Media Coverage

Television: ACC Network - (pxp) Chris Cotter (analyst) Mark Herzlich (sideline) Coley Harvey

Radio: UConn Sports Network from Learfield Flagship Station -  Fox Sports 97-9 FM (Hartford) - (pxp) Bob Joyce (color) Ben Darnell (sideline) Adam Giardino

Affiliates - WAVZ 1300 AM (New Haven), WGCH 1490 AM (Greenwich), WILI 1400 AM/95.3FM, (Willimantic);  WICH 1310 AM/94.5 FM (Norwich)

Online: The Varsity Network App

Live Stats: UConn.Statbroadcast.com

UConn Game Notes  Syracuse Game Notes

Quick Hits

The UConn Huskies return to action off a bye week to travel up to Syracuse University to face the Orange at the JMA Wireless Dome on Saturday afternoon.  Kick-off is slated for 12 noon on the ACC Network.

Saturday's match-up is the 13th in the all-time series between the Orange and the Huskies.  The series is tied at 6-6 with Syracuse winning the last four meetings.  UConn won six of the first eight meetings including a stretch of five-straight.  UConn is 2-4 at Syracuse with the last win coming in 2010 (23-6). The Huskies are 0-2 against teams from the ACC this season with a loss at Duke and a home loss to Wake Forest. UConn's last win against the ACC came over Boston College in the 2022 season. 

Prior to the bye week, the Huskies went on the road for the first time since September 14 and came away with a 31-23 comeback win at UAB. UConn found themselves down 20-3 at the half and outscored the Blazers 28-3 in the second half including 21 fourth quarter points. The 17-point comeback tied the biggest comeback in school history, matching a 2003 win over Western Michigan where the Huskies trailed 17-0 in the second quarter only to go on and win 41-27.

The Huskies earned their seventh win of the season with the victory at UAB and improved to 7-3 on the season, guaranteeing the program's first winning season since the 2010 campaign. Seven wins is also the most since the 2010 season when UConn finished 8-5.  It is also marks the fastest to seven wins since the 2008 season.  If the Huskies can grab win number eight, it would tie for the fourth most wins in program history, accomplished 10 times.  During the program's FBS era (2002), UConn has won eight games six times and nine games twice.

Last Meeting vs. Syracuse... Sept. 10, 2022 -- Syracuse 48 - UConn 14 -- East Hartford, CT

Syracuse junior quarterback Garrett Shrader threw for 287 yards and three touchdowns and ran two more in to lead the Orange past the UConn Huskies, 48-14, at Pratt & Whitney Stadium at Rentschler Field. The Syracuse signal caller finished the night completing 20-of-23 passes with touchdown throws of 47, 18 and 39 yards in the win. SU running back Sean Tucker carried it 27 times for 112 yards and a score. UConn was held to 187 of total offense in the loss, just 92 through the air and 10 first downs.  Sophomore running back Nathan Carter led the Huskies with 71 yards rushing on 16 carries. Freshman quarterback Zion Turner completed 14-of-17 throws for 92 yards and a score, a 56-yard hook-up with sophomore Aaron Turner in the third quarter, his first career touchdown catch. Syracuse scored on all five of their possessions in the first half, held the ball for 20:05 and outgained the Huskies 309-105 in building a 27-7 lead at the half. Syracuse finished with 465 total yards of offense and 29 first downs.

Scouting the Orange... The Syracuse Orange come into Saturday's game at 7-3 and fresh off a trip to the west coast where they came away with a 33-25 win at Cal last weekend.  The Orange are 4-1 at home in the JMA Wireless Dome this season as they play their final two games of the season on their home turf.  The Syracuse offense boasts the third-best passing attack in the nation led by quarterback Kyle McCord. The Orange average 350.7 yards while averaging 31.8 points per game.  Offensively, the Orange hold the ball an average of 33:49 per game, fourth in the country.  McCord is ranked second in passing yards (3,476), passing yards per game (347.8) and seventh in passing TDs (24). Trebor Pena leads the receiving corps with 71 catches for 736 yards and five scores. He is averaging 10.4 yards per catch. Defensively, linebacker Justin Barron is the team's top-tackler with 75 stops, 7.0 for a loss including 2.0 sacks. Defensive lineman Fadil Diggs leads the team with 5.5 sacks on the year.

