Former UConn Player Sounds Off

[CAHUSKY]

Just so you know, I'm not Vin...he was quite a bit ahead of me at UConn. Can't say he doesn't have some legitimate points, though. The current logo and the current helmets ARE awful, a point I really think most people agree with now that they've actually seen them, and the University did in fact throw away 20+ years of brand value, not to mention 75 years of tradition in replacing the old one with a piece of crap that looks like it was downloaded from freeclipart.com and colorized by an orangutan with a slight case of the shakes. I generally agree with his rather jaundiced view of Manuel, though for different reasons. On the other hand, Pasqualoni was just the wrong guy for the job. Bad match from day 1. There was nothing to be gained for anyone by keeping him and his firing was handled with about as much class as could be expected. For how not to do it, see USC. For what its worth, I didn't think he should have been kept on this year, so Vin and I are on different pages there too.

Im more convinced you are Vin after reading this post

 

[Nostical]

The current logo and the current helmets ARE awful, a point I really think most people agree with now that they've actually seen them

Sorry, I LOVE the new logo and don't mind the helmets. The old logo looks.....old and wrong.

 

[FfldCntyFan]

When Vin was in high school, he had to walk to school through two feet of snow, even in summer.

And get off his lawn, you lousy kids.

You forgot uphill, both ways......

 

[DarthGrumpy]

There are wonderful high school coaches. Coaches that coach for the right reason and positively impact kid's lives.......and there are high school coaches that have their egos so firmly meshed into what they do to even begin to realize what their responsibilities really should be.

As a coach myself, albeit the U8 crowd, parents are worse when it comes to ego's on the field.

 

[WestHartHusk]

how anyone is still longing for the old logo is beyond me. i would actually be embarrassed to walk into a recruits house and hand him a t-shirt with that thing on it. the new logo looks phenomenal on apparel, tv, next to a recruits name and on the field/court.

 

[DarthGrumpy]

But they called for Warde to be fired for refusing to fire PP. This guy wants him fired for what was his best 48 hours as an AD (including the presser).

UConn was 1AA in my day, and that was fine. It was old time "pure" college football. So a few thousand went to games, and nobody travelled anywhere but the Yale bowl (and then never left the parking lot). UConn has grown beyond that. It's not a sleepy little university in the boonies of CT that nobody has ever heard of. Basketball and now academics, put us on the national map. We're in a new ballgame, and it is rougher, uglier and less civil. PP may have been a nice guy and was once a decent college coach, but he's from a prior era and wasn't able to succeed in this one. I didn't see anything classless about the way he was let go. If there is an opening in the Patriot league, he'd be a great choice.

I have found memories of the Yale Bowl as a UConn student, at least I think I do.

It is true about UConn's image. I remember telling some folks I was going to the University of Connecticut and they would ask if I meant Connecticut College. I quickly discovered that the perception of UConn was a lot strong elsewhere, especially Northern New England, upstate NY and Long Island, all of which have 'weaker' state universities.

Basketball started UConn's image change and that was followed by the initial campus investment in UConn 2000 and then the football team.

 

[kjk9183]

Another old Yankee unwilling to accept change. Why is this even on a newspaper blog.

 

[Skiblets]

"but rather the unprofessional, unsupportive and thoughtless manner by which the Administration of the University of Connecticut handled this matter. I owe this much to the existing football staff at UCONN, the high school football coaches in the state of Connecticut and my teammates while at UCONN." Ummmmmm self inflated view of yourself. You're not that important

"Rock stars by nature love the limelight; I’m afraid that’s exactly what we have, a rock star and not a leader" - please back that up with facts please. We've all been critical of Warde but has he ever sought the limelight. I don't think so

"As an athletic director, every time I had to release a coach, I accepted part of the responsibility for that failure. How much responsibility is our athletic director willing to accept in this situation?" - Hopefully zero. Warde did not hire PP and GDL

"And by the way, did I read correctly that our president, Susan Herbst, is on one of Mr. Burton’s corporate boards?" - Imagine that - a high performing executive on the board of another high performing executive's company


As I read this, I kept expecting it to be a link to the Onion. This guy's a joke and as I type, cannot believe I've actually taken the time. Probably more of a reflection on me than him

 

[Whale22]

I'm actually 80% sure this is weyuo...................

Read it on twitter and thought the same thing.

 

[sportsart]

When CTHSCA, or whatever their called, go to a national high school football coaches conventions (AD/Coach, etc) I'm guessing they sit at the little round table near the loud fan with the middle school honorary coach of the year.

They are a joke. What are there, 12-15 legit teams in the entire state? Legit in terms of quality coaches who take the game seriously and know how to teach kids at a high level.

 

[Jimdish255]

Throwing the line about "being better off in the Yankee Conference" into the end of that letter wiped clean everthing else he said. Someone may want to look into taking away this guys keys. There was nothing classless about the firing of PP. He and his sidekick had coached 4 games too long and it was time to end the embarrassment.

Yahtzee!!

 

[Jimdish255]

how anyone is still longing for the old logo is beyond me. i would actually be embarrassed to walk into a recruits house and hand him a t-shirt with that thing on it. the new logo looks phenomenal on apparel, tv, next to a recruits name and on the field/court.

Thanks. Now I feel better about my flag order. Funny since the firing I've been buying new stuff.

 

[UConner]

Who ever this guy is, he's a back in the 1960's guy. I went to grad school at UConn back in the 1970's. I lived in Baton Rouge (boy scout usher at LSU games back in the mid-sixties) and saw real football back then. My mother went back to see friends in the mid-70s and said I was in grad school at "UConn". Up in Canada? That was what we were. This guy wants to go back to the 180 pound linebacker time, which was probably what he was. Bothering with posts about him is a waste.

