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

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

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

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

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



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

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

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

Starting defensive lineman Folorunso Fatukasi, tight end Tommy Myers and quarterback Bryant Shirreffs, reserve offensive lineman Kyle Schafenacker and Will Rishell, who is competing to become UConn's starting kicker, are among 952 players honored by the National Football Foundation for having already earned their degrees before their final college football season.

Fatukasi, who has started 23 career games and enters his senior season with 125 tackles and 10 sacks, was named to the preseason watch lists for the Outland Trophy, Nagurski Trophy and Wuerffel Trophy.

Myers has 27 career receptions and has been used mostly as a blocker especially during the 2016 season.

Shirreffs ranks in the top 10 in UConn history in career passing attempts, completions and yards as well as being 83 yards shy of becoming the fifth Husky with at least 5,000 yards of total offense.

Schafenacker appeared in nine games during the 2016 season while Rishell is a former walk-on who is competing with Michael Tarbutt to be the No. 1 kicker following the graduation of Bobby Puyol.

The season-ending ankle injury and subsequent rehabilitation process has not been the best of times for UConn tight end Tommy Myers. However, it is not the first time he has dealt with serious injury or incredible pain.

After Wednesday's spring practice Myers took a trip down memory lane to that time when he broke his jaw and caused plenty of damage to his teeth and mouth during an AAU game in between his sophomore and junior high school seasons.

"Two days after I got my braces off, I went to block a shot and a guy's elbow came down on my face and popped it out,' Myers said. "This one (tooth) right here is dead but it is not fake. It was dangling on my tongue and my dad told me to just push it back up. It actually turned out to be a good thing and they said 'you are going to need stitches too.' I said 'thank you.'

:You play sports and you have to expect injuries to happen, you have to be able to put it behind you."

Myers actually found a silver lining when he suffered the jaw injury.

"That was a process," Myers said. "Thankfully I didn't have to get my jaw wired shut because it was my top jaw."

Myers is back practicing without restriction. In Wednesday's practice his most memorable moment might have come when he teamed with redshirt freshman left tackle Matt Peart to seal the edge so tailback Ron Johnson could scamper untouched down the sideline.

Myers' true value to the UConn offense might have been best illustrated by the number of players pressed into duty to try to replace him following his injury. The UConn coaches used tailbacks (Max DeLorenzo and Josh Marriner), a quarterback (Garrett Anderson), offensive linemen (Steve Hashemi and Trey Rutherford) to try to make up for Myers' loss.

The toughest time for Myers might have come during preparations for the St. Petersburg Bowl. While he was thrilled that the Huskies were able to not only make it to a bowl game but have the additional practices but there was also times when his inability to play made for some frustrating moments.

"It is nice to watch but it sucks to be watching because you just want to be in there and it is how it was," Myers said. "I just wanted to play."

I also spoke to fellow tight end Alec Bloom and will have more on the tight ends leading into Saturday's spring game.

It has been a relatively quiet year in the injury department for the Huskies. Obviously, offensive lineman Ryan Crozier being lost for season before camp even started was a major loss so was losing defensive end Cole Ormsby for the season. Now comes another big blow as sophomore tight end Tommy Myers suffered a season-ending ankle injury in last week's win over Houston.

UConn coach Bob Diaco confirmed during his weekly press conference that Myers would miss this week's game at Temple as well as the bowl game.

"It will require that amount of time that he won't be able to play this weekend or be ready for a bowl game but shortly after that he will be full speed. I'd be shocked if he is not fully participating in winter conditioning."

Myers importance to the offense is deeper than his 16 receptions or 232 receiving yards would indicate. Myers delivered key blocks on many of Arkeel Newsome's most explosive runs and he could be missed more as a blocker than as a receiver.

"It is going to be committee kind of how it looked (when Myers was injured in the first quarter throwing a block on a Newsome run)," Diaco said. "There is not any other way to do it right now. The F position has been a conversation all year. Tommy, bless his heart, was fantastic. In terms of jobs, that is a huge loss because of what he did. It was a shock to everybody that he would continue to be able to do this more, more and more. He did the jobs of so many people and now we are going to have all hands on deck. Select a tool when you need a tool."

On the depth chart true freshman Chris Lee was listed as a starter followed by classmate Zordan Holman. Diaco made it clear it was not simply going to be a case of plugging Lee in at Myers' position.

"He is a big skill athlete but he does a lot of power jobs, that in-line tight end looks a whole lot like a power player and it is very hard for a true freshman to be in that role as a power player," Diaco said. "We can get him involved at some moments but not all of the moments and he is still going to need a little bit of protection."

