: Spent team either on the roster or practice squad with Philadelphia, Green Bay and San Franisco
S Obi Melifonwu: Second-round pick of Oakland Raiders
WR Noel Thomas: Signed as a free agent by Detroit

Also, defensive lineman Mikal Myers (Baltimore), kicker Bobby Puyol (Baltimore) and cornerback Jhavon Williams (New Orleans) got looks in rookie camp as did Reuben Frank with Detroit in 2015 while a talented group of seniors, who were freshmen on the 2014 team, figure to add to that list in 2018.

It's time to do a little catching up. I've been in Michigan since Friday to attend my nephew's graduation from the University of Michigan. My intention was to make it a completely computer-free weekend but that lasted until the news broke that former Duke women's basketball star Azura' Stevens would be transferring to UConn. Saying that is big news would be an incredible understatement. I would say that if the UConn coaching staff could pick a player off any other college team to add to its roster for the next couple of seasons, I would only like South Carolina's A'ja Wilson ahead of the 6-foot-6 Stevens.

Since this is a blog about UConn football, I'll stop there with the women's basketball talk.

Now that I am at the airport waiting to start my journey back to Connecticut, it's a good time to get caught up on draft/free agent news.

After nine years of having at least one player taken in the NFL draft, no Huskies were selected in the three-day draft.

However, at least five seniors on the 2015 team will be headed to NFL training camps.

It's already been reported that safety Andrew Adams was signed by the New York Giants as an undrafted rookie free agent. It is the second straight year that a UConn player received a call from the Giants as receiver Geremy Davis was taken by the Giants in the sixth round of the 2015 NFL draft.

There will be a couple of familiar faces in camp with Adams as Ray Brownell, agent for former UConn safety Junior Lee confirmed in an email to me that Lee would be headed to training camp with the Giants. Lee opened more than a few eyes with a sensational performance at UConn's pro day He also had a chance to take part in the Giants' local pro day and there were multiple reports that Lee had another strong showing. Just a few minutes ago, Breakout Athletes which trains a large number of Connecticut athletes sent me a tweet that former UConn defensive end Kenton Adeyemi would be going to camp with the Giants as well.

As often as the Giants have been pursuing UConn products in the last couple of seasons, they have a lot of work to do to catch the Indianapolis Colts in that department. Well, the Colts are at it again as former UConn defensive lineman Julian Campenni is heading to camp with the Colts.

Also, after I posted the blog about Adams, Lee and Campenni getting calls from NFL teams, I received a tweet about linebacker Graham Stewart going to camp with the Minnesota Vikings.

BreakOut Athlete BOA

@breakoutathlete

@NHRJimFuller my client Graham Stewart from UConn heading to Minnesota Vikings #boa

Campenni, who like Adams was a team captain on the 2015 UConn team, tweeted his appreciation to the Colts for giving him this opportunity.

 

Julian Campenni @Ima_BEAST_90

Just want to thank the @Colts for giving me an opportunity to live out my dreams!! Trust me you wont regret the decision!

Last year at this time it wasn't so much a question of if Byron Jones and Geremy Davis would be taken in the NFL draft but just when would the former UConn teammates hear their names called.

Jones joined Donald Brown as the only UConn player taken in the first round when the Dallas Cowboys took him with the 27th overall pick while Davis was selected by the New York Giants in the sixth round.

There's more of a wait and see approach with the current crop of UConn pro prospects.

At least one UConn player has been selected in each of the last nine NFL drafts and safety Andrew Adams seems like the most likely player capable of extending that streak.

While no former Huskies are listed on the ESPN draft database, Adams is the No. 13 free safety according to NFL Draft database maintained by www.cbsspports.com which I have found to be pretty accurate (or as accurate as these things get) in rating the under the radar prospects. Adams is rated as the 291st best player in the draft and lists him as either a seventh rounder or a free agent. Last year's No. 13 rated free safety was Ladarius Gunter out of Miami who went undrafted but was signed by the Green Bay Packers as a free agent.

At UConn's pro day Adams seemed to do what he needed to remain on the radar of NFL teams and considering the amount of tape that NFL teams must have watched on Jones a season ago, you would have to think Adams might have caught the eye of the film watchers.

I would not be surprised if Adams continues the trend of UConn players being drafted.

The player out of UConn seemingly creating the most pre-draft buzz is fellow safety Junior Lee who absolutely put on a show at UConn's pro day. I've also seen reports that he was impressive at the New York Giants local pro day. Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle and National Football Post tweeted about a week and a half ago that Lee has worked out privately for the Giants, Jets and Colts.

One issue with Lee is that he was not a starter but consider that Jones was a first-round pick, Adams could very well get drafted and I would expect Obi Melifonwu and Jhavon Williams to be very much on the radar of NFL scouts next year with Jamar Summers most definitely being a draftable prospect in the next class so it is not like Lee was playing behind mediocre talents.


A lack of experience is not an issue for defensive lineman Julian Campenni or linebackers Marquise Vann or Graham Stewart. It will be interesting to see what happens with the trio but certainly would not be surprised to see them land in a training camp.

I received this question and answer blog with Campenni emailed to me. I think the key for Campenni could be how NFL teams view the Missouri tape since Campenni was normally lining up across from Evan Boehm, who is rated as the fourth best center in the draft according to cbssports.com. Other than getting invited to the major all-star games, which was an opportunity not afforded any of the UConn players, the best way to catch the eyes of scouts is to have strong tape in head to head matchups with fellow NFL prospects.

Stewart saw his work at UConn's pro day ended prematurely due to a hamstring issue but he had healed up well enough to take part in the Yale pro day held earlier this month. I was covering the women's Final Four at the time but talked to one person who was at the event and was told that Stewart did a nice job there. He is also the only other UConn player listed on the CBS Sports database. Stewart also started his collegiate career at Florida. The Gators have nine players listed in ESPN's draft database and 12 listed by CBS Sports so perhaps NFL scouts' familiarity with Florida players could aid Stewart in his quest to continue his collegiate career.

