| Scouting Report: ND vs UConn | ||||
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 Notre Dame hosts Connecticut this week in the first ever meeting of these two teams. The teams are scheduled to meet again, in South Bend, in 2011. Television coverage is by NBC and begins at 2:30 ET.The Huskies have lost some tough games in reaching a 4-5 record, five by a total of 15 points, and the last three in a row by 10 total points. They will not let down and they will fight to the end. A win over Notre Dame validates a season, and to some extent their program. Every college football fan is aware of the tragedy that befell the Husky program with the stabbing death of starting cornerback Jasper Howard the night of the Husky’s victory over Louisville. It’s been an emotional season for the school, the coaches, the supporting staff, and the players. Some tough losses have followed, but as a team the Huskies have played tough and often inspired football. Before the tragedy the Huskies were 4-2 with wins over Ohio, Baylor, Rhode Island, and Louisville. The two losses were heartbreakers in a two point loss to North Carolina, a game where they lost their starting quarterback, and on the road to Pitt where they lost by three points after having a fifteen point lead late in the game. Since the tragedy the Huskies are winless, losing three consecutive games for a record of 4-5. Those losses involved losing to West Virginia on a Noel Devine 56 yard run under three minutes, losing to Rutgers after going ahead by three with 38 seconds left only to give up an 81 yard catch and run to lose, and pushing Cincinnati to the limit by rallying from 30-10 before falling 47-45. All of UConn’s losses have come at the hands of opponent’s whose combined record is 40-9, a winning percentage of 81%. Three of their losses have been to opponents who are currently ranked in the Coach’s Poll top twenty-five. The other two opponents with wins over the Huskies are close enough to enter the top twenty-five with wins this week. Two of those opponents are ranked in the top ten and the point differential of those two games is five points. The UConn head coach is Randy Edsall who has a career record of 62-63 in his eleventh year at Connecticut. Edsall’s coaching resume includes working as defensive coordinator for George O’Leary at Georgia Tech, as a defensive back coach under Tom Coughlin at Boston College and with the Jacksonville Jaguars, and at his alma mater, Syracuse, in a variety of coaching roles. Connecticut is coming off an off week so they’ve had two weeks to prepare for Notre Dame. Resentment exists among many Husky fans that the Irish refuse going to play in Connecticut’s Rentschler Field which only seats 40,000. Many Husky fans also see a win over Notre Dame, even a 6-4 Irish squad, as a signature win for the Connecticut program. Notre Dame-Connecticut Ties Lou Holtz was a Connecticut assistant coach from 1964-65. During that first year as a Husky assistant Lou’s wife, Beth Holtz, gave birth to a son, Louis Leo (Skip) Holtz, Jr. Skip, the head coach at East Carolina, was the Husky’s head coach from 1994 to 1998 when Connecticut competed in Division 1-AA. Former Irish recruit, quarterback Zack Frazier plays for the Huskies. Frazier never played for the Irish and transferred to Connecticut sitting out in 2007. CONNECTICUT OFFENSE QB, #10, Zach Frazier, 6-4, 225, RS junior, 5 starts TB, #23, Jordan Todman, 5-9, 189, sophomore, 5 starts TB, #2, Andre Dixon, 6-1, 202, RS senior, 12 starts FB, #49, Anthony Sherman, 5-11, 230, junior, 18 starts WR, #29, Marcus Easely, 6-2, 216, senior, 7 starts WR, #3, Brad Kanuch, 6-1, 192, senior, 34 starts WR, #83, Isiah Moore, 6-1, 185, RS sophomore, 4 starts TE, #94, Ryan Griffin, 6-6, 240, RS freshman, 6 starts RT, #79, Mike Hicks, 6-6, 323, RS senior, 44 starts RG, #78, Zach Hurd, 6-7, 315, RS junior, 22 starts C, #57, Muhammed (Moe) Petrus, 6-2, 288, RS sophomore, 22 starts LG, #60, Eric Kuraczea, 6-2, 333, RS freshman, 4 starts LT, #71, Mike Ryan, 6-5, 324, RS sophomore, 5 starts The Husky offense is ranked 38th, two