According to UConn head coach Jim Mora, home-field advantage exists in college football, whether research shows it or not.
In August, he urged fans to come out to Rentschler Field by saying “Players feed off the energy of the crowd; coaches feed off the energy of the crowd. People that tell you they don’t pay attention to the crowd are lying to you. Because we do. We feel it. We feed off of it. It makes a difference to us.”
That home-crowd difference has shown on the scoreboard in each of the Huskies’ first two games this season. In both games, one play could be pointed to that resulted in a major shift of momentum for the team that went on to win.
First, after the Huskies stunned the Utah State crowd with a 14-0 opening quarter, Nate Carter’s fumble at the beginning of the second brought the white sea of fans to life. Silent and still on the wrong end of an upset watch, the 19,553 Utah State fans made a quick return to the choreographed dances and rousing cheers the 2021 Mountain West Conference champs were used to.
Concurrently, the Aggies scored 24-straight points and secured control of that game heading into halftime. UConn got within four in the fourth quarter, but the fans stayed into it and dissipated feelings of an upset never reemerged.
On Saturday against Central Connecticut, UConn was able to take advantage of its own crowd.
The announced crowd of 22,442 assembled for their first chance to witness Mora’s “Husky Revolution” up close.
The Huskies’ momentum, bolstered by the significance of the game being Mora’s first at Rentschler Field, was slow to pick up as UConn held a 7-3 lead over the FCS opponent at halftime. Opening the second half with the ball, CCSU drove down the field, finding itself with a first-and-goal opportunity from the UConn 2-yard line.
The UConn defense knew it needed a momentum-shifting play. Dal’mont Gourdine burst through the offensive line and tackled Romelo Williams for a 9-yard sack. CCSU settled for a field goal attempt that clanked off the left upright and the Huskies scored 21-straight to win the game, 28-3.
Mora doubled down on his urge for fan support following the home-opener, promoting Saturday night’s game against Syracuse saying: “I don’t know why anyone wouldn’t want to be in the Rent on (Saturday).”
Backup QB Millen’s role in the UConn offense: For the second straight game, UConn used multiple quarterbacks. Redshirt-sophomore Cale Millen came into the Utah State game and gained 23 yards on a run play. Against Central, Millen filtered into the game and again ran the ball (two times for 9 yards). One passing play was run for Millen, but with no receivers open he threw the ball away.
After the game, Mora said he will continue using Millen at certain points in games throughout the season. Mora noted that while Millen is gaining confidence as he works back from shoulder discomfort, offensive coordinator Nick Charlton is gaining confidence in him running the ball as well as throwing it. Charlton said Wednesday: “You want to use your best players. I don’t love the idea of playing multiple quarterbacks all throughout and switching them in and out and things like that. To me, we’ve always had packages to get our best players on the field.”
Millen, who signed with Oregon out of high school and later transferred to FCS Northern Arizona, is the son of former NFL quarterback Hugh Millen. His brother, Clay, is the starting QB at Colorado State.
Mora letting the defense loose: After the opening loss at Utah State, Mora said he felt like he “handcuffed” his pass rushers, limiting their ability to “tee-off.” So, against CCSU, that game plan changed and three UConn defensive linemen (Gourdine, Collin McCarthy and Sokoya McDuffie) recorded a sack.
“We brought more pressures,” Mora said. “We felt like we had a little bit of a tip on their protection tendencies. But really it was just our men up front and the coverage down the field, making them hold the ball. I felt like the pressure was pretty relentless, and I credit Kenny (McClendon, defensive line coach) and those guys up front, just the way they put the plan together this week.”
Gourdine, whose sack was arguably the defensive play of the game, said, “We were disappointed with the way we played (against Utah State), so we knew what we had to come do it today to make a statement.”
Avenging previous misfortune: The 28-3 final score against CCSU marked the widest margin of victory for the Huskies since they beat UCF 40-13 in 2015. It is also the first time UConn has had a positive point differential after two games since the 2015 season when it opened with wins over Villanova and Army. UConn lost 38-28 to FCS Holy Cross in its 2021 home opener and head coach Randy Edsall announced his retirement shortly after. Saturday’s win over CCSU was the first time the Huskies beat an FCS opponent by more than seven points since 2012.
Next opponent, Syracuse, dominates Louisville to open season: Since the start of the 2021 season, star running back Sean Tucker has been the face of the Orange. He continued that in the team’s season-opener Saturday with 183 total yards, 98 on the ground, and two touchdowns. Syracuse defeated ACC foe Louisville, 31-7. Quarterback Garrett Shrader also proved himself a force as he completed 18 of 25 passes for 237 yards and a pair of scores. He also ran the ball 16 times for 95 yards and a touchdown. Syracuse’s multipronged offensive attack will challenge the Huskies in Game 3.
