Time for my weekly "where Arkeel Newsome stands" update.

The former Ansonia High star needs 38 yards to move past Joe Markus and into sole possession of second place in all-purpose yards in UConn history.

Here's the updated list

Category                      Yards     Rank Next up   
All-purpose                  4,776  (3rd)      Joe Markus 4,813
Yards from scrimmage 3,153 (6th)       Lyle McCombs 3,158
Rushing yards               1,904 (13th)    Tory Taylor 1905
Touchdowns                  22     (14th)     John Fitzsimmons 23
Receptions                    102   (17th)     Keith Hugger 103
Receiving yards            1249 (20th)    Ken Miller 1,313


Also, Bryant Shirreffs needs 46 yards to join Pete Petrillo and Ken Sweitzer to become the third UConn quarterback with 1,000 career rushing yards. Junior Joseph has 271 career tackles which is tied for 21st in program history. With four tackles today, he will pass Sio Moore and Rob Belucore to move into 19th place. Also, Joseph is part of a senior class with a combined 97.5 tackles for loss. The only other classes with at least 100 tackles for loss are 2012 and 2004.

There are some more tidbits in my preview capsule

This has not been the start that Arkeel Newsome was envisioning for his senior season.

The holder of pretty much every rushing and touchdown scoring record in Connecticut high school football history came into his final collegiate season looking to join Lyle McCombs, Taber Small, Jeff Gallaher, Tony Jordan and Bill Minnerly as the only players in UConn program history to lead the Huskies in rushing in three straight seasons.

Newsome had five 100-yard rushing games combined during his sophomore and junior seasons but two games into the 2017 campaign, eight of his 14 carries have gone for either no gain or negative yardage. If not for back to back runs of 4 and 9 yards in garbage time in last week's loss to Virginia, Newsome's numbers of 14 carries for 17 yards would look even worse. Redshirt freshman Nate Hopkins led UConn in rushing in the season opening win over Holy Cross, true freshman Kevin Mensah had 49 yards, all in the second half, against Virginia last week. The Huskies get 92.2 percent of their rushing yards from the running back position out of freshmen which leads all FBS programs just ahead of Louisiana-Lafayette's mark of 91.5.

The good news is that Newsome's impact isn't limited to merely running with the ball. He needs 22 yards to become the first running back in UConn history with more than 1,000 receiving yards. If he gets there on Sunday, he will become the fourth active FBS back to reach that milestone joining Washington State's Jamal Morrow, Southern Mississippi's Ito Smith and Ohio's Papi White.

With 86 career catches, Newsome is five shy of Joe Markus' program record for running backs set from 1979-82. He also ranks seventh among active FBS running backs in that category.

Also, with 4,313 career all-purpose yards Newsome is 74 shy of moving past Jordan Todman and into third place in that category in UConn history.

Here's how Newsome ranks among FBS running backs(updated with Saturday's games)

CATCHES
155 Jamal Morrow, Washington State vs. Nevada, Saturday, 6 p.m.
114 Ito Smith, So. Mississippi at Louisiana-Monroe, Saturday, 7 p.m.
103 Alex Gardner, FIU at Rice, Saturday, 7:30 p.m.
102 Phillip Lindsey, Colorado vs. Washington, Saturday, 10 p.m.
 98 Larry Rose, New Mexico State vs. UTEP, Saturday, 8 p.m.
 87 Justin Jackson, Northwestern next game is at Wisconsin on Sept. 30
 86 Arkeel Newsome, UConn vs. ECU, Sunday, noon

YARDS
1328 Jamal Morrow, Washington State
1159 Ito Smith, So. Mississippi
1109 Papi White, Ohio
978 Arkeel Newsome, UConn
886 Phillip Lindsay, Colorado

Also, here's the list of top receiving running backs in UConn history
Player (Years)                       Rec-Yards-TD
Joe Markus (79-82)                91-873-5
Arkeel Newsome (14-17)      86-978-6
 Terry Caulley (02-03, 05-06) 85-579-3
Larry Taylor  (04-07)              63-574-1
Lyle McCombs (11-13)          63-477-3
Mark Landolfi (87-89)            55-447-6
Vin Clements (68-70)              54-638-4
*-list does not include Tory Taylor who picked up most of his catches in his two seasons playing receiver

Alec Bloom eager to celebrate more touchdowns as a senior at UConn

In Tommy Hopkins' first season as a starter he was arguably the most consistently effective offensive lineman during UConn's march to a bowl game.

Naturally, expectations were high coming in the 2016 season but Hopkins never really had a chance to build on his solid 2015 campaign. However, Hopkins was injured while helping clear the path for former teammate Ron Johnson for a 21-yard touchdown run in the 2016 season opener. Hopkins missed the next four games. After averaging less than 105 rushing yards per game during his absence, The Huskies ran for 188 yards and had 412 yards of total offense in his first game back as the Huskies picked up their lone conference win in 2016 by beating Cincinnati 20-9. In the next game UConn had a season high 306 passing yards but Hopkins suffered a season-ending injury in the loss to South Florida.

Hopkins was held out of spring drills as well but now he is healthy and eager to get the work as preseason camp got underway today.

"It was really tough," Hopkins said. "It was disappointing going back out there and having it happen again, it was like there was no way this could happen to me. The athletic trainers did a great job on the rehab but it was disappointing. I still tried to help out as much as I could watching film. If I see something, I see a good play I will let them know."

With a new coaching staff in place, Hopkins knows nothing is set in stone. These next couple of weeks will be a key time for him to prove he belongs in the starting lineup.

"I am focused on camp right now, going out there," said Hopkins, who ironically was cleared to practice shortly after spring practice came to an end.

"I think we have a pretty exciting group, I think we will be pretty good and I am excited to see and excited to work in camp, see it all come together."

FORTT OPENING SOME EYES
Senior linebacker Junior Joseph started rattling off names of under the radar defensive players ready to make an impact and it didn't take long for him to mention true freshman defensive Omar Fortt.

Fortt, a former star at St. Luke's, enrolled at UConn for the spring semester allowing him to partake in spring drills. He took advantage of that time and saw time with the first team defense.

"I was coming out, being physically, take no prisoners and with everybody nurturing me, it gave me confidence with everybody around me telling me how well I was playing," Fortt said. "Summer ball, I am going to try to ball out as much as I can. I have a great guy in front of me in Tre Bell and I'm following him."

Senior cornerback Jamar Summers was also a mid-year enrollee who got on the field right away. He said he won't be surprised if Fortt does the same thing this season.

"That is my guy, Omar he came in mid year like I did and he definitely accepted the challenge," Summers said. "It is a transition from high school to college, he handled it well and he has been excelling. I am looking forward to see him during training camp compete and I'm willing coach him in whatever he needs help with. He is like me, competitive, goofy at times but he is willing to put the work in.

"The hard part about it is the academic side, from scheduling from the classes to doing the work, time management is a big thing in college but athletically, it is probably the best position you can put yourself in coming in mid year and getting a head start on everything as a freshman and seeing what needs to be done and how to handle things of that nature. It worked to his benefit, he is a step ahead of the freshman class that (just) came in."

Fortt had three tackles including a tackle for loss in the spring game and now he is looking to use his experience during spring practice to carve out a role on the 2017 UConn team.

MISTAKEN IDENTITY
 Alec Bloom was far away from San Francisco when he saw a report in early May that he was among undrafted players trying out for the San Francisco 49ers.

"I was about to take a final and I said this is definitely not true since I was sitting in class," Bloom said with a laugh. "I got a call and said I will take care of it when I get out because I am not out there."

It would not be a surprise to see Bloom in training camp in 2018 in fact it would be more surprising if that is not the case.

UConn's new offensive coordinator Rhett Lashlee came in from Auburn and in the last two seasons tight ends caught a grand total of two passes compared to 76 catches out of tight ends or players from other positions lining up at tight end. Bloom said it will be up to him, fellow rising seniors Tommy Myers and the other tight ends to earn their role in the new look UConn offense.

"We get out of it as much as we put into it," Bloom said. "If we show them in practice we are an asset to the offense, we are going to get more chances. Football is like life, if you put out more, you are going to get more chances and we are ready to show what we've got."