Of course, I just bothered....

 

[BlueMAB]

"While I’m at it, for me, it will always be the University of Connecticut and not UCONN. Also, why was UCONN not accepted into the ACC? Was it because the athletic director failed to actively pursue admission? Further, I resent the fact that we do not have any UCONN grads in any athletic decision making positions. I find this appalling; this is our program and our state...

...I for one will not ever attend another UCONN football game under this present regime; however I will always root for the Huskies in my own way."

This guy is so out of touch with reality he's using "UConn" while complaining about the school trying to take advantage of the nickname and use it to grow the brand.

He's the anti-huskyfandan.

 

[J187Money]

It was also handled in a very classy way. The timing sucks for P but nobody did anything but say nice things about P on the way out.

Seven figure people need to perform. And he didn't. That's part of the deal. It is crazy to me that P's friends seem more upset than P.

 

[Carl Spackler]

It was also handled in a very classy way. The timing sucks for P but nobody did anything but say nice things about P on the way out.

Seven figure people need to perform. And he didn't. That's part of the deal. It is crazy to me that P's friends seem more upset than P.

Pasqualoni was legitimately surprised that he wasn't fired after the second time we lost to Cincy, to fail to make it to 6-6 and bowl eligibility. That's the truth.

THe guy's faults are not is knowledge of the game, but he did go to the NFL, and then came back with an attitude that he could drive a college program, the same way you can drive an NFL franchise. You have to be age and skill level appropriate in coaching, and he lost track of that. That was mistake #1. But it wasn't his biggest mistake. His biggest fault is his loyalty to George Deleone. His failure not to just cut George Deleone loose, but to essentially give him free reign of his parts of a football program, and not be able to recognize how badly Deleone was screwing up his players and their ability to perform, have cost him not one, but two division 1A head coaching jobs, and put a bad stain on a what was once a pretty successful head coaching resume.

He rode these 2013 players this year through fall camp and into the season, like a Don Shula Baltimore Colts training camp, because he knew the importance of this season, for the program, and himself, but he should have really evaluated if he was being age appropriate with how hard he drove the players, but that in itself, is not the reason he lost the team, it was the final straw, being driven that hard. Players that play for their coaches, and each other, and are motivated and focused, CAN be driven that hard, and usually will be tougher, stronger than any other team because of it. BUt the mentality and will to do it clearly weren't there.

Most importantly, is that you need to be consistent in how you coach, teach and install discipline, and the confusion, anger, and frustration that George Deleone caused among the offensive unit, was completely unaddressed by Coach P, while he was very detailed, and addressed all things on the defensive side of the ball, assuming control of that this season - and his failure to recognize what Deleone was doing, and do anything about it, is why he lost the team.

TJ Weist, has his task cut out for him. He took over a program that is very much damaged goods, but as long as all those players find their love for the game, and he can get them playing for each other, and for the coaches again, we will be ok - sooner than later.

 

[SubbaBub]

It was also handled in a very classy way. The timing sucks for P but nobody did anything but say nice things about P on the way out.

Seven figure people need to perform. And he didn't. That's part of the deal. It is crazy to me that P's friends seem more upset than P.

Yes, at the end of the day, the fan base was always going to be ahead of the AD. WM handled Monday as well as such a thing could be handled. Treated P with the respect his career deserved while doing what was required because it was the correct thing to do.

And because come Tuesday, the heat was going to come after him hard, again rightfully so.

 

[hthusky74]

Sorry, I LOVE the new logo and don't mind the helmets. The old logo looks.....old and wrong.

Every thing I've read from various media covering the Michigan game and from Michigan fan posts said in effect wtf were those God-awful helmets. That's the least of my concern. I want the coyote gone and Jonathon the Husky back.

 

[freescooter]

Every thing I've read from various media covering the Michigan game and from Michigan fan posts said in effect wtf were those God-awful helmets. That's the least of my concern. I want the coyote gone and Jonathon the Husky back.

LOL, coyote...though I have twice heard people ask if it was some kind of teddy bear! LOL...and watching the Michigan game in a bar I two people asked what it was supposed to be...but again, that is the least of our problems. I think this team will rally around the new coach and new quarterback next week, and probably beat a pretty bad football team, but it might be 4-2 in overtime, because their offense is pretty awful too. What will be interesting to see is whether the resurgence will last more than a game. we've seen things like this before, but often they don't last once the initial euphoria wears off and bad habits return. It will be interesting to watch if nothing else, and in a season that has gone just horribly wrong since opening day, something interesting is at least something to look forward to.

 

[J187Money]

Every thing I've read from various media covering the Michigan game and from Michigan fan posts said in effect wtf were those God-awful helmets. That's the least of my concern. I want the coyote gone and Jonathon the Husky back.

FWIW, I think our helmets are better than theirs. If they had no history they'd be laughed out of the building with those.

 

[Waquoit]

It would be more honest if this guy was called a long-time CT High School representitive instead of former UConn football player. That's who he is speaking for with his comments.

 

[hthusky74]

FWIW, I think our helmets are better than theirs. If they had no history they'd be laughed out of the building with those.

And that is the whole point with Jonathon. It is our history. Now we are no different than any pissant minor league baseball team. How sad.

 

[J187Money]

And that is the whole point with Jonathon. It is our history. Now we are no different than any pissant minor league baseball team. How sad.

It's our history, except for the 5 logos that came before it.

 

[J187Money]

 

[J187Money]

I think Vin is right. Let's go back to the 1960's logo. That was awesome.