places below Pittsburgh, averaging 408 total yards per game. The rushing game for UConn ranks 45th averaging 168 yards per game. The Husky passing game is 39th with 241 yards per game. In the Red Zone UConn is ranked 35th scoring on 29 of 34 trips inside the twenty. The Huskies have scored 24 touchdowns out of their 29 scores which break down into19 rushing touchdowns and 5 passing touchdowns. The Huskies have 4 field goals down close. The Huskies are primarily a running team and if you put them in green and white you’d think they were Michigan State. Power running off tackle with a pulling guard and fullback blocking at the point of attack is their forte along with the stretch play. Former Irish recruit, Zach Frazier, will make his fourth start as Connecticut’s quarterback this season and the sixth of his career. Frazier’s 2009 season began as the starter in the Huskies’ first two games before falling to a head injury against North Carolina in game two. Frazier sat out the next two games, but by the time he had healed he had fallen to second on the depth chart behind Cody Endres. Endres subsequently went down for the season against Rutgers elevating Frazier back to QB one. Frazier’s statistics are 62-121-7, 51%, for 203 yards per game. Frazier has thrown 4 touchdown passes. Frazier is coming off a good game against number five ranked Cincinnati. Frazier was 19 of 32 for 261 yards, 1 touchdown and no interceptions. The Husky running game is the two headed monster hard running by Jordan Todman and Andre Dixon. With nearly the exact number of carries each brings something different to the mix of the Husky running attack. Between them they have rushed for 1598 yards and 19 touchdowns. The Todman-Dixon tandem has also caught 25 passes for a 10.2 average and 1 touchdown. Todman is the slippery speedster who averages 5.2 yards per carry for his 826 yards rushing. He has 12 touchdowns rushing with a longest run of 58 yards. He’s also caught 16 passes for a 10.1 average with a longest reception of 41 yards. Todman took over the entire load against Cincinnati having a career number of carries and running tougher than he’d shown before and really grinding out the tough yards after contact. Dixon has normally been the more physical runner, the tackle to tackle type, who averages 4.6 yards per rush, has totaled 744 yards, has a longest run of 32 yards, and has scored 7 touchdowns. He has caught 9 passes for 10.3 yards per catch, 1 touchdown, and a longest reception of 27 yards. Dixon was injured against Cincinnati, possibly a knee, and didn’t play much. Dixon is the better pass blocker of the two tailbacks. Fullback, Anthony Sherman, is a blocker who has 1 carry all year for 3 yards and that was from the tailback position to spell Todman due to Dixon’s injury in the Cincinnati game. His backup also has only one carry on the year. As a tandem they have 8 receptions for a 5.9 yard average. Marcus Easley, a former walk-on, is the big gun at receiver for UConn. He leads the Huskies in receptions with 26 for 21.5 yards per catch, 5 touchdowns, and a longest reception of 88 yards. In the last four games he has caught 22 of his season total of 26 passes. He has the speed to blow by a corner and torched Pitt for a 79 yarder in that manner. The second leading receiver is veteran Brad Kanuch, 24 receptions, 12.3 yard average, and 1 touchdown. Good routes, good hands, and a possession type of receiver. The third leading receiver is Isiah Moore, 19 receptions for a 13.0 average, no touchdowns, and a longest reception of 29 yards. Kashif Moore has 15 receptions for an 18.6 average per reception, 1 touchdown, and a longest of 67 yards. Moore is the fastest man on the Husky squad. The tight end, Ryan Griffin has risen to fourth on the receiving stat sheet with 17 receptions for a 12.4 average, no touchdowns, and a longest reception of 28 yards. The UConn offensive line is huge. The average weight is 317 pounds, and that average is pulled down by a 288 pound center. Watching them zone block the outside zone play reminds one of a moving wall. They are at