I haven't been hearing too much about Vann but he's played a ton of football for the Huskies and took part in the Tropic Bowl along with defensive end Kenton Adeyemi and guard Tyler Samra.

I really thought that Adeyemi's stock could take a similar jump to what happened a year ago with B.J. McBryde. While he did not have the eye-popping numbers at UConn's pro day that McBryde did, the 300 pounder showed more than enough to make me think that he could land in a camp.

Running back Max DeLorenzo is a player that David Schuman from NUC Sports believes NFL teams should be looking at.

Normally my late April/early May schedule includes watching the NFL draft waiting for UConn players to be drafted. However, my nephew is graduating from the University of Michigan this weekend so I will be out of the loop and my colleagues at the Register will be called upon to provide NFL draft coverage. Staying on that subject, I am not a pro scout but from what I am hearing the top prospects with Connecticut ties are former high school rivals Tyler Matakevich, a Stratford native who played at St. Joseph High in Trumbull, Milford Academy and Temple, and fellow linebacker Don Cherry, a former Trumbull High star who starred at Villanova. It will also be interesting to see if Yale quarterback Morgan Roberts, Branford's Kyle Nolan out of Georgetown and former Notre Dame of West Haven and University of New Hampshire star Sean Goldrich get signed by NFL teams.

Julian Campenni set to make his 36th career start and final one at home

The last couple of seasons the final home game gave the underclassmen a chance to try to send the seniors out the right way but there wasn't much else on the line.

Both in 2013 and 2014 the Huskies entered the home finale (which doubled as a season finale) with a 2-9 record. In 2013 the Huskies destroyed Memphis before falling to previously winless SMU in the final game of 2014. Other than those wishing to pile on after last year's loss, neither game created much of a stir nationally. That will not be the case tomorrow with an undefeated Houston team which is ranked 13th and has a chance to play in a New Year's Day bowl game coming to town.

For the 13 seniors, there has to be plenty of emotions circling around them this week but they are doing their best to focusing on toppling the Cougars and making them bowl eligible.

"There is a lot of hype to this game but we are not going to let the game be bigger than it really is," Adams said. "I just keep my eye on the ball, just stay focused, stay grounded and basically just stay focused on doing my job, all this stuff is great but I am just focused on playing well."

Julian Campenni, set to make his team-best 36th career start, is taking a similar approach to his final game at Rentschler Field.

"All the other stuff is great but it comes down to we have four quarters to go out there and play the 13th-ranked team in the country so that is what I am excited about and that is what I am really looking forward to," Campenni said.

"It is really exciting. It is an accumulation of five years of work so to have an opportunity to play a great team this week on senior day, I guess you could say that it is a storybook ending.

"It is what you come to a school like this to do, you want to play great teams and you want to play them at home so any chance we get to play at The Rent against a great team it just adds extra excitement."

It won't just be the seniors who are excited, not with a chance to attain bowl eligibility and send out the seniors with a program-defining victory.

"They are doing a great job leading the team, it is not only the captains but everybody who is in that position to be a leader," UConn junior receiver Noel Thomas said. "I think they are great guys and it is important to send them off in the right way.

"We take pride in them and we play hard for these guys and we expect the same from them."

UCONN COMMITS GETTING SOME PRESS
While the focus naturally is on what the Huskies are trying to accomplish tomorrow, I figured I would pass on links to a couple of stories of interest on UConn commits Ryan Gilmartin and one on Quayvon Skanes as well.

Also, UConn commit Jay Rose's Southington team faces Cheshire on Thanksgiving. It is one of the games CPTV Sports is considering televising although currently that game is in second place behind Shelton/Derby with today the last day to vote.

As I pointed out in an early blog post, UConn senior safety Andrew Adams needs five tackles for 200 in his career.

However, with plenty of time before tonight's game and with rain coming down hard and heavy for part of this afternoon, I had plenty of time to do some research. With Adams coming off a 17-tackle performance in the loss to Navy and having a three-interception game last year in a win over Central Florida, I decided to see how many active FBS players have games with at least 15 tackles and another with three interceptions.

As I anticipated, it is a pretty small number as West Virginia's Karl Thomas is the only other player I could find to accomplish this feat as he had three interceptions in a game earlier this season against Georgia Southern and 18 tackles in the 2014 season opener against Alabama.

BYU's Kai Nacua, Northwestern's Godwin Igwebuike and Ohio's Quentin Poling just missed the list as they each had three-interception games and career high marks of 14 tackles. Poling actually did it in the same game. Here's the list of the rest of the active FBS players with three picks in a game. All the players with the three interceptions have at least one double-digit tackle game except the one with the last name of Fuller. Go figure.

Godwin Igwebuike Northwestern 3 interceptions vs. Wisconsin 10-4-14 9 tackles vs. Nebraska 10-18-14
Kai Nacua BYU 3 interceptions vs. Boise 9-12-15 14 tackles vs. California 11-29-14
Quentin Poling Ohio 3 interceptions vs. Idaho 9-20-14 14 tackles vs. Idaho
Richie Brown Mississippi State 3 interceptions vs. Texas A&M 10-4-14 13 tackles vs. Auburn 9-26-15
Antonio Glover Georgia Southern 3 interceptions vs. Western Michigan 9-2-15 11 tackles vs. New Mexico State 10-4-14
Damontae Kazee San Diego State 3 interceptions vs. San Diego 9-5-15 11 tackles vs. South Akabama
Montres Kitchens Troy 3 interceptions vs. Idaho 11-15-14 11 tackles vs. South Alabama 10-24-14 and Georgia Southern 10-30-14
Branden Leston Western Kentucky 3 interceptions vs. Marshall 11-28-14 11 tackles vs. Indiana 9-19-15
Weston Steelhammer Air Force 3 interceptions vs. Boise 9-2-7-14 11 tackles vs. San Diego State 11-21-14
Kendall Fuller Virginia Tech 3 interceptions vs. Duke 10-26-13 8 tackles vs. Maryland and Virginia in 2013

A TREND UCONN HOPES TO END
Not all of my research provides such positive results.