LOFTY PRAISE
My main story off media day was focused on the fact that quarterback David Pindell and linebacker Santana Sterling's final game as junior college players happened to be against each other.

As is rather typical, I wrote way too long on the story so I wasn't able to fit all of UConn coach Randy Edsall's thoughts on the two of them into the piece.

Here are some quotes I thought people would enjoy reading.

"He (Pindell) has this quality about him where he is very cool under pressure," Edsall said. "Watching him on film and observing some things, I don't know if I've ever see a guy get the ball out of his hands so quickly. The other thing, I am jealous of him because I think he is 3.5 percent body fat but he is a good kid who has good talent. I go out watch and observe a lot of times and by doing that, I think you find out a lot about a lot of things. It seems to me like people have already started to gravitate towards him, Santana is a guy who I thought had a knack for making plays and being around the ball quite a bit.

"They are good quality kids. They don't say a lot, they just work and those is my kind of guys."

Edsall said the first five practices will be about getting all the players a chance to showcase what they can do. The first scrimmage of preseason camp will be on Thursday and after that he is hoping to have an idea of who should be playing with the first and second teams. Don't look for a depth chart to be posted probably until the Sunday before the Aug. 31 season opener although Edsall is hopeful that his coaches have a pretty good idea of the first and second units well before that.

Finally, I caught up with running backs Arkeel Newsome and Jason Thompson so look for a story on them in tomorrow's paper.

Some new rules are on the verge of being implemented and count UConn coach Randy Edsall among those applauding the expected move to an early signing period as well as the addition of a 10th assistant coach and capping the number of players on scholarship in one class to 25.

Here's the release on the rules changes that were approved by the NCAA Division I Council and still need to be ratified at the Division I Board of Directors meetings which end on April 26.

"I think they got it right,' Edsall said after Tuesday morning's spring practice, "I think there are more things that they can do. I was pleased that the proposal got passed. It is steps in the right direction, I do like the early signing period. We were getting to a point where people were just throwing offers out there because other people offered kids and now what happens, it will be interesting to see how many kids want to sign or commit to a school that offered and say, 'no you can't commit.'

"I am for all those things, the 10th coach, having the (limits on) camps on campus, all that. They just have to get back to civility in recruiting, let these kids be kids, tell them the truth, don't fill them with things that aren't there. Now I wish they would stop where you couldn't offer kids early enough. Having official visits in April, May and June, that will be different especially when they talk about the academic part when you bring kids in when you don't even have six semesters in of grades on them. That will be interesting to see how those things turned out."

There's not a ton to report off today's practice.

Tyler Davis was moved from tight end to receiver (his third position since arriving at UConn). It was his first day working with the receivers.
"Anybody who can help us win and help us score is welcome," receiver Hergy Mayala said. "Today was his first day so he has a lot to learn obviously but I think he is going to all right by the time fall (camp) comes along. He's a great worker, he's going to add to what we are doing so far."

Edsall said that Davis would probably be considered the fourth-string tight end and now he has a better chance to stepping onto the field as a receiver.

"He is not strong enough to play tight end so I think he is athletic, he runs well," Edsall said. "In terms of what we do in the offense, I think he fits better there right now. Right now he would probably be fourth in terms of where we are at tight end so now moving to where we are going to move him, he has a chance to come in and challenge that guy to be a starter or be the backup. I am worrying about trying to put the best team that I can together for this coming year and as I looked at it and evaluated it, I felt that would be the best spot for him for 2017."

Edsall also announced that Nazir Williams moved to the middle linebacker slot (likely caused by the injury to E.J. Levenberry) and Tyler Coyle is now at safety. Coyle was out there with the starting defensive backs along with fellow freshman Omar Fortt at the very end of the portion of practice open to the media. Williams looked impressive in the pass rushing drills when linebackers went up against running backs.

Arkeel Newsome, Quayon Skanes and Keyion Dixon all got work returning kickoffs today.

Edsall said that Friday's spring game will be more of a scrimmage that actual game. It will start off with the first-team offenses and defenses going head to head followed by the second team units squaring off. There could be live punting but no punt returns. Offensive linemen Ryan Crozier and Tommy Hopkins as well as defensive end Luke Carrezola remain in red no-contact jerseys so don't look for them to take part in Friday's 7 p.m. scrimmage.

Admission and parking will be free to the spring game at Rentschler Field.

There is one more practice in the spring and that is on Thursday but it is not open to the media.

I will also be filing a story on defensive back Jamar Summers, who many people thought might be preparing for the NFL draft right about now instead of returning for his senior season.

The words uttered by coaches on national signing day can often be little more than idle chatter. If the words are taken at face value, each recruit signed would be a three-year starter and All-American candidate.

However, when Bob Diaco said, "there are others who could quarterback our team but Donovan (Williams) is "the" quarterback, he was brought in for that purpose. It could be argued whether he was a national recruit but he was close. He was a 20-40 offer player, a spectacular young man, high achiever in all areas. He make all the throws, athletic, fast and every time I see him he gets bigger" this was not just typical signing day hype.

Fast forward to this week and during both Tuesday's and Wednesday's practice and there was Williams gets reps with either the first or second team offense. He wasn't in there a ton but he was getting the chance to go up against the No. 1 defense in 11 on 11 drills and not as the quarterback of the scout team which would be normal operating procedure.

When I spoke with offensive coordinator Frank Verducci after Wednesday's practice, the first question I had pertained to Williams' chance to work with the top offensive units.

"Any benefit we can give him as far being exposed to the varsity to bring him along, that is what we are trying to do right now," Verducci said. "Obviously if there is an apocalypse plan because you have plans for everything ... so you want to get him exposed as much as possible. If he never plays a down this year, he is going to start in spring ball at a level so much higher than he would have been if we just put him on the scout team the whole year. He is obviously a great physical talent."

Let's be honest here, UConn does not want to put Williams into a game this season. In a perfect world, he gets to redshirt this season, he moves into the role as No. 2 quarterback next season and then takes over as the Huskies' signal caller during the 2018 season.

Williams roomed with starting quarterback Bryant Shirreffs during preseason camp which was another smart move since it allowed him to spend plenty of time with the team's starting quarterback and one of its four captains.

"Donovan's a great kid," Shirreffs said after Tuesday's practice. "A really good kid, he stays quiet but once you get to know him, you learn who he is. He is a really hard worker and a pleasure to be around."

Another youngster who earned praise from veteran players and coaches was sophomore receiver Aaron McLean. Both Shirreffs and senior receiver Noel Thomas raved about the block McLean threw on one play and he had a key 24-yard catch on the final drive of the game. What I didn't realize until talking to Verducci was that those were McLean's only two plays in the game.

"McLean is really the exceptional one because he played two plays," Verducci said. "One play he did a kickout block like a fullback and puts the guy on the ground. The other play, he catches a 24-yard pass so give credit to him for his preparation and staying in the game. He had every excuse to not be focused but when those guys got gassed on the two-minute drill, he goes in and makes a play. It is not a scripted play, it is a scramble, it is an adjustment and he makes an adjustment and makes a play."

Those are the types of plays that should get McLean more than two snaps of playing time in the future.

Verducci chose his words carefully about how junior running back Arkeel Newsome has been utilized in the first two games but it was noteworthy that Newsome's 10 touches in the Navy game were the fewest for the former Ansonia High star since the third game of last season when he had two carries and one catch in a loss at Missouri. Newsome averaged 22 touches per game for the rest of the season. Playing time is earned during practice and Newsome hasn't been flashing as much the practices this year as he did a season ago but it is clear he is still a key piece of the offensive game plan. I would expect him to get more than the 10 touches he had against Navy on Saturday as the UConn coaches hope that he can return to being one of the most explosive playmakers on the team.

"Ron has shown some growth and we are happy with that but for us to be as good as we can be, both of those guys have to have a contribution," Verducci said.

I've covered my share of football games over the last couple of decades but I can't recall a situation like the one on UConn's first offensive series in Saturday's loss at Temple.

It's not unusual for personnel to be shuffled in and out but UConn used 16 different players on its first three offensive plays. Think about that for a second. The Huskies used the same five offensive linemen while Arkeel Newsome and Noel Thomas were also in there for each of the first three plays meaning that nine different players saw time at the other four positions on the first three offensive snaps.