their best at an off tackle power running game, pulling a guard and having him and the fullback lead into the point of attack. They have the capability to pound a defense and wear them down. TRICK PLAYS Jordon Todman has thrown at least once pass this year, a halfback option. Todman does an excellent job selling the sweep and only changing his grip on the ball at the last split second to get of a good pass. The one I saw was completed to Easley who was lined up in a tight split and ran a drag across the formation to the same side that Todman was running the sweep look. There are 6 other passes and who threw them unaccounted for in the UConn stat sheet. Kashif Moore and Easley have run a total of 3 reverses for an average of 6.6 yards per attempt. Two weeks to prepare might mean something new that hasn’t appeared on tape for the Irish to study. CONNECTICUT SPECIAL TEAMS The Huskies’ punter is Desi Cullen, a semi-finalist for the Ray guy Award, who averages 43.8 yards per punt. Cullen’s 43 punts have yielded 7 touchbacks, 9 fair catches, and 18 inside the twenty. His longest punt is 61 yards. Cullen’s punting has enabled the Huskies to hold their opposition to 4.78 yards per return with no touchdowns. The Husky punt returner is #42, Robert McClain, is tied for 6th nationally with a 15 yard per return average and one touchdown, an 87 yarder against Cincinnati. McCain does an excellent job getting the first man to miss. Cullen does double duty as the kicker on the Husky kickoff team. On 50 kickoffs he averages 65.3 yards per kick with 7 touchbacks and 2 out of bounds. His kickoff coverage teammates are ranked 110th nationally allowing nearly 25 yards per return and 2 touchdowns. Both kickoff returns for touchdowns occurred on the opening kickoffs to Rutgers and West Virginia in back to back weeks. UConn kickoffs were most often returned by special team’s whiz Robbie Frey who had 21 returns, a 29.5 yard average, and 1 touchdown. Fortunately for the Irish Frey is out for the year. Tailback Jordan Todman is now the main man with 11 returns, a 20.6 yard average, and no touchdowns. Place kicker, Dave Teggart has made 9 of 16 field goals, with a longest of 47 yards and 1 blocked attempt. He is 1-1 inside the twenty, 0-2 from the 20 to the 29, 6 of 7 from the 30 to the 39, and 2 of 6 from the 40 to the 49. He’s not made an attempt from 50 or more yards. He’s also 32 of 32 on extra points. CONNECTICUT DEFENSE DE, #9, Lindsey Witten, 6-5, 260, senior, 17 starts DE, #91, Jesse Joseph, 6-3, 238, freshman, 9 starts DT, #99, Kendall Reyes, 6-4, 286, RS sophomore, 12 starts78uij,m DT, #4 Twyon Martin, 6-2, 271, RS sophomore, 17 starts SLB, #32, Scott Lutrus, 6-3, 244, junior, 31 starts MLB, #95, Greg Lloyd, 6-2, 245, junior, 18 starts WLB, #8 Lawrence Wilson, 6-1, 220, RS junior, 33 starts CB, #5, BlidiWreh-Wilson, 6-0, 180, RS, freshman, 4 starts CB, #42, Robert McCain, 5-9, 198, senior, 14 starts S, #33, Robert Vaughn, 6-0, 200, senior, 36 starts S, #15, Jerome Junior, 6-1, 212, RS freshman, 8 starts The Husky’s total defense ranks 68th nationally allowing opponents 366 yards per game. Their rushing defense is 52nd allowing 134 yards per game. Their passing defense rank is 76th allowing 232 yards per game. The Huskies permit an average of nearly 24 points a game. UConn is 51st in Red Zone defense allowing 21 scores on the 26 drives inside their twenty. Those scores break down into 9 rushing and 4 passing touchdowns. Eight field goals make up the balance. The Huskies have 23 sacks, 7 fumble recoveries, and 11 interceptions. The Huskies have yielded 12 touchdowns rushing and 12 touchdowns passing. “…susceptibility to the big play,…poor tackling; missed assignments and a lack of a consistent pass rush.” Sounds familiar, but the author, Desmond Connor of The Hartford Courant, was writing about the Huskies. The Huskies have been plagued all year by the same problems the Irish have exhibited. Defensive Line The leading defensive lineman is Lindsey Witten who is tied for second nationally with 10.5 sacks in his 30 tackles. Yet against Pittsburgh, West