While working on my preview for the BYU game I was curious how many times in recent years that UConn was outgained on the road. The numbers are more frightening that I imagined as it has happened in the last 11 true road games. The last time UConn held the edge in total offense in a true road game came in 2012 against South Florida when the Huskies had 327 yards of offense and the Bulls 287.

Here is the breakdown

2015
Missouri 233-270 Missouri won 9-6
2014
USF 132-271 USF won 17-14
Tulane 217-302 Tulane won 12-3
East Carolina 397-580 East Carolina won 31-21
Memphis 269-372 Memphis won 41-12
2013
Buffalo 220-330 Buffalo won 41-12
Cincinnati 377-525 Cincinnati won 41-16
UCF 233-527 UCF won 62-17
SMU 385-460 SMU won 38-21
Temple 235-372 UConn won 28-21
2012
Louisville 241-401 UConn won 23-20 (3 OT)

LIVE BLOG UP AND RUNNING
The live blog for the BYU game has been activated so feel free to check it out.

Practice had come to an end but there was still some work to do so defensive coordinator Anthony Poindexter gathered some of the defensive backs around him. This was not a social gathering but the time to pay up.

One by one they did the dreaded "Up-Downs" that seemingly has served as a punishment for as long as coaches held football practice. The countdown came and went but while Poindexter believed there was still one rep left, senior safety and team captain Andrew Adams thought otherwise.

With a chuckle he politely informed Poindexter that he count was off.

"He counted wrong but that is OK, I did them," Adams said with a laugh. "They were for loafs in the game, sometimes you get caught going a little slow so that is what those are for. I have to held accountable to my plays."

With a career-high 17 tackles in the loss to Navy. there couldn't have been too many instances when Adams wasn't going full speed.

"I might have left one or two out there but I don't dwell on the past, I am ready for BYU," Adams said.

While it is not what drives him, he is also closing in on a milestone. With 195 career tackles Adams has a chance to reach the 200-tackle mark in Friday night's game at BYU.

The last UConn defensive back with at least 200 career tackles happen to be playing in the NFL so perhaps Adams will follow the path of former teammate Bryon Jones by earning a spot on an NFL squad. While NFL scouts are regulars as UConn's games and practices, the potential of playing in the NFL is not on Adams' radar right now.

"I am just trying to improve my game week in and week out," Adams said. "My team needs me to be a dominant player and that is what I try to be on game day.

"I want to be at my best so I can help the team be at their best. If I am playing my best football, I believe the defense will be playing pretty well. I just look to put the defense in the better opportunities and situations possible."

If not for missing six games due to injuries as a freshman and sophomore, Adams would have recorded tackle No. 200 quite some time again. As one of the most experienced players on a defense featuring four sophomore starters, Adams takes his role as an on-field leader and consistent produced to heart.

"I have a bunch of games under my belt so the game slows down as you get older and as you get more experienced so that helps me a lot on game day," said Adams, who leads the Huskies with 34 tackles and two interceptions. "I take pride is how I study week in and week out. Over the years I have developed study habits for the game which are very important."

We already knew they were would be least one different starter in Saturday's Army game as defensive lineman Folorunso Fatukasi has been suspended for the first half after being ejected for fighting late in the season-opening win over Villanova. As expected, Mikal Myers worked with the starters for most of Tuesday's and Wednesday's practices.

However, there are a couple of other positions where we could see a change as Dan Oak was in there at center with the first team for the second half of Tuesday's practice and all of Wednesday's practice and Matt Walsh saw the majority of the first-team snaps at the weak-side linebacker spot ahead of two-time captain and last year's leading tackler Marquise Vann at yesterday's practice after seeing lots of time ahead of Vann on Tuesday as well. That was pretty much the reason why I headed up to practice yesterday because I didn't want to overreact from what I saw on Tuesday. But with Oak and Walsh also working as starters on Wednesday, I'd have to think there is a decent chance that is how it will shake out on Saturday.

The situations are different as starting center Brendan Vechery did not practice. Vann was out there and I thought it was interesting that when linebackers coach Vincent Brown summoned the MIKE or middle linebackers, Vann came over along with starter Junior Joseph and Jon Hicks, listed as the second-string MLB on the depth chart. Maybe I am reading too much into it, but if Vann were going to start at WLB, I don't know why he'd be getting time as a reserve middle linebacker unless he was being prepared to serve as an option at the MLB and WLB positions. Vann saw the majority of the snaps at WLB against Villanova but Walsh was usually in there for a snap or two every series. It is obviously a situation which bears watching but not one coming out of nowhere. When UConn coach Bob Diaco was asked about UConn's most competitive positional battles at American Athletic Conference media day, he dropped a bombshell that Walsh is pushing Vann for the starting WLB spot.

"It is going to be great competition for the WILL linebacker between Marquise Vann and Matt Walsh," Diaco said at the time. "Matt Walsh has been a guy to be in the conversation. The best guys are going to play for as long as they can be the best guy, if we are at the same position and the game is 75 plays and you only better than me for 45 of them the art form is identifying that as a coach and bringing you in on the 46th play."

I would have liked to ask head coach Bob Diaco about these developments but I was told he was unavailable. However, Wednesday's practice is the one where the assistant coaches are available so I did speak to offensive coordinator Frank Verducci and defensive coordinator Anthony Poindexter.

When I spoke with Poindexter, I addressed the challenge of defending Army's triple-option offense, the advantage of having most of the players back from last year's Army game and what he expects to see out of Myers and the other defensive linemen who will fill in for Fatukasi. Then came time for the question about Walsh. The wording was "Is Walsh the starter now?" just so there would be no room for interpretation. This is not Poindexter's first rodeo and he deftly sidestepped the question.

"We are taking him in and out, Matt is doing a nice job but we have a lot of starters, 14/15 guys that we think we can play in knowing we can only play with 11 but we plug different guys in at different times," Poindexter said.

When Walsh was getting so much time with the starters on Tuesday I thought it might be a case of the converted fullback needing more time against the triple-option offense (run by UConn's "look" team) than a veteran like Vann. Here's what Poindexter had to say about that.