UConn vs. the ACC... The Huskies are 7-27 all-time against the ACC.  UConn has three games against teams from the conference this season with losses at Duke and at home to Wake Forest. The Huskies went 0-3 against the league last season with home loses to NC State and Duke and a loss at Boston College. Their last win against the conference came in 2022, a home win over BC. UConn is 2-2 against Duke, 2-2 against Virginia and 1-3 against Wake Forrest.  The Huskies are 1-4 against Boston College since the Eagles joined the league in 2005 and 0-3 vs. Syracuse since the Orange jumped to the ACC in 2013.  UConn has also faced Clemson (0-1), Georgia Tech (0-3), North Carolina (0-3) and NC State (0-4). The Huskies were 1-3 against Maryland when the Terrapins were a member of the conference through 2014.  The Huskies have also faced Louisville, Miami, Pitt, SMU and Virginia Tech in their history but prior to those teams joining the ACC.  The Huskies have never faced Cal, Florida State or Stanford.

Offensive Notes from UAB... The Huskies outscored UAB 28-3 in the second half to complete a 17-point comeback for the win. UConn scored 21 fourth quarter points, their highest offensive output in the fourth since scoring 21 in the win over Florida Atlantic...Quarterback Joe Fagnano came in for injured started Nick Evers in the second half and completed five passes but two went for touchdowns in the fourth quarter. Fagnano hit Shamar Porter on a fourth-and-goal try for a six-yard score, pulling UConn within 23-17 with 8:45 left. After a UAB turnover on the next series, Fagnano threw a 21-yard scoring strike to Jasaiah Gathings just 17 seconds later to give the Huskies their first lead of the game and one they wouldn't relinquish...Running back Cam Edwards ran for a team-high 82 yards on 11 carries including a 48-yard fourth quarter touchdown run that put UConn up 31-23 with 2:39 left. It was the longest run of Edwards career. He has five rushing touchdowns this season, six overall...Fellow back Durrell Robinson had 59 yards rushing and his team leading seventh touchdown of the season...UConn converted seven-of-15 on third down (46.7), their second best percentage this season and best since converting 50.0 percent (5-10) against FAU.

Defensive Notes from UAB... For the second-straight week, UConn won the turnover battle, getting a pair of fumble recoveries and a pair of interceptions. The Huskies turned two fourth quarter UAB turnovers in to 14 points to fuel their comeback win. UConn held the Blazers to just three second half points as well, including a scoreless fourth quarter where they forced a pair of turnover on downs...Senior linebacker Tui Faumuina-Brown made six tackles and had a career-high 2.5 sacks in the win...Fellow linebacker Jayden McDonald turned in 12 tackles, eight solo, to mark his fourth game this season with double digit tackles...Senior safety Malik Dixon-Williams turned in seven tackles and got his team-leading third interception. It was his second-straight game with a pick and third in the last five games. He now has six career interceptions...R-freshman corner Cam Chadwick also got an interception in the win, his second of the season. He added a career-best six tackles to his game totals.

Special Teams Notes from UAB... Place kicker Chris Freeman made one-of-two field goal attempts in the win, converting on a first quarter 26-yarder. It was Freeman's 15th make of the season, the most field goals in a season by a UConn kicker since the 2015 campaign when Bobby Puyol made 16 of 18. He raised his total to 83 points on the season to continue leading the team. All six of Freeman's kick-offs went for touchbacks, raising his total to 39 on the season...Punter Conor Stutz punted five times in the win, averaging 48.6 yards per punt with a long of 51 yards, giving him 12 punts this season of 50-plus yards.

Another Match-Up with the Orange... The UConn and Syracuse football programs have amended their previous agreement to add an additional game during the 2028 season it was announced last week. The two schools have agree to add a game during the 2028 season with the Huskies heading up to Syracuse on November 11, 2028. UConn and Syracuse will face-off this Saturday and are scheduled to meet again at Syracuse next season on September 6, 2025. UConn is scheduled to host the Orange at Pratt & Whitney Stadium at Rentschler Field on October 3, 2026 and November 6, 2027.