It started with a normal look with Newsome in at tailback, Trey Rutherford at fullback, Alec Bloom at tight end and receivers Thomas and Tyraiq Beals along with Tim Boyle. Then Rutherford, Boyle and Beals checked out and in came tight end Chris Lee, jack of all trades Garrett Anderson and running back Max DeLorenzo. Anderson, who came to UConn as a quarterback and would see some snaps there during the game, was flanked out at receiver as Thomas was at QB in the wildcat formation. Then Boyle and Beals were back, receiver Hergy Mayala checked in as did linebacker Luke Carrezola, who was used as a fullback and even caught a pass in the game.

"We had two of our best players out, outside of Noel and Arkeel, the starting quarterback and not having him and a great, great player in Tommy Myers, he is a big loss," UConn coach Bob Diaco said. "We needed to use a lot of different things to try to create some production and it didn't work."

No it didn't but it did keep us in the press box engaged as we had to keep tabs on who was in and who was out.

The biggest surprise to me was the use of Thomas at quarterback. I didn't see that when I was at Tuesday's practice. I did recall offensive coordinator Frank Verducci summoning Carrezola over to the field that the first-team offense was practicing on so while seeing him in on offense wasn't shocking but was a bit surprising especially on the second offensive play.

UConn picked up nine first downs in the game. Four came on receptions from Thomas, one off a Newsome run, another time Boyle ran for a first down. As the game wore on, Newsome's play count was limited since he was taking a real pounding so Josh Marriner came in and had two catches resulting in first down. So who was responsible for the other first down? Carrezola, of course.

"Since Tommy went down they asked me to do it," Carrezola said. "In practice, I just try to give it my best shot. I just go over there whenever they need me, whenever they call my name. I just wanted to practice as hard as possible and when they call my name, I just come running."

Carrezola drew praise from Diaco and his teammates for how he adjusted to seeing some offensive snaps on offense while playing a key role on defense.

"We were just thinking about a guy who could do the job and not have his defensive role diminished, be able to absorb both and he was the top name to try to do some of that blocking, kick-out stuff," Diaco said. "He had a beautiful catch on third down for a first down. I don't know how much more of that we will utilize moving forward but I was pleased with Luke all week, he is a great teammate."

The highest praise might have come from Boyle.

"Luke is a special kid," Boyle said. "He is going to be a hell of a player down the road, he is right now. I'll be watching him on Sunday one day. He reminds me of J.J. Watt a little bit just his physical attributes and the way he can play fullback, learn the offense in three days and perform as well as he did."

The Temple game was not the first time I saw Thomas play quarterback. I covered the St. Luke's/Hopkins game when Thomas was a senior in 2012. He went 8 of 15 for 110 yards with two touchdown passes and an interception. Thomas added 133 yards on nine carries in a 32-13 St. Luke's win.

On Saturday, Thomas carried the ball for seven yards on the second offensive play.

"I wish it lasted longer," Thomas said of his time at quarterback. "I think I did all right, I was comfortable back there. I definitely had enough reps in practice."

While Myers won't be back for UConn's bowl game, the feeling is that Shirreffs should be able to play by then so that might cut back on Thomas' use at quarterback. Then again, in a bowl game, there is plenty of preparation time and with nothing really riding on the game, teams can be a bit creative in their play calling so stay tuned.

Arkeel Newsome's impressive receiving numbers have been well documented in this blog but it bears repeating that only Florida International's Alex Gardner and Virginia's Taquan Mizzell have more catches and receiving yards among FBS running backs than Newsome's 34 catches and 386 receiving yards.

With Newsome leading the way UConn tops all American Athletic Conference teams in catches and receiving yards by running backs  (the 46 catches and 468 yards rank 11th among all FBS teams). So which AAC team is next when it comes to utilizing backs in the passing game? Tulane, of course.

The Green Wave have 43 catches for 371 yards ranking in the top 20 nationally in both categories.

YARDS                  RECEPTIONS
Ohio State 736       Virginia  77
Virginia 683           Washington State 74
S. Mississippi 649  Ohio State  68
Stanford 593           S. Mississippi  61
Georgia Tech  537  C. Michigan  55
San Diego St. 534  Northwestern  53
Syracuse 514          FIU   52
Northwestern 502   E. Michigan  51
Washington St. 482 UMass   47
San Jose St. 477     Syracuse  47
UConn  468           UConn   46Texas Tech 448     San Jose St.  44
Ohio  425              Wisconsin  43
FIU  412                Tulane   43
LOFTY PRAISE FOR JONES
There have been plenty of stories written over the last two or two about Dallas Cowboys defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli saying that he can't remember a defensive back playing as well as a rookie as former UConn star Byron Jones has been playing for the Cowboys this season.

It is not uncommon for coaches to pump up their own players but still it should be noted that Marinelli was on the defensive coaching staff of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers when Ronde Barber came into the league (John Lynch was going into his fourth season by the time Marinelli arrived) so he knows a thing or two about impressive rookie defensive backs.

It's been six years since a UConn player had five interceptions in a season. This year sophomore cornerback Jamar Summers did it in a month.

Summers, who did not have an interception in his first 11 games, got on the board in the 2014 season finale against SMU. Then after failing to pick off a pass in the first four games this season, he has at least one interception in four of the last five games. How impressive of a run is Summers on? Well, no FBS players had more interceptions in the month of October than Summers' five.

"Whatever it takes the team out to win," said Summers, who had two interceptions in last week's win over East Carolina and narrowly missed a third. "Once you get one, you definitely get the urge and the taste in your mouth for another one."

So what or who does Summers credit for his recent run of interceptions?

"I just have to throw it back and say the receivers on my team help me out," Summer said. "Thomas Lucas, Noel Thomas, Hergy Mayala all those guys help me in my preparation of my game."

NEWSOME WINS GOLDEN HELMET AWARD
Despite rushing for a career-high 179 yards and tallying 244 all-purpose yards, sophomore running back Arkeel Newsome did not win any individual honors from the American Athletic Conference. He did, however, get named the weekly winner of the New England Football Writers' Association's Golden Helmet award.

Newsome's 1,318 all-purpose yards are the most for a UConn player since Lyle McCombs' 1,323 in 2012. Newsome not only leads the Huskies with 591 rushing yards, he is second on the team with 34 receptions and 386 receiving yards.

LEE COULD BE BACK AT QB FOR TULANE
Watching some of last week's Tulane/Memphis game, it was hard not to appreciate the story of quarterback Jordy Joseph, who filled in for an injured Tanner Lee.

Joseph was a walk-on who was intending to be a graduate assistant on the Tulane coaching staff when he was given the opportunity to return as a player. Joseph told Tulane coach Curtis Johnson that he couldn't afford another season as a non-scholarship player and that was when Johnson informed Joseph not to worry since he was coming back as a scholarship player.

It was never in the script for Joseph (with one rushing attempt for minus three yards and one completed pass for one yard to his credit) to be starting for the Green Wave.

Joseph got off to a solid start as Tulane threw a scare into Memphis before finishing 10 of 24 for 131 yards  and running four times for 24 yards, it is sounding like Lee will be back as the starting quarterback for Saturday's game.

Jamar Summers has had plenty of reasons to smile with his recent play

In recent years it has not been a regular occurrence to see UConn players ranked among the national leaders whether it was for a season, a month or even a week.

However, thanks to the www.cfbstats.com site having a variety of breakdowns including a month by month one, I can let you know that UConn sophomores Arkeel Newsome and Jamar Summers ranked first among FBS players in receiving yards for a running back and interceptions respectively during the month of October.

UConn's Arkeel Newsome ranked in the top 10 in five different categories
in month of October and led all FBS running backs in receiving yards

It should be noted that UConn did play five games in the month so that helped give both Newsome and Summers an extra game or two to pile up stats but I thought it was still rather noteworthy.

Newsome led all FBS receivers with 282 receiving yards and his 23 catches were third among running backs during the month.

Newsome was second in all-purpose yards (996) and third in all-purpose yards per game (199.2) while ranking 22nd in yards from scrimmage per game and 10th in total yards from scrimmage. He also was tied for 21st with an average of 28 yards per kickoff return.

Summers had five interceptions which is the most by any FBS player in October and he joined Alabama's Eddie Jackson and Iowa's Desmond King as the only FBS players to average an interception a game during the month.