"Obviously this is going to be different being on this side of the ball but he did a great job this week preparing so we have to see what he is going to get done," Poindexter said. "He has done everything we have asked for and probably exceeded our expectations. We had heard he was a great high school linebacker and I think that is his natural position and he is doing a great job."

Poindexter is not the only one impressed by Walsh's rapid development.

"He is getting better week," UConn senior safety Andrew Adams said. "You can tell he is becoming more football savvy and more football intelligent so I just look forward to see him make plays this year. There is no drop off when Matt comes into the game and everybody knows that."

Vechery was in full pads but Oak saw the time not only with the first team but also the second team at yesterday's practice. While Verducci wasn't going to blurt out the reason why Vechery (who drew rave reviews for his play against Villanova from Diaco at Tuesday's press conference) was on the sidelines for the last practice and a half, he did address the issue as much as he could.

"You are going to have guys get a bug or the flu or whatever or bust a chin strap and the philosophy here is literally next man up," Verducci said. "For Danny to come in, it isn't really surprising, it is a credit to him but I am not surprised that he did as well as he did. You would really never have noticed that was the next-man center unless somebody had told you. We functioned very well, we had one bad snap and that was it.

"He is a career center but he hasn't really played here yet at this level. I would be excited for him, if he got a chance to play I would be very happy for him. His strengths are more intangible than tangible. He loves football, he understands the position extremely well, he is completely invested in the program so guys like that, you hope to see him have some success."

I tweeted yesterday that I thought the offense looked as sharp as I have seen it since the record-breaking showing in the 2013 season finale against Memphis, Of course, I saw no practices during the 2014 season, one full practice during spring practice and then this was my sixth practice/scrimmage I attended since the start of preseason camp. With all of that being said, the offense was really clicking. It is not a shocking revelation to report that junior receiver Noel Thomas was in the middle of much of it. He had one catch down the sideline where he thought he got one foot in while the defensive back signaled that he was out of bounds. He asked me if it was a good catch but I was looking at the work being done on the other field at the time. Then he had the play of the day. Bryant Shirreffs groaned when he threw a pass to the left corner of the end zone figuring he overthrew it but Thomas reached up, grabbed the ball and looked like he got both feet in bounds despite very tight coverage. Freshmen receivers Tyraiq Beals and Aaron McLean had strong practices with McLean getting praise from coaches for a block he threw which is rare for any true freshman receiver to block well enough this early in the season to get called out for that in a positive manner.

I thought the offense looked significantly better than it did on Tuesday and I am not alone.

"If you had come yesterday, you wouldn't have felt that way," Verducci said with a laugh, "but today they responded and that was encouraging."

Verducci also had an interesting comment when I mentioned how calm Shirreffs looks in the pocket since that was not what I saw in what little amount of spring practice I was able to see.

"That is part of his growth process," Verducci said. "If you remember back to the spring game, he was super excitable in the spring game. I saw him have two cups of coffee (Thursday) morning and I said 'hey, that's the last thing you need.' But he had control of himself, he was poised and it was great progress on his part."

As for the defense, the first drill I saw was a wrap-up tackling drill which is understandable considering how many tackles UConn missed against Villanova. These days you can't just come in and level your teammates in practice so this was a time for the players to get reminded of the proper form and it seemed to go pretty well. It was fascinating seeing how much more comfortable the defensive players seem when UConn's "look" team did its best to run Army's offense. There was tremendous progress even since Tuesday. There were plenty of tackles behind the line of scrimmage and safety Obi Melifonwu had an interception. Andrew Adams seemingly was everywhere during the practice and I liked what I saw from defensive ends Luke Carrezola, Kenton Adeymi and Cole Ormsby. It looked to me like this was one rather productive practice.

1965 TEAM TO BE HONORED
UConn announced that the 1965 team will be recognized at Saturday's game. It is the first UConn team to beat Yale (the Huskies were 0-16 against the Bulldogs before a season-opening 13-6 win.

UConn finished 3-6 during that season, The players and coaches who make it back will be on field during the first media timeout of the game. Head coach Rick Forzano and assistant coach Dan Sekanovich are among those expected to be in attendance.

Senior safety Andrew Adams, who led UConn with 65 solo tackles and four interceptions during the 2014 season, was the only Husky named to the Senior Bowl watch list.

Stratford's Tyler Matakevich, a linebacker at Temple, is also among the 375 players on the watch list and is one of 27 players on teams UConn will face this season on the watch list.

It should be noted that 21 players not on the watch list released last August played in the 2015 Senior Bowl. The 2016 game will be played on Jan. 30.

Missouri: C Evan Boehm, LB Kentrell Brothers, CB Kenya Dennis, RB Russell Hansbrough, OG Connor McGovern
Navy: QB Keenan Reynolds, DT Bernie Sarra, FB Chris Swain
BYU: QB Taysom Hill, LB Bronson  Kaufusi, OT Ryker Matthews
South Florida: S Jamie Byrd, OG Brynjar Gudmondsson
Cincinnati: OG Parker Ehinger, WR Mekale McKay, WR Chris Moore, DE Silverberry Mouhon, WR Shaq Washington, CB Adrian Witty
East Carolina: LB Zeek Bigger, LB Montese Overton, TE Bryce Williams
Tulane: DE Royce LaFrance, OT Arturo Uzdavinis
Houston: CB William Jackson
Temple: DT Matt Ioannidis, LB Tyler Matakevich

There's plenty of question marks as UConn players report for preseason camp tomorrow. However, the safety position is not among them.

UConn returns Andrew Adams, who has started 19 games over the last three seasons, and Obi Melifonwu, who has started 23 games in the last two seasons. Adams was ranked second and Melifonwu fourth in total tackles a season ago. Reserve safety and special teams dynamo Junior Lee is also back.

UConn football coach Bob Diaco did not pull any punches when I asked him about starting safety tandem at American Athletic Conference media day.

"Tell me who is better tandem of safeties in the conference, tell me a better one?" Diaco said. "They played 800/900 plays so they are veterans, those two guys go into every single game expecting to dominate their individual matchups and be in disbelief when they have bad moments, it is good to have that kind of swagger, that kind of energy."