Myers' teammates will miss having him out on the field.

"He is very good at both blocking and catching passes," UConn junior receiver Noel Thomas said. "His strength is the biggest thing we are going to miss. Chris Lee is going to do a good job."

Diaco said quarterback Bryant Shirreffs, knocked out of the Houston game after a helmet to helmet hit, is day to day.

"He was feeling much better on Sunday than he was Saturday night and better on Monday than he was on Sunday," Diaco said. "He'll be out with the offense today but the amount of exertion is to be determined but I would expect him to be very minimal (in practice) today."

While Diaco wouldn't say it, my opinion is that it will be the Tim Boyle show on Saturday but time will tell.

Finally, Diaco wasn't optimistic about having receiver/punt returner Brian Lemelle on Saturday.

"I always hope to have him back because he is doing such a good job for us," Diaco said. "I think that is going to be a stretch. We are still working day to day. We would never even come close to putting somebody in harm's way for any reason at all. Although he might be cleared to do more, if he really can't function and perform at a high level to give himself great success, we would never ask him to do the jobs."

CONEY OPENING SOME EYES
Some walk-ons can play four years without putting themselves in position to see snaps during the games. Well, former Naugatuck High receiver Bryan Coney is clearly not your average walk-on.

I've noticed that he's been getting second-team reps in practice and when Diaco mentioned the young receivers stepping up and maturing, Coney's name came up right after scholarship receivers Tyraiq Beals, Hergy Mayala, Aaron McLean and Frank Battle.

"He is a walk-on player here, he was one of the most prolific players in the state," Diaco said. "He has had a tremendous year, made an impact on the team, he is on the "look" team because he is a redshirted player. He will be a player next year who if continues to develop the way he has been developing, he will have some role for sure whether it is on the four running teams, he will play a role on the team next year. A big, tough, smart guy who loves playing football."

Thomas is also very impressed by what he has seen from Coney.

"He is always eager to learn. from when camp started until now, he has definitely gotten better and he helps the defense out a lot on the "look" team so I could definitely see him having a role," Thomas said

"No matter what he always has a smile on his face, he stays positive and encouraging and he will make plays."

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.

It seems like a lifetime ago since the Bob Diaco era at UConn kicked off with a 35-10 loss to Brigham Young.

One aspect of that game that caught my attention was how often the tight ends were involved in the passing game as Sean McQuillan, Tommy Myers and Alec Bloom were targeted a total of nine times resulting in six catches. Through the first three games of the season UConn quarterbacks threw passes in the direction of the tight ends 15 times resulting in 10 completions. However, UConn also gave up 15 sacks and 29 tackles for loss.

With little other choice, the UConn coaching staff used the tight ends primarily as blockers as they were targeted on pass plays just five times in the next four games. However, considering how well the offensive line played against East Carolina, the coaches decided to reintroduce the tight ends into the passing equation once again.

According to the play by play, tight ends were targeted five times and the results were a season-high four catches for McQuillan and the first catch for Myers since the season opener.

"The offensive line has been great, progressing each and every week and the tight ends can be a little more involved in the passing game and don't have to stay in quite as much," McQuillan said. "It is nice to be versatile, get back to those things and get back to running some more routes than we have in the past.

"It is all about getting the win and whether that means I have to block on 90 percent of the plays or run routes 90 percent of the time, it doesn't matter, it is all about the game plan and what is going to help us win."

UConn gave up 24 sacks in the first six games of the season and countless other times the quarterbacks were able to avoid the pass rush to either get back to the line of scrimmage or get a yard or two. In the last two games there were just three sacks surrendered and most of the runs by the quarterbacks were of the designed variety.

"I think things are starting to click," senior center Alex Mateas said. Nothing really big has changed, they are starting to work and the coaches are doing a great job."

Left tackle Richard Levy believes having one game in 25 days gave the line a chance to tighten up some things.

"During the bye weeks we had a lot of (coaching) of what we are going to do and we put those bye weeks into action,' Levy said. "It is a great feeling because it shows how much we have matured."

Casey Cochran was one of 13 state products to play in UConn's opener

As I mentioned in the days leading up to Friday's season opener, there was going to be a chance for local products to shine at Rentschler Field.

I went back through the online box scores dating back to 2006 to see how many Connecticut players took part in the season opener. I would have gone back further but the 2005 box did not include a player participation list and this is just the third time that at least 10 Connecticut natives played in the Huskies' opener as 10 players saw snaps in 2008 and 2006. 