Summers, who came into the month with one career interception, has an interception total in the month of October that would have been good enough to lead the team every year since Robert Vaughn's seven picks in 2007 although Vaughn did have five interceptions during the 2009 season.

There may not be a team on UConn's schedule with more history than the South Florida team visiting Rentschler Field on Saturday afternoon.

Ansonia's Arkeel Newsome is in the midst of an
impressive three-game run as a rusher, receiver
and kickoff return specialist for the Huskies

Who could forget the pure elation when Dave Teggart's 52-yard field goal with 17 seconds left was dead, solid perfect to give the Huskies the 19-16 victory, a share of the 2010 Big East title and a most improbable spot in the Fiesta Bowl. It was a day when UConn players, coaches and most of all fans could scream from the roof tops that they had arrived. The journey from solid I-AA team to BCS bowl participant was anything but an overnight one but the feeling was that this was just the start of something great.

Instead, a series of events transpired after the 48-20 loss to Oklahoma that sent the program reeling. Randy Edsall exited stage left to take the job at Maryland and the even though many of the decision makers were on the way out as well, the move was made to bring Paul Pasqualoni in to take the program to the next level. In retrospect it was the wrong man at the wrong time. Pasqualoni is one class act but also a decade removed from his last winning season as a collegiate head coach.

Fans and boosters scratched their heads at the hire and some did significantly more than that. The Huskies were actually in contention for bowl eligibility going into the 2011 season finale thanks to another win over USF but a loss to Cincinnati doomed the Huskies to a 5-7 record.

A 13-6 loss at USF in the 2012 season was the final nail in a four-game losing streak as the Huskies would once again finish with a losing season despite having five seniors taken between the third and sixth rounds in the 2013 NFL draft.

Foley Fatukasi is one of the rising stars on defense for UConn

It seems hard to fathom that USF's most recent trip to East Hartford came just two years ago and the Bulls took the field against a program in the state of disarray. UConn AD Warde Manuel had seen enough when a 41-12 loss at Buffalo, a school he used to work at, dropped the Huskies to 0-4. With an extra week to prepare for the start of the conference season, Manuel fired Pasqualoni and veteran assistant coach George DeLeone. Although the Huskies didn't give up an offensive touchdown in a 13-10 loss to USF, the feeling was UConn's program was years away from being relevant again even with the efforts of the energetic interim head coach T.J. Weist and a group of players who despite the chaos around them continued to fight the good fight. The Huskies would lose five more in a row to fall to 0-9 before ending the season with three wins a row.

Manuel aimed high and landed highly-respected Notre Dame defensive coordinator Bob Diaco.

It took a while but Diaco's impact on the program is hard to miss. The Huskies are sitting at 3-3 after a convincing 40-13 win over Central Florida. UConn lost by three at Missouri and was within four points of Navy late in the second quarter, something that would likely never have occurred a season or even two seasons ago. Then the Huskies went on the road and was tied with BYU 10-10 heading into the fourth quarter before falling by 17. Suddenly there is a sense that this team has a chance to play in a bowl - not in five years but in December.

Quirky might be the most accurate word to describe Diaco, a man who perpetually acts like he is on his 12th cup of coffee. One of the most bizarre scenes in his brief tenure with the Huskies came in last year's 17-14 loss at USF. UConn attempted to pass the ball four times in the first quarter and the results were a holding call, an intentional grounding penalty and another call for an illegal block. The other attempted pass resulted in Chandler Whitmer being sacked. USF recovered to set up the game's first touchdown.

A few months earlier Diaco was surrounded by local media at American Athletic Conference media day and said he it gave him the best chance to win he would run the ball on every single play. Everybody within ear shot laughed except Diaco. Sure enough, playing in horrendous weather and not believing his team could drop back and pass without disastrous results, he had the Huskies run the ball on every single play in the second quarter. UConn ran the ball 13 straight times. Six of the 10 passes came in the final two drives as the Huskies' valiant rally fell short.

Luke Carrezola is one of four sophomores to start on defense for UConn

Last year Diaco pressed so many young players into action and this season there have been seven sophomore starting on offense, another four on defense. The true freshman receivers are coming on and so are so many of the second-year players. First-year starter Tommy Hopkins looks like a keeper at guard, cornerback Jamar Summer is one of the team's most talented players. Linebacker Junior Joseph and pass rushers Luke Carrezola and Cole Ormsby have tremendous potential while Foley Fatukasi has a chance to become an unblockable force on the defensive line. Arkeel Newsome has emerged into an impactful player as a runner, receiver and kickoff return and tight ends Tommy Myers and Alec Bloom don't get a ton of balls thrown their way but the ones that do come usually result in a big play. NC State transfer Bryant Shirreffs has the looks of being a difference maker at quarterback, something the Huskies have lacked in recent years.

Another bizarre move by Diaco was the creation of a trophy for the self-proclaimed "rivalry" with Central Florida, which had no clue about this so-called rivalry. Diaco was the butt of plenty of one-liners on social media and in various papers around the country. However, I have to admit that after seeing the UConn team celebrating with the trophy after the victory over UCF and posing for photos with it before leaving the field that there was a method to Diaco's madness. Say what you want about this trophy and rivalry but the players bought 100 percent in and really they are the only ones who really matter.

Is this team ready to come away with the three more victories needed to receive a bowl invitation? It's hard to say but this is not a question that was even being posed either last season or two years ago.

Stay tuned because there's a chance that this young head coach has a plan that has the program moving in the right direction. A win on Saturday would be a major step in Diaco's master plan.

UConn sophomore running back Arkeel Newsome has been named the American Athletic Conference's special teams player of the week on the strength of his 71-yard kickoff return in the 40-13 win over UCF.

Newsome finished with 257 all-purpose yards which is the most for a UConn player since Jordan Todman's 317 against Cincinnati on Nov. 7, 2009.

The timing for the naming of the award is perfect because I did some research on Newsome and especially how his performance over the last three weeks matches up on a national level.

His 586 all-purpose yards rank eighth among FBS players and his 181 receiving yards is fifth among running backs over that span.


RECEIVING YARDS BY RUNNING BACKS
Jalin Marshall Ohio State    12-236-2
Taquan Mizzell, Virginia    13-230-2
Alex Gardner FIU               24-224-0
Ito Smith, S. Mississippi     16-189-0
Arkeel Newsome               11-181-1
ALL-PURPOSE YARDS OVER LAST THREE GAMES
Player            Team                 Yards  Rus-Rec-PR-KO
Tyler Ervin San Jose State       824   (533-130-2-159)
Christian McCaffrey Stanford 812   (477-86--2-251)
Leonard Fournette LSU           667   (635-32-0-0)
Royce Freeman Oregon           610   (486-124-0-0)
Ddevontae Booker Utah          600   (476-124-0-0)
Christian Kirk Texas A&M     600   (22-370-41-167)
Ezekiel Elliott Ohio State        592   (504-88-0-0)
Arkeel Newsome                     586   (221-181-0-184)

Also, the 586 all-purpose yards are the most for any UConn player since Jordan Todman's 764 against Cincinnati, Notre Dame and Syracuse back in 2009.

Quarterback Bryant Shirreffs was named to the AAC's weekly honor roll after throwing for 256 yards and a touchdown and adding 42 rushing yards and another TD.

During his record-breaking run at Ansonia, High School there was little need to throw the ball to Arkeel Newsome because he was doing such damage in the run game. However. things are a little different at the college level.

In his final two seasons at Ansonia, Newsome did not have a game with more than one reception. Last season he led all UConn running backs with 11 catches and 155 receiving yards, 74 coming on one dazzling catch and run.

That was simply a prelude to what Newsome is doing now.

Newsome has caught nine passes for 114 yards over the last two games. I did some research on this and it is the most catches for a UConn running back in consecutive games since Andre Dixon had six against Cincinnati and four against Syracuse back in 2007. Finding the last Husky RB with more receiving yards in consecutive games proved to be more challenging. Actually, I went all the way back to 1981 and couldn't find a time when that happened.

It was a subject I have raised with Newsome before. He said he spent every time this summer catching passes from the JUGs machine to get him ready for his expanding role as a receiver out of the backfield.

"I am just ready for whatever they throw at me, giving it 100 percent with whatever I do," Newsome said.