Perhaps the only things standing in the way of Adams and Melifonwu being touted as an elite safety tandem is improved play in pass coverage by Melifonwu. He is an intriguing prospect with size (listed at 6-foot-3, 216 pounds on UConn's roster), speed and intelligence. With two seasons as a starter under his belt, there's no reason he can't make strides defending the passing game.

Adams loves the potential of the secondary which includes the stating quartet from the latter stages of the season.
"I am very excited to see what our secondary can do," Adams said. "We worked hard in the offseason and in the spring on our pass defense. Jhavon is becoming a great player, he is becoming a great leader. Jamar Summers has some games under his belt last year so I am excited to see what he is going to do and Obi plays right next to me, I am excited to see what he is going to do. He is a freak athletically, he can run out of the gym, he is so fast and I have taken some extra time in the film room to study with him. I am just excited to see what we are all going to do as a group.

"We definitely know each other very well now, he knows what I am going to do before I do it and I am pretty sure he know what I am going to do before I do it. That definitely helps us, we have each other's back on the field.

"We are excited that we can improve. We have a lot of returning starters, we have grown as a defense, the chemistry has grown in the spring and over the summer we have worked on our defense. "

If there is any uncertainty surrounding the secondary it would center around who will be the No. 3 and 4 cornerbacks. It was a role filled by Summers last season before Byron Jones' season-ending injury.

"Brice McAllister got some snaps last year, he is a good player, he is coming along really well, we have Javon Hadley, I like Hadley, he is small but he is feisty. he will stick his nose in on the run and he is not afraid of anybody so I like where we are at (with) the corner position."

McAllister, Hadley and converted John Green got a bit of a baptism of fire a season ago and the game experience they were able to get a season ago could start paying dividends this season.

The frustration was rather obvious when Graham Stewart took a peek into his crystal ball.

Stewart and the rest of the seniors felt incredible pain to seeing a respected group of seniors leave the UConn program with a 2-10 record as well as a string of four straight losing seasons. Stewart doesn't know what the record will be in his final season but he is very clear that Stewart and the fellow seniors are taking the steps they feel are necessary to be more successful.

"I am a guy from Connecticut so it is kind of like taking ownership," Stewart said. "I take a tremendous amount of pride in that I definitely don't want to finish my senior year the way last season finished, I think that would stick with me forever and I can't let that happen."

Just like last season, there is a small group of seniors on the UConn roster. Last year other than receivers Geremy Davis and Deshon Foxx, center Alex Mateas and cornerback Byron Jones, most of the remaining seniors were either players splitting playing time or those who rarely see the field. That is certainly not the case this time around.

Stewart, fellow linebacker and returning captain Marquise Vann, safety Andrew Adams, defensive linemen Kenton Adeyemi and Julian Campenni are defensive players accustomed to playing key roles, tight end Sean McQuillan, guard Tyler Samra and running back Max DeLorenzo are players with at least two years of being regular contributors while Junior Lee and Dom Manco are among UConn's best special teams players.

The seniors are determined to not only walk the walk but talk the talk as well.

"We got together in the beginning and kind of talked about what we wanted to do and the bigger goals," McQuillan said. "We want to be one of the senior groups that everybody feels like you can come up to, you can approach, you can talk to and we just want to be a close-knit group and make sure everybody is comfortable with each other. This senior group has a goal in mind and we are not going to stop until we get there."

UConn coach Bob Diaco has liked what he has seen from his seniors during the early stages of spring practice.

"Even now we are all in so 'what do we do? How does that look like, sound like, smell like, taste like so what do I do?" Diaco said. "We are ready so that is the kind of phase we are in right now, that group helping them have a voice, helping them have an appropriate voice and collectively all of them from John Bogue all the way to Max to Graham to Kenton to Andrew and that whole group, they are really doing a nice job with the team."

UConn defensive backs Andrew Adams and Jhavon Williams received honorable mention recognition from the College Football Performance Awards.

Adams, a junior safety, returned a fumble 32 yards for a score, forced another fumble and had three tackles while Williams, a sophomore cornerback, had two forced fumbles, a fumble recovery and five tackles in a 27-20 loss to SMU.

It was the second time Adams made the list as he was named the Defensive Back Performer of the Week after he had three interceptions in a 37-29 win over Central Florida.

Adams led UConn with 65 solo tackles (the most for a UConn defensive back since Terrance Smith's 70 during the 2003 season), four interceptions (the most since Jerome Junior and Blidi Wreh-Wilson each had four in the 2010 season) and eight pass breakups. When the All-American Athletic Conference is announced on Wednesday I'm not sure how many UConn players are going to be on the list but I would expect Adams to be UConn's best candidate to be named to the first team.

Redshirt juniors Jefferson Ashiru (32) and Andrew Adams (22)
combined for all of UConn's season-high four interceptions vs. UCF

It was a scenario that could have resulted in utter disaster.

UConn was coming off a valiant effort in a loss on the road against nationally-ranked East Carolina and now the Huskies were playing a Central Florida team which absolutely dominated them a season ago. Adding to UConn's potential misery was that it would be without two of its four captains as cornerback Byron Jones suffered a season-ending shoulder injury while receiver Geremy Davis was held out with an ankle injury.

UConn coach Bob Diaco and his staff has been challenging his veterans, even those not elected captains, to show some leadership both on and off the field.

Apparently those pleas did not fall onto deaf ears as redshirt juniors Andrew Adams (three interceptions), Sean McQuillan (season highs with four catches and 36 yards), Graham Stewart (career-high 12 tackles), Jefferson Ashiru (first career interception) and Julian Campenni (sack, 1 1/2 tackles for loss) delivered key plays in UConn's upset victory.