Lundt Earns His Reese's Senior Bowl Invite... UConn offensive tackle Chase Lundt has received an invitation to participate in this year's Reese's Senior Bowl on February, 1 in Mobile, Alabama. Lundt is the 18th Husky in program history to earn an invite to the prestigious all-star game. Last season, UConn offensive lineman Christian Haynes and defense end Eric Watts participated. Lundt, who was named to the preseason watch lists for both the Senior Bowl and the East-West Shrine Bowl, has been a fixture on the UConn offensive line during all four of his seasons in Storrs.  He has made 46 starts, missing just one game during his Husky career.  The UConn line has put together another strong season in 2024, helping lead a rushing attack that ranks 23rd in the nation in yards per game at 200.3 yards per game. In the passing game, the Huskies protect the quarterback to the tune of allowing just 1.10 sacks per game, ranked 17th among the nation's leaders.

The Reese's Senior Bowl is widely regarded as the preeminent college football all-star game and the first stage in the NFL Draft process. The longest continual-running all-star game has taken place in Mobile, Alabama the past 75 years.  More than 900 NFL personnel, including key decision-makers from all 32 teams, and over 1100 media members from around the country were credentialed this year. This past April, the game produced 110 total picks, representing 43 percent of the entire NFL draft.

Home Cooking... The Huskies closed out a six-game home stretch beating Georgia State to finish 6-1 at home at Pratt & Whitney Stadium at Rentschler Field this season. Their 6-1 mark is the team's most home wins since a 6-0 2010 campaign.  Since playing at The Rent in 2003, this is the ninth time the Huskies have played seven home games. UConn was 7-0 in 2007 and 6-1 in 2004 and 2024. The UConn offense dominated in their seven home games, scoring 258 points, the most in their history in the stadium, while averaging 36.9 ppg, second only to the 2010 season when they averaged 38.5 ppg in six games.

Defensive Turnaround... The UConn defensive unit, under first year defensive coordinator Matt Brock, has improved over last year's performance in just about every major category heading into the final week's of the regular season.  The Huskies are allowing 21.3 points per game, down from 29.8 per game last fall. UConn's defense has been among the best on third down this season, ranking ninth nationally at .297 percent. In 2023, that number stood at .429 percent.  The UConn run defense is allowing 137.2 yards per game, down from 149.7 a year ago, and against the pass, the Huskies are allowing 200.9 yards per game, down from 258.8 in 2023. UConn ranks 18th in the nation in passing efficiency defense (126.51). UConn ranks 42nd in total defense, allowing 338.1 yards per game, better that the 408.5 yards allowed last fall.

Offensive Production Trending Up... Under the direction of rist year offensive coordinator Gordon Sammis, the Huskies have been equally impressive on the offensive side from a year ago. UConn is averaging 31.7 points per game, 37th nationally, up from 19.1 last season. The Huskies have scored 317 points through 10 games, marking the most points scored since the 2008 season, with two games to play. The last time a UConn offense average 30 or more points a game was in 2009 (31.2).The rushing attack is back to 2022 form (191.0) and averaging 200.3 yards per game, up from 136.6 last season. The UConn running game ranks 21st in the nation.  The Huskies are averaging 402.2 yards of total offense a game, up from 326.9 last year and at pace for the most since 2017 (415.2 ypg). UConn continues to excel at protecting the quarterback, ranking 15th nationally in sacks allowed (1.10 pg).

Husky Rankings... Defensively, linebackers Tui Faumuina-Brown and Jayden McDonald rank 27th (8.7) and 43rd (8.2) in tackles per game. Safety Malik Dixon-Williams is 29th with three interceptions.... The rushing game with back Durell Robinson ranking 79th in rush yards (645) and 84th in yards per game (64.5). Fellow back Cam Edwards is 77th averaging 5.12 yards per carry...On special teams, the Huskies are 8th in kick-off returns at 25.91 per return. Kicker Chris Freeman ranks 24th in field goals per game (1.50), 29th in total points (83), and 31st in scoring (8.3). Punter Connor Stutz is 34th with a 43.3 punting average.