I spoke with quarterback Bryant Shirreffs and offensive coordinator Frank Verducci about Newsome's gift for grab.

"We try to give him the ball behind the line of scrimmage or really anywhere on the field and he can make some big plays," Shirreffs said. :You may think it will only go five yards and he will turn it into a first down and even more. He is a fun player to play with."

It's been an interesting situation at tailback as it has turned into an "either/or" situation. Ron Johnson had 55 carries in the first three games but just one rushing attempt in the last two games. After carrying the ball just two times against Missouri, Newsome has 27 carries to go with his nine receptions.
Both Verducci and head coach Bob Diaco said that both sophomores are key players in the running game. Newsome is clearly the better receiver and has been utilized more in the last couple of contests.

"The participation pattern, there is a little bit of a shift there but I wouldn't read into it because I feel like right now we are coming back to what I think is appropriate and that is both players getting the ball, running the ball, getting their opportunities to run the ball, let the game come to the guy that is starts to come to," Diaco said. "They both do different jobs well so as the game tilts and one of the jobs becomes more important than the other, a rep pattern could tilt. All things being equal, I believe they will both participate and the game will tilt from there."

Newsome has shown enough when given the chance that he figures to continue to be featured in the passing game as the season moves on.
"He has so many dimensions to his game," Verducci said. "He is deceptively strong besides all the obvious talent or being quick and having exceptional hands and he just loves to play football, he is very fun to coach.

"He gives you the ability sometimes to just forego protection, just throw the ball hot to him and see what he can do with it. He has long ball ability, he has screen game ability, he's got underneath ability so he lets you be as imaginative as you want."

What's interesting is that dating back to 2008 when running backs snared 52 passes, the number of catches dropped each season

2008: 52
2009: 43
2010: 38
2011: 35
2012: 33
2013: 28

Last year there was a slight increase as the backs caught 30 passes. They could make a run at the 2008 total with the way things are going.

It is not all positive, however, with the use of the running backs in the passing game. There have been issues with the running backs missing blocks or heading out on patterns instead of staying in to deal with a blitzer.

"That is an area that has really been a liability," Diaco said. "I am not trying to place blame, I blame ourselves as coaches more than anything else but that position has created a lot more of a pocket stress than the offensive line."

It is an area that has been addressed in practice on a weekly basis. With three of the four running backs being sophomores, Verducci is hoping that there will be fewer missed assignments as the backs get deeper into the season.

"It is a continual work in progress," Verducci said. "You get most running backs, most big-time backs in high school aren't really asked to do pass protection (in high school). Many of them, due to their high school training, are fairly one dimensional, they are really good with the football under their arm. The things that you traditionally have to work on are pass receiving skills and the separator as I call it is their ability to pass protect - not only to pass protect but to identify their protection. We do ask a lot of them in that area and they have had some rough spots along the way in the first half. You've like to think with the experience and the continued development, that will sort itself out as we go through.

"You see it in practice but when you get out on the field and everything is moving 10 times faster so for me I think it is more of an experience factor and I look for us to get better with it as the season moves forward."

Verducci is also determined to get the tight ends the ball more as Tommy Myers and Alec Bloom have just 12 catches between them in the first five games. Verducci said the pass blocking issues of the offensive line and running backs is not a reason for the limited number of times Myers and Bloom are being targeted in the offensive game plan.

"They are really not involved in pass protection to tell you the truth," Verducci said. "We have very few protections that require them to stay in. They are not inactive by design, I will put it that way, there have been some opportunities that we have missed when they have been open in games and I think as the season goes on, they will continue to pop up as they did the first couple of games."

Getting back to Newsome's pass catching prowess, here are some numbers to chew on. His 167 receiving yards are the ninth most for a UConn RB during the FBS era and his is only 113 behind the first-place mark of 280 set by Andre Dixon in 2007. Newsome has the two highest receiving yardage totals for a UConn RB since the Huskies began playing at the FBS level.

Here are the lists of top receiving performances by a UConn running back since the Huskies became an FBS program

50-YARD RECEIVING GAMES
Newsome 2-77 vs. Temple 9-27-2014
Newsome 4-63 vs. Brigham Young 10-2-2015Todman 3-59 vs. Rutgers 10-31-2009
Brown 4-58 vs. Cincinnati 10-25-2008
Dixon 3-55 vs. Louisville 10-19-2007
Dixon 4-52 vs. Akron 9-29-2007
McCombs 3-52 vs. Western Michigan 10-1-2011
Sherman 7-51 vs. West Virginia 11-1-2008
Dixon 6-51 vs. Cincinnati 11-10-2007
Newsome 5-51 vs. Navy 9-26-2015Sherman 3-51 vs. Rutgers 10-18-2008
McCombs 2-51 vs. North Carolina State 9-8-2012

8 OR MORE RECEPTIONS IN CONSECUTIVE GAMES
10 Andre Dixon Cincinnati (6), Syracuse (4) 2007
9 Arkeel Newsome Navy (5), BYU (4) 20158 Lyle McCombs Towson (5), Maryland (3) 2014
8 Anthony Sherman West Virginia (7), Syracuse (1) 2008
8 Terry Caulley Temple (3), Vanderbilt (5)

RECEIVING YARDS IN SEASON280 Andre Dixon 2007
270 Anthony Sherman 2008
231 Cornell Brockington 2004
230 Lyle McCombs 2012
205 Terry Caulley 2002
185 Jordan Todman 2009
176 Terry Caulley 2005
172 Lyle McCombs 2011
167 Arkeel Newsome 2015
155 Arkeel Newsome 2014

At the first practice the media was allowed to watch during preseason camp one of the first things I noticed was true freshman Tyraiq Beals already seeing some first-team reps in only the sixth practice. While the UConn coaches are wisely protecting the redshirt seasons for some of the other true freshmen who quickly worked their way into the two-deep rotation (offensive tackle Matt Peart, defensive lineman David Ryslik are at the top of the list), there has been no such strategy with Beals.

After catching three passes in each of the last two games, Beals saved his best effort - to date - for Saturday's game against Navy. Beals was targeted eight times (counting the 15-yard screen pass on the opening drive that was credited as a running play although it certainly looked like a forward pass when I watched a replay of the game).

Beals finished with a team-high six catches for 63 yards including a 39-yard touchdown reception, the first of his career. When the 15-yard "run" is added, he grabbed seven of the eight passes thrown his way and the lone exception was a pass a few yards away from him which he had no chance of even getting a finger on.

Just out of curiosity I did some checking and he is the first true freshman to lead UConn in catches in a game since Terence Jeffers and Brad Kanuch were among four players with a team-high two catches in 21-7 win over Army on Oct. 14, 2006. I have to do some more research to see where he fits nationally since Beals just misses being listed among the NCAA's leaders but it looks like he is 11th is catches per game for true freshmen at the FBS level and tied for eighth in overall catches. Taking it one step further, since 2002 no UConn true freshman has more catches or receiving yards through the first four games than Beals.

Here is the list
Player            POS Year      Season     1st 4 games
Terry Caulley RB 2002       25-205-1     9-59-0
Jason Williams WR 2002    23-354-3     9-104-1
Brandon Young WR 2002   22-269-3     6-53-1
Terence Jeffers WR 2006    17-200-2     1-2-0
Brian Lemelle WR 2013      16-177-2     0-0-0
Brandon McLean WR 2004 14-132-2     2-16-0
Brad Kanuch WR 2006       13-288-1      2-68-0
Tyraiq Beals WR 2015        13-132-1  13-132-1Dhameer Bradley WR 2013 13-119-1     2-6-0
Michael Smith WR 2008      12-137-0    5-49-0
Arkeel Newsome RB 2014   11-155-2    2-14-0
Beals was among the players requested to come in for interviews after the Navy game. However, since Bob Diaco's arrival, getting to talk to true freshmen is a hit or miss proposition with more misses than hits. It is kind of like Christmas morning but instead of seeing presents under the tree, you see a true freshman coming in to meet with the media. It happened last season a couple of times with Arkeel Newsome and Ron Johnson and figure at some point we will get to talk to Beals but I'm not sure exactly when that is going to be.

The good news is the others had no problems talking about Beals. There was plenty to talk about especially when he caught a touchdown on the same drive that he was absolutely lit up by Navy LB Daniel Gonzalez.