"It is time for that group of fourth-year players who are getting ready in a few weeks to formally own the team to get moving," Diaco said. "Let's go, it is time for some leadership, it is time for some real leadership from Andrew Adams, from Graham Stewart, from (Marquise) Vann, from Julian (Campenni), from Sean (McQuillan), from (Tyler) Samra, it is time, let's go, it is time for some real leadership. They have done a really nice job of answering the bell. I want to see some more personalities from our younger guys, don't sit and wait for it to be your turn, let's see who you are, freshmen and sophomores, let's go. If you have something to say, say it. You can weigh in, you can get passionate and have some energy, you can show a little bit of personality. We have been working on that for a few weeks. It came at the right time to have some energy without some of our captains."\

It's a pretty young team as the most recent depth chart lists five seniors on the offensive side of the ball and just two on defense so the juniors understand that they can't wait until next season for make their presence felt.
"I would say that especially in the last two weeks the leadership from the fourth-year guys has stood out," McQuillan said. "It started at East Carolina, we tried to be more vocal in the locker room, tried to take it onto the field and coach the younger guys when they come off. As a fourth-year guy myself, I am trying to take more of a role myself in my position group and also on the offense. Coach always talks about our group being the backbone of the team and if we can bring leadership along with the seniors, I think it is going to be beneficial for the entire team."

Adams was already viewed as a leader of the defense but following Jones' injury, he has taken an even bigger role.

"Leadership is a big thing in our program, the juniors stepping up is really a great thing, they are really the backbone of the team because we will be returning next year," Adams said. "Guys are stepping up, Graham, myself, Junior Lee, we try to bring a spark to the team, energy to practice day in and day out and if we keep doing that, I am pretty sure we will be OK."

Jhavon Williams and the rest of UConn's young cornerbacks will be tested
for rest of season after loss of senior Byron Jones due to shoulder injury

Anybody who has ever crossed paths with UConn senior cornerback and team captain Byron Jones probably wouldn't be stunned to hear of his selfless actions on Thursday night.

Jones had received the horrible news that a shoulder injury, that has been reported as a torn labrum by NFL Draft analyst Tony Pauline, he suffered on Thursday night ended his UConn career. It would have been easy for the four-year starter whose 38 career starts is the most of any active Huskies to stand in the corner and fell sorry for himself. However. that is not how Jones is wired so he got up, spoke to his teammates and reassured them that he was going to be fine and that they should move forward.

"I knew after the game and I was pretty devastated because he was a leader in the (locker) room but he is also a leader on the field," said redshirt sophomore cornerback John Green, one of the players expected to see a larger role with Jones out for the remainder of the season. "I was pretty devastated, the whole room was devastated, the coaches were devastated. It was a blessing in disguise for Byron, he is going to have a good future.

"He addressed the team, the coaches addressed the team and he is still leading in the meeting room, he hasn't left us."

His teammates were appreciative that Jones stepped up to speak with the team during what had to be an incredibly difficult time for him.

"Byron has done a great job of leading those guys and help bring them along, help them grow and he will continue to do that from the sideline,' UConn senior quarterback Chandler Whitmer said. "He can't necessarily be out there physically with them but I think those kids have learned, have stepped up and will continue to get better each game.

"He is one of our captains and there is a reason. He is a great kid, he is positive and he works hard. It is tough to see but I know he has a bright future and he is excited about that."

Jones' message to the team was to continue to play with the same intensity as he tried to bring to the field.

"Byron definitely is a leader," junior safety Andrew Adams said. "I definitely feel for Byron and we know his UConn career is over. We try to play each game just thinking about him and thinking about what Byron wants us to do. I know Byron wants us to play hard, play 100 percent. We want to give all of our effort because we know if Byron was out there, he'd be giving all the effort. "

As for the other injuries, UConn coach Bob Diaco was expecting senior receiver Geremy Davis to practice today and despite being knocked out of the East Carolina game with an ankle injury, he seems likely to play against Central Florida on Saturday. Diaco also said that tailback Arkeel Newsome is 100 percent and said he suffered a lower-leg ailment while walking around on campus. He said that he did not expect offensive tackle Dalton Gifford to be able to play again this season but was hopeful that reserve safety Ellis Marder could return to the field at some point this season.

Following Jones' injury there obviously had to be some adjustments on the depth chart. Jamar Summers is listed as a starter across from Jhavon Williams while Green and sophomore Javon Hadley (who hasn't played this season after appearing in five games as a true freshman) are fighting it for the nickel corner slot True freshman Brice McAllister makes his first appearance on the depth chart as the primary backup to Williams. The only other change to the depth chart was at tailback. Recently all four players (Arkeel Newsome, Ron Johnson, Max DeLorenzo and Josh Marriner) were listed as the starters but this week is the first time Johnson and Newsome are listed as the co-starters.

In our dealing with UConn football coach Bob Diaco he's been pretty positive when discussing individual players. If he is less than thrilled with what he's been seeing on the practice field those thoughts are usually not conveyed to the media. However, that was not the case when he recently discussed the play of the starting safeties.

Diaco couldn't say enough good things about Obi Melifonwu but when it came time to discuss the progress of Andrew Adams, Diaco said "he started in a very nondescript way." In Diaco's discussion of players to outsiders, that's about as damning as it gets.

Diaco did say that the safety and outside linebackers are the most complex in the defense they will be running at UConn. I've seen countless stories about this year's Notre Dame saying how the new regime is so much more open to playing younger players because the defensive scheme isn't quite so challenging to pick up.

Diaco admitted that some veteran players "have kind of been turned into freshmen."

Adams is a key member of the UConn defense. He has starting experience in each of the last two seasons and Diaco has been encouraged by what he has seen from him recently in practice.

Adams admitted that there have been some growing pains but he believes he is heading in the right direction.

"I am getting back into the swing of things," Adams said. "It is a process and it takes time so I keep working to get better every day on the field and eventually I will be there."

Adams finished seventh on the 2013 UConn squad with 42 tackles despite missing four games due to a shoulder injury suffered during preseason camp. Among returning players only fellow secondary stalwarts Byron Jones and Obi Melifonwu had more solo tackles than the 28 Adams recorded, He also had two of the team's 13 interceptions so he is being counted on for big things this season.