Virginia, and Cincinnati he has a total of 1 sack. Despite his ability to get his hands in good position on his opponent he was handled by Pitt’s tackles. His counterpart, Jesse Joseph, has 1.5 sacks on the season but leads the team with 3 quarterback hurries. The starting defensive tackles, Kendall Reyes and Twyon Martin, have 4 sacks between them. Linebackers The strongside/Husky linebaker has been in a state of flux all season with Scott Lutrus in and out of the lineup and has seen three players start in that position. Lutrus has had stinger problems all season long. The position has 49 tackles, 4.5 for losses, and 1 sack. Wilson has 97 tackles, 55 solos, from his weakside linebacker position with 9 tackles for losses and 3 sacks. Wilson pursues better than the other linebackers. Reads bubble screens and screens well and attacks both. Lloyd, the son of five time Steeler Pro Bowler, Greg Lloyd, wears his father’s number and hits like his father head on, but doesn’t posses the speed of his father. Proof of Lloyd’s power was exhibited when Lloyd met Pitt’s fullback, 260 pound Henry Hynoski, straight on in the hole with a stand him up tackle. Not a great pass defender Lloyd steps up to defensive tackle in the nickel. Lloyd has 80 tackles, 47 solos, 3 for losses, and 1 sack. Secondary The Husky secondary has given up 12 touchdown passes, an average of 1.3 per game. Notre Dame has 23 passing touchdowns, an average of 2.5 per game UConn’s best corner is Robert McClain who is fourth in tackles with 42, 32 solos, 3 for losses, 4 interceptions, and 1 sack. Their leading safety is Robert Vaughn who has 43 tackles, 20 solos, 2 for losses, and 4 interceptions. KEYS OF THE GAME Stop the big play. Fifty yard plays killed the Irish against Pittsburgh. Pitt’s Lewis had a 50 yard run, his backup, Graham, had a run for 53 yards, and Baldwin had a 51 yard reception. Those three plays accounted for two touchdowns and a field goal and heavily contributed to the Irish loss. Connecticut is capable of big plays from the tailback and wide receiver positions as well. Zach Frazier versus the Irish secondary. Obviously Frazier will be highly motivated and pumped up coming back to Notre Dame, having a chance to beat the Irish, and possibly besting Jimmy Clausen. I’m sure the Irish secondary has seen enough film to know when Frazier misses it’s often high and have that filed away. Connecticut won’t quit, so the Irish better buckle up for 60 minutes. Down 30 to 10 at the half against Cincinnati the Huskies lost 45-47. A win over Notre Dame makes a season of sorrow and unmet expectations more palatable. Stopping the Husky running game. The Huskies don’t have a receiving corps to rival Pitt’s receiving corps in ability or experience and Frazier isn’t Bill Stull either. Make the Huskies win on Frazier’s arm. Notre Dame’s rushing attack versus the Husky defense. Notre Dame needs to take a page out of Pitt’s game plan versus UConn. Pitt never gave up on their game plan to run against the Husky defense, a defense that had been giving up only 2.3 yards on first down up to the Pitt game. Pitt ran for 221 yards, came back from a deficit, and in truth wouldn’t have had such a hard time had Stull not thrown a pick six and missed two touchdown passes in the first half. Pitt’s play action passes were beautiful except for Stull’s execution in the first half of that game. Jimmy Clausen won’t make the same mistakes. There are a lot of similarities with these two teams. The closeness of statistics in scoring offense, scoring defense, third down conversions made and third down conversions stopped to name a few. Then again there are major differences. Notre Dame has better talent. Connecticut has played a much tougher schedule. Connecticut has the seventh rated strength of schedule according to the NCAA records while Notre Dame has the 70th ranked strength of schedule. So because of the similarities, because of the differences, because of the schedules, because of Senior Day, and because of the seasons had by both teams I pick the Irish in another down to the wire game. |