"He is a talented player and a tough guy," Diaco said. "He is everything you would want him to be as a youngster. He has to get bigger, stronger and faster."

Here's what Newsome, who was targeted a team-high 11 times, said about Beals.

"I was so happy for him. He has a really bright future, he is a really talented kid," Newsome said. "It is not all talent because he is working (hard)."

For those wondering, here is what I came up with for targeted passes (including the Beals "run" and two plays wiped out due to penalty

Arkeel Newsome     11 targets (5 catches for 51 yards)
Noel Thomas             9 targets (5 catches for 78 yards and almost came down with the pass on a flea flicker on first series)
Tyraiq Beals              8 targets (6 catches for 63 yards, TD; 1 run for 15 yards with screen)
Tommy Myers          2 targets  (1 catch for 6 yards, TD)
Alec Bloom              1 target    (1 catch for 11 yards)
Hergy Mayala           1 target    (catch wiped out due to a holding penalty)
Aaron McLean          1 target  (1 catch for 10 yards)
Thomas Lucas           1 target  (no catches)
Max DeLorenzo        1 target (no catches)

During their high school careers Arkeel Newsome and Matt Walsh, playing for two of Connecticut’s most storied programs, won a combined five state titles. When it came time to head to college, they both landed at a UConn program where wins have been somewhat harder to come by.

When Walsh was piling up nearly 300 tackles in his final two seasons at Hand High in Madison, he was hoping to follow in the footsteps of players like Danny Lansanah, Alfred Fincher, Sio Moore and Yawin Smallwood as a linebacker in the middle of the UConn defense. Newsome, who set pretty much every state record for rushing yards and touchdown scoring, wanted to be the player asked to add some punch to an offensive-challenged UConn program.

On Saturday afternoon, those dreams came true in the Huskies’ 22-17 win over Army.

Walsh, who played regularly as a fullback in his first two seasons, was inserted into the starting lineup for the first time since he was switched over to his natural linebacker position. Walsh had four tackles, including one tackle for loss and drew an illegal block in the back penalty as UConn opened the season with two straight wins for the first time since the 2008 season.

“I wasn’t anxious or nervous because I got a lot of playing time last week against Villanova so that kind of helped me settle in, get more comfortable playing linebacker at this level,” Walsh said. “We were very prepared, we knew everything. Coach (Bob) Diaco, Coach (Anthony) Poindexter, Coach (Vincent) Brown did a great job of preparing us.

“Every week you prepare like a starter, when you get your chance you don’t treat it any different. It is the same thing as people always say that practice makes perfect, obviously we were far from perfect, the more practice we got, the more looks we got from them then we were able to figure them out a little bit more.”

Diaco made it clear that Walsh starting ahead of two-time team captain and 2014 leading tackler Marquise Vann was simply a case of putting together a personnel grouping best suited to deal with Army’s triple-option offense and not a sign that Vann lost his job to Walsh.

“It is never like a competition of who is starting,” Walsh said. “It was just what was going to work best against that team and it was to pair Junior (Joseph) and Marquise on the inside and me on the outside.”

Speaking of inside/outside pairings, the feeling was that the bruising Ron Johnson would handle most of the running duties between the tackles while the electrifying Newsome would be used out in the open space.

However, after Army had pulled within five points with 4:51 to play, it was Newsome who was sent onto the field to help UConn try to run out the clock. Three physical runs accounted for 22 yards and a first down. He was a little slow getting up on the final carry so he was replaced by Johnson. While Johnson was stuffed on a 3rd and 1 play, the fact is that Newsome found himself trusted with the ball with the game on the line which is something that didn’t happen often as a freshman especially after he had some fumbling issues during his true freshman season.

“It means a lot, we came a long way because last year I don’t think they would have (given him carries in crunch time),” Newsome said after rushing for a team-high 73 yards. “It is a great feeling that they trusted me to hold onto it.

“It definitely boosted my confidence a lot.”

Newsome has three career receiving touchdowns at UConn including one in a season-opening victory over Villanova but his 10-yard touchdown run in the second quarter was his first as a Husky as he followed blocks by guard Tommy Hopkins and tight end Tommy Myers and wriggled away from Army’s Alex Aukerman, who grabbed Newsome’s jersey around the 5.

“It was great,” said Newsome, who ran for a state record 172 touchdowns in four seasons at Ansonia High. “I just kept striving and kept the mindset that I was going to get in the end zone.”

I just finished watching a replay of last night's game because you always see things a little differently than you do on game night. Now it is time to break down what went right and what did not.


THE GOOD
The sophomore trio of Foley Fatukasi, Luke Carrezola and Junior Joseph have a chance to be scary good by the time they are there. Heck, they might already be there. I would have to think Villanova quarterback John Robertson was seeing images of Carrezola when he went to sleep last night, Carrezola was only credited with six tackles but he was constantly applying pressure. It was Carrezola who did just enough to force Robertson into the throw which was intercepted by Andrew Adams/ Fatukasi had two of the team's four sacks and two tackles for loss. He was simply too much for the Villanova line to handle. Joseph didn't get as much attention as the game was going on but when he hits you, the play is over.

Ron Johnson displayed quickness, vision and power for UConn

Tight ends were not a featured part of the passing game in the two scrimmages I saw and it was good to see Tommy Myers and Alec Bloom targeted as much as they were. The combined for 99 yards on three catches and could have had six catches between them.

I wrote earlier in this blog how much quicker Ron Johnson looks and it was on display against Villanova. He was cutting quickly and with purpose but also displayed pure power. I had him forcing four missed tackles in the first half and I wish I had charted his yards after contact because it would have been a pretty impressive number. His final numbers (23 carries for 69 yards) might not blow anybody away but don't forget a 24-yard run wiped out by a needless hold by left tackle Richard Levy.

If Bryant Shirreffs was rusty while playing his first game since 2013, it didn't show. He finished 12 of 20 for 202 yards with two touchdowns and an interception. He was victimized by two sure drops, made a great throw down the sideline to Noel Thomas that was just a matter of an inch or so from being a huge play and while his throw to Myers late in the first half wasn't great, it was merely bad luck what it resulted in an interception. Shirreffs was tentative a couple of times on runs but that part of his game figures to improve. I thought they forgot to look in the direction of Noel Thomas for long stretches which is something the Villanova team was probably very thankful for.

THE BAD
Villanova had six tackles for loss and by my count, four of them were a result of simply not blocking the defender. Most of these came from the left side where there seemed to be communication issues with Levy, the tight ends and running backs. This is easily fixed and I would think it will be addressed this week in practice. It was encouraging that the interior of the line featuring first-time starters Tommy Hopkins and Brendan Vechery seemed to hold up pretty well. Also, senior guard Tyler Samra wasn't too noticeable on the tape which is usually a good thing for an interior offensive lineman.

Six offensive touches for Arkeel Newsome is simply not acceptable. He needs to get his hands on the ball more and his 27-yard dash to the end zone with a screen pass made that abundantly clear. What was interested in watching the tape is that he ran to the sideline right before that play thinking he was being taken out. Instead, Max DeLorenzo came to the sidelines and Newsome came up with one of the best plays in the game.

The holding penalties on veteran tackles Levy (wiping out Johnson's best run) and Andreas Knappe (resulting in a safety when he was called for holding Trumbull's Don Cherry in the end zone) were lazy plays. They were in position to make the blocks but instead reached out and grabbed jerseys. The 15-yard penalties against Fatukasi and Johnson was a case of young, enthusiastic players getting carried away. I am sure it will be a point of emphasis as their passion and skill make them key players on this UConn team but they will learn when it is time to line up for the next play.

THE UGLY
 With the exception of the third quarter, UConn's defense on third down was just dreadful. There was a stretch where Villanova converted five first downs on seven third-down plays. Here's the breakdown

3rd and 6: 7 yards
3rd and 2: 2 yards
3rd and 21: 22 yards
3rd and 9: 10 yards
3rd and 6: 13 yards and a touchdown

Villanova averaged 7.2 yards on third down plays and 3.5 on all the other plays. The Huskies did such a great job putting themselves in position to get off the field only to throw it away with poor execution on third down.