"We are going into the second week and everything is starting to get better," Adams said. "I am starting to see improvement. I just have to communicate into the right defense, try to be a leader on the defense, be vocal and safety is one of the cornerstone positions on the defense so I am trying to get everybody set and calm."

Diaco expressed concern about finding players to back up Adams and Melifonwu. Wilbert Lee is the most experienced of the reserve safeties. He had 10 solo tackles a season ago and along with Jordan Floyd, they are the ones who have gotten their feet wet. True freshman Anthony Watkins is listed as a cornerback but in the last practice the media was able to watch, he was working with the safeties but most of the other players I saw out there were walk-ons so that is something to keep in mind if something were to keep Adams or Melifonwu off the field.

"(There's a) collection of guys who are going to be able to do the jobs, it's almost like a Frankenstein. We have pieces, we have some tangibly gifted players who aren't necessarily the best football intelligent players at this point in their career or we have a player who has a high level of football intelligence and not have the tangible traits that the other guy has so it is like Frankenstein and we will sum it all up together and get the production we need."

Few positions on the 2013 UConn squad drew more criticism this season than the offensive line and the secondary. Since I was among those pointing out their shortcomings, I figured it was only equitable that I give credit where credit is due.

Quarterback Casey Cochram receivers Geremy Davis and Deshon Foxx and linebacker Yawin Smallwood garnered most of the post-game accolades following the 45-10 win over Memphis and it was well deserved. However, the play of the offensive line and safeties should not be ignored.

It was not a great start for the line as the first seven of the first 10 plays resulted in no gain or negative yardage.

Once the decision was made o rely on high-percentage passes, UConn took the game over.

UConn quarterbacks attempted 55 passes and not only did Memphis not record a sack, but there was only one time I remember when a Memphis defender even got a hand on Cochran.

"What they’ve gone through the season, the criticism they’ve had and everything we’ve been through for the last four or five games to go out and protect like they did for 55 passes was impressive," UConn interim coach T.J. Weist said. "They really came together well, they really gave Casey the ability to make those decisions, make those throws and proud of their mentality. Early in the first quarter we were frustrated, we couldn’t run and we were getting beat up front. We shifted gears a little bit and they came together."

While three of the offensive linemen who started were seniors, the way the unit came together late in the season is a good sign moving forward.

"The offensive line was doing great," Foxx said.. "They’ve been doing great, the whole team had their struggles at the beginning of the season and it wasn’t just the offensive line but everybody."

Safeties Andrew Adams and Obi Melifonwu came into the game have combined for four turnovers (three interceptions and a fumble recovery). All they did was combine for 16 tackles, a forced fumble, fumble recovery and interception. While there were times when the cornerbacks struggled against Memphis, the safeties were rock solid in pass coverage while providing run support,

"We got on each other in practice about making turnovers," Adams said. "We were doing our assignment because we know we have a big role in our defense these past few weeks in practice we got on each other and it paid off in the game."

The results and numbers have not been pretty in UConn's first three road games.

It started with a 41-12 loss at Buffalo in Paul Pasqualoni's final game as UConn's head coach. Humbling defeats to Cincinnati and Central Florida followed.

Heading into today's game at Southern Methodist UConn has surrendered an average of 33 points per game in three road games and the Huskies are facing the No. 1 passing offense in the American Athletic Conference and SMU senior quarterback Garrett Gilbert is first nationally in total offense per game.

"We just haven't played well," UConn senior offensive lineman Steve Greene said. "We haven't come out and executed like we are capable of really all year. We have another chance to come out and get this thing rolling."

UConn knows it will be challenged by a potent SMU passing attack.

"It is a big opportunity," UConn sophomore safety Andew Adams said. "We don't look in the past, we are always moving forward and I feel like we are to step up to the challenge. As a defense we haven't been a good tackling team on the road so Coach (Hank) Hughes emphasized tackling this past weekend so if we minimize our missed tackles I feel like we will be OK on the road."

UConn interim coach T.J. Weist hasn't had the easiest matchups since he became head coach especially when it came to defending the opposing quarterbacks. Louisville's Teddy Bridgewater, Central Florida's Blake Bortles, Brendon Kay of Cincinnati and now SMU's Gilbert are all players with the capability to playing football professionally.

"You watch them move up and down the field, they throw the ball all across the field, down the field and every which way there is to throw the ball and he (Gilbert) does a good job of managing that," Weist said. "He does a good job of tempo, you can see him moving fast, you can see him getting lined up and spreading the ball vertically, horizontally to multiple receivers, they have three of the best receivers in the league, two of the best receivers in the country."

UConn released its depth chart for the game against Southern Methodist and the only changes are in the secondary as cornerback Taylor Mack is listed as a starter ahead of Jhavon Williams and Andrew Adams is a starting safety as Ty-Meer Brown, who started the first seven games before missing the Louisville game with a shoulder stinger. Brown is not listed on the two-deep chart.

There were no changes on the offensive two-deep chart as Tim Boyle is still listed as the starting quarterback and Deshon Foxx is listed as the second-string receiver and as one of the two kickoff returners.

"Ty-Meer is still out as of now, we are still evaluating him," UConn interim head coach T.J. Weist said on Monday's American Athletic Conference coaches' call. "Obviously he didn’t dress for the game. He had a neck injury, a pretty serious stinger in practice, we are still evaluating and letting the swelling going down. He had too much pain to really do anything in the game or too much stiffness I should say. We are waiting for more results to see how he is and he is week to week right now.

"Deshon Foxx practiced yesterday. He got a stinger during the game and it really didn’t go away but after the game he was fine. He was fine in practice yesterday so he is good to go."

When Andrew Adams went down during a blocking drill late in preseason camp the hope was that the sophomore defensive back could be back in action by November. However, Adams wasn't about to wait that long to get back on the field.

Adams' hard work was rewarded as he saw his first action of the 2013 season less than two months after suffering a shoulder injury which required surgery.

Adams was brought into the game on the first defensive series and played about 20 snaps. He was credited with an unassisted tackle in the 13-10 loss to South Florida.

"I did a lot of hard work in the training room, I am blessed to be out there this early," Adams said.