According to the participation chart, 13 Connecticut players got into the game

Here is the breakdown

DT Kenton Adeyemi (Wethersfield): Had three tackles

QB Casey Cochran (Monroe): Started and was 17 of 31 passing for 171 yards with an interception

TB Max DeLorenzo (Berlin): Started and finished with a team-high 38 rushing yards

DB Chris DeBerry (Torrington): Saw time on special teams

CB Byron Jones (New Britain): Started and had five tackles

DL Sean Marinan (Higganum): Saw time on special teams

TE Sean McQuillan (Glastonbury): Started and had 33 yards on three receptions

TE Tommy Myers (Coventry): Had a three-yard catch

TB Arkeel Newsome (Ansonia): Ran three times for 10 yards, caught an 18-yard pass and had 49 yards on kickoff returns

LB/DE Cole Ormsby (Windsor): Had a solo tackle

LB Graham Stewart (Durham): Started, tied for the team lead with 11 tackles and forced a fumble

WR Noel Thomas (Norwalk): Had two catches for 18 yards and made a special-teams tackle

FB Matt Walsh (Madison): Saw time at fullback and the field goal, extra point, kickoff return, punt return and punt coverage teams as he recorded one tackle.

Former St. Luke's star Noel Thomas is one of 11 Connecticut natives
on UConn football team's two-deep chart which was released on Thursday

A quick look at UConn's two-deep chart and there are no lack of local boy makes good stories out there.

The emergence of Casey Cochran as the No. 1 quarterback, Max DeLorenzo as potentially being the top running option, Sean McQuillan the top guy at tight end, Graham Stewart primed for a big season at linebacker and Byron Jones being named as a team captain and emerging as an NFL prospect at cornerback have been reported on in the past and they will continue to dominate the headlines. However, there are some other state natives flying a bit under the radar.

Defensively, Windsor's Cole Ormsby is pushing for quality playing time at the hybrid outside linebacker/defensive end position. Ormsby learned his lessons well a season ago when he knew he was going to be redshirted.

"I worked as hard as I could and tried to be ready," Ormsby said. "I am ready for anything and whatever the team needs me to do.

"I am excited because I want to prove to everybody that I can do it. I am way more prepared with the new coaching staff,"

Well, he is ready to go now. While UConn coach Bob Diaco said Ormsby has the flexibility to be an asset either on the outside or inside, Ormsby said he has worked almost exclusively on the outside.

Moving over to the offense, tight end Tommy Myers has been a fixture at UConn sporting events as long as he can remember since his father Norman played for the UConn football team in the early 1980s and his mother Peggy was one of the stars of Hall of Fame Geno Auriemma's first women's basketball teams at UConn.

Like Ormsby, Myers was redshirted a season ago but is now No. 2 at tight end.

If there is such a thing as a player born to play football at UConn, Myers could certainly fit the bill.

"I remember coming to these games when they were at Memorial Stadium and just always wanted to play UConn football and it feels natural," Myers said. "I kind of fell into the position of tight end because growing up I always wanted to play quarterback or receiver like everybody does but I think I fell into the tight end spot just by size and ability."

He displayed some of that ability in the spring game when he one of four players to catch at least four passes. Noel Thomas was also on the list of prolific pass catches in the game. As a freshman he was best known as a gunner on the punt coverage teams as he displayed a knack for downing Cole Wagner punts inside the 5.

Diaco said Thomas has made tremendous growth as a player and a person in the last several months and he has put himself into the rotation at receiver.

"I just want to help the team win and anything I can do in a positive way," Thomas said.

So what has Thomas been doing to get ready for his sophomore season?

"I've been running a lot, working out with Coach (Matt) Balis (UConn's strength and conditioning coach, he is an amazing guy, and I just want to make sure I catch everything that is thrown to me."

There are 11 state natives on UConn's two deep chart while others like Tim Boyle, Arkeel Newsome, Steve Hashemi aren't on the two-deep but could see action this season. Here is the list of Nutmeg State natives on the depth chart

Kenton Adeyemi (Wethersfield), No. 2 defensive tackle
Chase Briley (Hartford), No. 2 kicker and No. 2 punter
Casey Cochran (Monroe), starting quarterback
Max DeLorenzo (Berlin), starting tailback
Byron Jones (New Britain), starting cornerback
Cole Ormsby (Windsor), No. 2 defensive end
Sean McQuillan (Glastonbury), starting tight end
Tommy Myers (Coventry), No. 2 tight end
Graham Stewart (Durham), starting linebacker
Noel Thomas (Norwalk), Co-No. 2 receiver
Matt Walsh (Madison), No. 2 fullback