By my count UConn missed 10 tackles. Now five of those came against the slippery John Robertson but still, that is a concern. It is the season opener and it is the first time they could hit with no restrictions but with Army and its vaunted option offense up next, this needs to be cleaned up.

In closing, UConn has to feel pretty good about how things went especially with 11 of the 22 starters being sophomores including seven first-time starters. I am sure there are some out there saying what's the big deal about an FBS team beating an FCS team especially at home. The fact is that a year ago UConn would not have won that game and two years they didn't emerge victorious in a similar situation as Towson posted a 33-18 win. Villanova is not your ordinary FCS team even with the loss key players on the both sides of the game. For a program needing positive results to build off, what took place last night was a nice way to get things started.

Guard Tyler Samra could be UConn's only senior starter on offense

A new season, a new offensive coordinator and plenty of optimism that this is the season when not turning the ball over can be considered a successful possession.

As I begin my fourth season on the beat, the story lines surrounding the UConn football team haven't really changed. Frank Verducci is the fourth offensive coordinator in the last four seasons (five if you count the time when Shane Day called the plays after T.J. Weist became the interim head coach).

Bryant Shirreffs will be the third different quarterback to start a UConn season opener in the last three seasons and there are people, myself included, curious to see how he is going to perform. For the record, I liked what I saw in the two scrimmages and two practices I attended in preseason camp more than what I witnessed during spring practice. He can make all the throws, has looked pretty good throwing the deep sideline out which is the one throw I always look for in judging a quarterback's arm strength. He doesn't seem to be as much of a riverboat gambler as Chandler Whitmer. Whitmer's aggressive mindset resulted in some tough throws into tight windows but also costly interceptions. I don't think Shirreffs will make as many risky throws as Whitmer did. He also gives UConn a true pass-run threat at the quarterback position which is something that has been lacking.

That is not the only question I have regarding the offense. I think UConn is in pretty good shape at offensive tackle with Richard Levy and Andreas Knappe returning for their second season as starters. However, the interior offensive line positions, that is a different story. UConn fans have to hope that the season-ending injury suffered by Ryan Crozier doesn't become a popular story angle because that would mean that first-year starters Brendan Vechery and Tommy Hopkins were struggling. It was hard to get an accurate read on how they are playing because going up against UConn's defensive line is going to be a tough task for anybody this season.

Noel Thomas enters his junior season as UConn's top receiver

My other major concern is who emerges as a secondary receiving option. Noel Thomas is primed for a special season. In my opinion he's been UConn's best player in camp. He has caught everything and I do mean everything thrown in his direction. He had enough highlight variety catches in the last scrimmage I was at as some players get in an entire season. However, teams are going to make it a point of taking Thomas away so it will be imperative that somebody else steps up. It would not surprise me in the least if true freshman Tyraiq Beals ends up being that guy. I also anticipate tailback Arkeel Newsome and the tight end position (likely Alec Bloom and Chris Lee)  to be targeted often.

While their offensive philosophies are different, I see a lot of T.J. Weist in new offensive coordinator Frank Verducci. He's an energetic, tell it like it is kind of guy and when the assistant coaches are made available to the media, he is usually either the first or last guy I seek out. He was the last person I spoke to during UConn's media day and he gave me some great stuff about the growth of the offense since a less than stellar showing in the first scrimmage of preseason camp.

Here's what he had to say.

"I like how we have progressed in the last week," Verducci said. "(The second scrimmage) was a giant step for us, it was more situation specific, red zone and stuff like that. We were pleased with the progress. Even since then I think we have made another jump.

Arkeel Newsome led UConn in all-purpose yardage as a freshman

"One of the things that is hard to develop is a sense of self expectation standards. I think our standards have risen, our expectation of how we practice, how efficient we are and all that kind of thing and that has jumped up. The greatest thing is that we have kept the players healthy and in doing so, they have had a chance to improve and I think they have done that."

Every indication is that sophomores Ron Johnson and Newsome will handle the bulk of the carries although I expect to see senior Max DeLorenzo seeing time as well likely at a variety of positions.

"What we have to be careful with Ron is we have to understand that he is still a young player," Verducci said. "In a lot of programs he would have been a redshirt and he would just be playing, he would be getting his first exposure right. A lot of times he would be getting exposure behind an upperclassmen where he shot to the front of the line here for whatever reason. The thing as a coach that I have to be aware of is that he is a young player, he does lack experience in certain areas. Just because he is the No. 1 guy, we still think his ceiling is still very high and we are trying to continue to develop him as he is contributing which is a bit of a challenge.

"Arkeel is very deceiving. For a guy as slight in stature as he is, he is as physical of a player that we have pound for pound he really is a physical player."

About the offensive line ...

"I think the greatest asset we have there is Mike Cummings because he's doing a tremendous job of building them as a group, developing them individually so I have all the confidence in the world there," Verducci said. "As a former line coach myself, I sit there and watch what Mike does and he does a sensational job. The players absolutely respond to him and I am confident with where we are headed even with the lack of experience there, we are just going to continue to get better."

Some of his quotes on Shirreffs made the story I filed on Sunday when Shirreffs was named the starting quarterback but in case you missed it, here you go.

"I love Bryant Shirreffs," Verducci said. I think his teammates will say that he is one of if not the hardest working guy on the team,

"Bryant Shirreffs is a guy that every minute you invest with him, you get a return, he is a joy to work with."

Finally, depending on what happens with DeLorenzo, guard Tyler Samra could be the only senior starter on offense so I was curious if Verducci was concerned about a lack of veteran leadership.

"The team is led irregardless of class," Verducci said. "Some of our best leaders are sophomores and juniors on the offensive side of the ball and I think you will always see that in a program is geared towards developing leadership at all levels regardless of seniority."

Verducci mentioned tackles Levy and Knappe and guard Samra among the players taking leadership roles on offense.

Tomorrow night we'll get the first look at how this offense is going to look and get the answers to some of the questions posted above.

It took all of five games during Arkeel Newsome's freshman season at UConn to do one of the few things he did not accomplish during his final two seasons during a record-shattering career at Ansonia High School.

It was in a 36-10 home loss to Temple that Newsome caught a pair of passes including one resulting in a scintillating 74-yard touchdown. He caught three more passes in the next game (a 12-3 loss to Tulane).

Newsome caught a total of seven passes as a junior and senior with the Chargers and never more than one in a game. In his three seasons as the Chargers' featured back Newsome caught a total of 12 passes. He nearly matched that total as a freshman at UConn as his 11 receptions were the most for any running back for the Huskies during the 2014 season. Realizing that his pass-catching duties could be a major part of UConn's offense this season resulted in Newsome paying extra attention to that part of his skill set during the offseason.

"Now I am (catching passes) a lot," Newsome said. "I am working on the catching with the JUGS machine and also that focus on the ball when it is coming at me.

"I am just ready for whatever they throw at me, giving it 100 percent with whatever I do."
Newsome was named as a co-starter at tailback along with fellow sophomore Ron Johnson. UConn coach Bob Diaco didn't feel like it was appropriate to name one of the two backs over the other one because they will both be featured prominently in the offense.

Beginning on Thursday night when Villanova comes to Rentschler Field, we will get the first look at how both Newsome and Johnson will be utilized under first-year offensive coordinator Frank Verducci said.

The scrimmage stretched from the late morning to the early afternoon on a balmy Thursday at Rentschler Field but Max DeLorenzo's work was far from being finished.

While his five carries only netted 11 yards, the lone senior running back on the UConn squad had a chance to display another aspect of his game when he floated down the near sideline. Bryant Shirreffs' pass was just a tad on the high side and a little behind him when DeLorenzo reached up and snared the ball for the most impressive reception by somebody not named Noel Thomas. The 12-yard catch got the drive going in the right direction and could be a sign of things to come.

DeLorenzo has caught a total of 14 passes in three seasons at UConn but it is a part of his game that is has a lot of confidence in.

"That is one of my strengths. In (Berlin) high school I was good with my hands, came into high school with good hands but now I am finally getting utilized as a receiver, in the slot and I love it," DeLorenzo said. "I love being versatile and consistent with everything I do whether that is fullback, tailback, slot, wideout or whatever."

At the first practice the media was allowed in to watch, offensive coordinator and running backs coach Frank Verducci could be heard saying to DeLorenzo "I've never seen you catch the ball better."