"I was pretty fired up and I was waiting for that moment, when it came I was pretty emotional."

Adams was injured in a blocking drill between receivers and defensive backs. Adams locked up with Geremy Davis and neither player was in a hurry to disengage even after the drill was over. Finally Adams fell hard to the ground and hurt his shoulder.

"I didn’t know how bad it was," Adams said. "I couldn’t really move my arm but I had my shoulder pads on so when I went over to the side, I wasn’t in too much pain but he (UConn athletic trainer Bob Howard) saw the bone sticking up and he wasn’t sure (of the severity). He got x-rays and it was a Grade 5 AC joint tear so that was when I knew it was pretty bad. From that point on I said if I wanted to get back, I have to focus on hard work and I set my mind to it."

Adams said he had surgery five days after suffering the injury and he recently was able to resume lifting.

"I have full range of motion so really I am trying to get my full strength back," Adams said.

"It was tough (to miss the first four games) but things happen and God has a plan for me and if I keep working I will be in the position I want to be in."

If there is a silver lining it is that Obi Melifonwu has stepped in and played well as a starting safety.

"He has stepped in for me and he is doing a good job and I am proud of him, we go over film together and we have a close relationship," Adams said. "I try to communicate, communication back there is the key and we have to take over the communication and if everybody back there is on the same page, we will be one of the top secondaries in the country."

It has not been the easiest of senior seasons for starting right offensive tackle Kevin Friend.

Friend missed the season opener as he recovered from a concussion suffered in practice. He returned the next week against Maryland but injured his ankle after he was pushed to the ground during the first quarter. He attempted to come back in and play but simply couldn't put enough weight on the ankle to play. He missed the last two games as well. However, on a conference call earlier today interim UConn coach T.J. Weist said Friend has been able to practice all week long.

"Kevin has practiced, basically all week and he looks better in terms of being able to go," Weist said. "We are taking it day by day but he has practiced well."

That would be a major boost for the UConn offense as Friend's replacements (Xavier Hemingway and Dalton Gifford) are still a bit raw and have struggled.

When he met with the media on Tuesday Weist discussed the impact that Friend could have on a struggling offense if he were able to return.

"If your starting tackles are out on either end you’ve got problems. We haven’t had the depth, the quality of depth that we need to step up and take their place. Obviously we need that and we can’t go on the waiver wire to get more guys so yes he is very important for us, any offensive line that has movement, that has guys moving around."

Of the players considered to be questionable, WR Kamal Abrams seems to be the most likely to play against South Florida followed by Friend, CB Taylor Mack and WR Shakim Phillips. Don't expect to see either LB Graham Stewart or DB Andrew Adams out there on Saturday.

Weist said that Phillips practiced yesterday and today will be a key day to see how his tender hamstring feels.

"We’ll see how he feels," Weist said. "Taylor Mack practiced and he is still questionable. He looks a little bit better and we will find out at practice today.  Andrew Adams had a little bit of contact yesterday, he is truly questionable coming off of surgery so he is just starting back into contact from that standpoint. Kamal has practiced and he is almost full go for us and he is ready to go. Stewart is not probable, he hasn’t practiced for us."

It's looking like cornerback Taylor Mack will be back when UConn hosts South Florida on Saturday. On the weekly American Athletic Conference call interim head coach T.J. Weist said starting right offensive tackle Kevin Friend was able to practice on a limited basis on Sunday and he hopes to get him back as well.

"Friend looks good, he practiced a little the other day," Wesit said. "He is still questionable and once we do get him back, hopefully we get him back for this game, it will solidify that offensive line which is what we need. If you are weak at one spot, it really weakens the whole thing. We’ll see if I can get him out to practice tomorrow, he will still be questionable for us but if I can get him back that would really help our offensive line."

Neither WR Shakim Phillips nor LB Graham Stewart has returned to practice yet and it doesn't sound like Stewart is coming back soon.

"(Shakim) Phillips hasn’t practiced yet, he is still questionable," Weist said. "That hamstring is going on a little longer than we thought. We will take it day by day with him and it would be a bonus if we can get him back.

"He hasn’t been back, he has still been walking around in a boot, we will see if we get him back but I don’t think it is going to be any time soon."

The biggest surprise on the two-deep chart which was released yesterday was seeing Andrew Adams listed as a second-stringer safety. Adams saw plenty of time last season in nickel packages and he was in line to be a starting safety before he injured his shoulder in a blocking drill late in preseason camp. The thought was he would miss about eight games if he was able to come back at all. However. he was out there doing some non-contact drills on Sunday.

"(Adams) is questionable more than anything," Weist said. "He practiced the other day but it was no contact, he was really just getting out there and getting loose. He has come back pretty fast, he has come back pretty strong but he hasn’t really taken that first hit yet. We are not going to depend on him, it would be a bonus if we get him but he did practice some on the non-contact period so we will kind of see and kind of go from there."

So what would Adams' return mean to the secondary which has been pressing freshmen into duty because of injuries.

"It is unbelievable because he is such a good leader and the players respect him," Weist said. "When you’ve got a guy like that who has played a lot of football, the guys back there respect him and he gives you that solid force that you need in the secondary. We have some young guys around him who can so ‘OK, here’s a guy who is going to recognize formations and those things.’ He adds that maturity and experience."

Weist talked about the week in general and it was a week ago today when Paul Pasqualoni was let go as head coach and offensive line George DeLeone was also fired.

"It’s been a tough week for us last week obviously going through some transition, starting out 0-4 and not reaching our expectations," Weist said. "It is always tough to go through change and decide who is going to take over and how they are going to do it. Our players have responded well and they have done a good job from that standpoint. This offseason we had three good practices, we gave our players a little bit of time off. We are looking forward this week to getting back and playing football going up against a good South Florida team that did a good job against Cincinnati. Our guys are excited, it has been tough but our guys are excited to get back to football and really get a fresh start with a different perspective for me as a head coach, our coaching staff and making some changes."

It was also announced that the Oct. 19 game against Cincinnati will start at noon