If that is what it takes for DeLorenzo to get on the field, that is fine with him. A year ago DeLorenzo had a bit of a bizarre season. He led the team with 57 rushing attempts in the first five games of the season. Then he had just 13 carries over the next six games as true freshmen Ron Johnson and Arkeel Newsome became featured backs. Then in a season-ending loss to SMU he ran for a season-high 66 yards aided by a 46-yard touchdown scamper.

Johnson and Newsome are both back and looking more confident as well as quicker so it would seem likely they will once again be key cogs in the running game. Josh Marriner, also heading into his sophomore season, is another young runner with plenty of promise. DeLorenzo knows the deal and he is ready to embrace any role the coaches have for him.

"It comes to the point where we have so much talent especially us four at tailback and we are all going to have a role," DeLorenzo said. "Some games I may get less than five carries, some games I might get 15 plus you never know. It is just what the coaches want, how the rhythm of the game is going and who is hot."

So what has DeLorenzo seen in his younger tailbacks?

"Mental growth and maturity," DeLorenzo said. "They are all obviously talented and not knowing the game, the defenses too much last year and they are starting to pick it up. You can see the blitzes that are coming, see holes, set up blocks so as long as they keep going like that, they will be great."

Tyler Samra is one of two returning offensive linemen to start
all 12 games at UConn during 2014 season

The exact timeline is a little fuzzy to Mike Cummings.

At some point during his first season on the UConn football coaching staff all the weeks felt like all the other ones. So just when Cummings, who was hired to be the offensive coordinator and work with the tight ends, began taking on more of a hands' on approach with the struggling offensive line escapes him.

"Some of it is a blur for me but I would say it was around week four," Cummings said.
The timing would make sense. The fourth game of the season was the nightmare at South Florida when the Huskies abandoned the passing game for a significant portion of the game because the coaching staff didn't want to risk more costly turnovers.

Once the season began the practices were not open to the media which is nothing new as it was the same way when Paul Pasqualoni was the Huskies' head coach. The result is I didn't fully understand how involved Cummings was in the improved play of the offensive line until the season was over.
UConn coach Bob Diaco did want to use the fact that Cummings was being pulled in a few different ways as an excuse. But when the season came to an end, it was clear he was going to make some changes on the offensive side of the ball. Mike Foley, who coached the offensive line from 2006-10 when future NFL running backs Jordan Todman and Donald Brown were among the nation's most productive tailbacks. When Pasqualoni was hired, he brought in George DeLeone to work with the offensive line and Foley moved over to work with the tight ends during the 2011 and 2012 seasons and started the 2013 season in the same capacity. When Pasqualoni and DeLeone were fired after an 0-4 start, Foley returned to work with the offensive line. He was the only coach retained by Diaco before deciding that something had to be done.

When the dust settled none of the remaining offensive assistants had the same responsibilities. Nobody was more impacted than Cummings who returned to his speciality of coaching the offensive line. While he is still listed as co-offensive coordinator, veteran NFL assistant coach Frank Verducci was brought in to be the offensive coordinator and call the plays.

In retrospect Cummings admitted the time be devoted on fixing the leaky offensive line probably hurt his performance as a play caller.

"I spent all the individual time with the line," Cummings said. "The division was doing position, individual (work) with the offensive line and then I spent time with the team in the other (practice periods).

"It is difficult when you spend so much time coaching five guys that it feels like it is a different world. It if difficult because you are focused and locked in on a particular portion of the offense that when you step out into the big picture, you kind of go back to that part of the offense which is a huge part of the offense."

The results were hard to overlook.

UConn did not allow a sack in three of the last four games and the running game was more productive as well. After the East Carolina game UConn had one game with at least 160 rushing yards in the last 31 contests. The Huskies accomplished the feat three times in the last five games with the 249 yards against SMU is the most since a Nov. 11, 2010 game against Pittsburgh.

"That was huge," Cummings said. "That does mean a lot. If you coach the position, you are motivated by players getting better. You are not motivated by notoriety, obviously you want to win the games and that is primary but seeing players get better and develop skill wise, emotionally, socially those are big deals."

Cummings said he is 100 percent all in with his new role. I'm sure seeing somebody else call the plays must have stung Cummings a little but he certainly said all the right things about Verducci's arrival and his changing role.

"Frank is very detailed," Cummings said. "I think he has a very good vision and plan and I think it is a shared vision. I enjoy working with him, he really likes collaborative efforts with the staff which is big. He lets the position coaches have ownership."

As for the players he will be working with, Richard Levy and Tyler Samra started every game at left tackle and right guard respectively. Andreas Knappe likely would have started every game at right tackle if not for a leg injury he suffered late in preseason camp. He started the last seven games while true freshman Ryan Crozier was the starting left guard for the final three games. UConn did lose Alex Mateas, the starter at center in all 12 games, and Gus Cruz, who got the start at left guard for the first nine games. Those were the only losses on the offensive line. Trey Rutherford, Thomas Hopkins, Kyle Bockeloh and Gifford lead the list of the other linemen who got game experience a season ago. Obviously the biggest question facing the offensive line is who is going to earn the starting center job. Daniel Oak, who redshirted last season, drew plenty of praise for his work in practice. He figures to push Bockeloh for the job. Cummings couldn't say enough good things about Oak, who added 13 pounds since the end of last season and is now listed at 278.

"Dan Oak made a lot of progress," Cummings said. "He is a smart player, he is very tough. While he didn't get the game experience, we felt it was best to redshirt him because we could. He is a player that we are expecting a lot from him. We were able to put him in (practice) and he was able to battle with our defense as a next man in, not as a scout team or look team (center) and he was very aggressive. He did a good job, not a great job but a good job against our nose men which in our league are very difficult to block."

Another player of interest is Shelton's Steve Hashemi, who was moved to tight end and saw time on special teams as a true freshman. With so many tight ends as part of the incoming freshman class, Hashemi can move back to the offensive line which is what he was recruited to play.

"He has a lot of upside and he is going to develop," Cummings said. "He is only 270 pounds. I say only 270 but he's going to weight 300 and some pounds. He is a good big athlete who could step in and be able to do the job we asked him to do. Now we've got somebody for that job so we will bring him back and put him in the position we really wanted him in."

Obviously true freshmen Crozier and Rutherford were seeing time throughout the season and the Huskies had inexperienced starters at the tackle position. It is only natural that there were some growing pains.

"There is a frustration part of it that you know they are going to be really good but they are not there yet so you had to pull it back and make sure what you teach them is to the smallest common denominator so they can successful," said Cummings, who helped turn Eric Fisher from lightly-regarded prospect to become the No. 1 overall pick in the 2013 NFL Draft during his four years coaching the offensive line at Central Michigan. "As they get older it is really fun because they have the building blocks and experience. It is not a guy who is in his third year and hasn't played, it is a little different."

It also helps that the offensive linemen continue to bulk up led by the tackle duo of Levy and Knappe.
"They are pushers, shovers, mushers were everybody else is a runner," Cummings said. "They are totally trained for that, that has been a big improvement for Andreas, he has been through the battles."

NEWSOME, JOHNSON READY FOR AN ENCORESpeaking of young players getting a baptism under fire, there wasn't much time for tailbacks Ron Johnson and Arkeel Newsome to act like the true freshmen that they were a season ago. With Max DeLorenzo the only experienced tailback on last year's team, Johnson, Newsome and redshirt freshman Josh Marriner were thrown right into the mix from the opening game.
That experience should serve the young running backs well this season.

"He is a guy that is obviously very explosive so we tried to find ways to get him the ball," said UConn assistant coach David Corley, who coached the running backs last season. "We got the ball in his hands and a couple of times he was able to make some big plays happen. It is a natural maturation process. In your first year of college there are so many distractions that are happening, things are moving faster on the field then they were in high school. I think he was able to settle himself. I think he is better prepared now  what is expected from him, what is necessary and I think he is looking forward to these 15 days of spring practice and find a way to get better every day.

"They had no choice but to grow up. You come out high school, you are used to a certain speed of the game, a certain size of the opponents. Now you are in college and you are playing against grown me who are 21/22 years old. I think those guys definitely, it was a process and it didn't happen overnight but I think they learned and they grew up quite a bit in those 12 games last year."