Kicker?

[Woof 101]

If only we had local media who followed the team closely...

No attack @ShakeyTheMohel: Just agreement...
Desmond worked hard at the job but also took a lot of grief from this forum. This along with others covering the team.
Jim Calhoun said it best with be careful on what you wish for. ( writers many wanted to see gone )

That and ten years of nothing to follow closely .... The demise of the print media along with that of a UConn football following goes hand in husky paw. I'll be in the house again this year along with yourself and can only root the team back to prominence! We have to hope the program gains traction and the media takes notice.

 

[huskyblooz]

Lol very true. Thankfully coaches have access to the real portal.

Im sure theyre on it.

 

[ShakyTheMohel]

No attack @ShakeyTheMohel: Just agreement...
Desmond worked hard at the job but also took a lot of grief from this forum. This along with others covering the team.
Jim Calhoun said it best with be careful on what you wish for. ( writers many wanted to see gone )

That and ten years of nothing to follow closely .... The demise of the print media along with that of a UConn football following goes hand in husky paw. I'll be in the house again this year along with yourself and can only root the team back to prominence! We have to hope the program gains traction and the media takes notice.

Dez was the only one I remember getting crap on here. And he deserved it. He obviously had favorites ( still waiting for Difton to break out)...and he was amazingly thin skinned.

So who is the CT reporter who is a good Twitter follow for UConn football info?

 

[Stinger92860]

We have no idea if its season ending or minor. When practice starts we should learn quickly.

 

[Blades]

Noe Ruelas maybe? He's a WO but I guess if he's the only option....

IIRC he looked good at the Rent in the spring practice in 2021, probably the best accuracy of the kickers that day, FWIW. Also saw this tweet about Joey Mac from one of the guys over at Rivals.

 

[OGinsider]

I just hope the young man is ok. He did a fantastic job for us last year as a freshman, as much as it would suck for us if he was out, I just hope whatever it is that he can make a full recovery from it.

 

[UCFBfan]

The demise of the print media along with that of a UConn football following goes hand in husky paw

This has absolutely nothing to do with the lack of local coverage. The Courant and many other local papers have all switched to the digital age and have realized where the world is going. The demise of UConn football I understand but lack of print media is not an excuse for a lack of coverage.

 

[UConnJim]

This has absolutely nothing to do with the lack of local coverage. The Courant and many other local papers have all switched to the digital age and have realized where the world is going. The demise of UConn football I understand but lack of print media is not an excuse for a lack of coverage.

Unfortunately, the collapse of newspapers and local TV news has lead to less coverage of UConn athletics. Here are some numbers comparing 2006 and 2020 (and these numbers include digital);

2006: Total advertising and subscription revenues for all US newspapers = $60 billion. Newsroom employees = 74k

2020: Total advertising and subscription revenues for all US newspapers = $20 billion. Newsroom employees = 31k

 

[LoyalFanCT]

Still a handful of kickers available in the portal, better start calling them now

2022 College Football Transfer Portal

2022 College Football Transfer Portal

247sports.com

is it too late or can we get someone still? when is the cut off?

 

[Woof 101]

The demise of UConn football I understand but lack of print media is not an excuse for a lack of coverage.

No attack here we are both fans, maybe I worded it wrong. This due to in the past The Courant had a beat reporter covering our football along with a columnist chiming in often. They are down to two regular reporters and everything else AP, New York Daily News etc. Prominence brings media coverage of any source, lets hope we get it back.

 

[mikedog10]

No attack @ShakeyTheMohel: Just agreement...
Desmond worked hard at the job but also took a lot of grief from this forum. This along with others covering the team.

Dez was the only one I remember getting crap on here. And he deserved it. He obviously had favorites ( still waiting for Difton to break out)...and he was amazingly thin skinned.

Desmond complaining about the Boneyard was actually how I discovered this amazing place, I’m forever grateful for that. Before I knew of the BY, Dez was the best source for close team coverage… but his biases were very apparent… and it’s especially hard to have a Syracuse alum as the UConn beat writer.

You know who I REALLY miss though? Randy Smith. I don’t think I have ever enjoyed anyone local as much as him!

 

[Austin316]

J-Mc was one of the best kickers coming out of HS. It would be a big loss if he’s out this yearI. I think he was doing all the kicking chores last year (FG, KO, punts).. If he’s injured or ill I’ll pray he gets well soon.

I wonder how Noe (his back up) has been doing along side him in the off season. He was local kid from Hall that set the longest FG record (56) a year or two ago. He might be seeing some action this year.

 

[UCFBfan]

No attack here we are both fans, maybe I worded it wrong. This due to in the past The Courant had a beat reporter covering our football along with a columnist chiming in often. They are down to two regular reporters and everything else AP, New York Daily News etc. Prominence brings media coverage of any source, lets hope we get it back.

Wasn't attacking you. Sorry if you took it that way. Just feel like there should still be able to have a beat reporter from the Courant even if print media is diminished. When I'm relying on the amazing work of @JohnFSilver and the UConn Daily for my UConn football news, it's not a good look for the rest of the papers in this state.

 

[BigTenFan]

J-Mc was one of the best kickers coming out of HS. It would be a big loss if he’s out this yearI. I think he was doing all the kicking chores last year (FG, KO, punts).. If he’s injured or ill I’ll pray he gets well soon.

I wonder how Noe (his back up) has been doing along side him in the off season. He was local kid from Hall that set the longest FG record (56) a year or two ago. He might be seeing some action this year.

Time to give Noe a shot- next man up.
The team was 1-11 last year.....

 

[OGinsider]

Time to give Noe a shot- next man up.
The team was 1-11 last year.....

Definitely need to give Ruelas a shot at the job. That being said, I’m not sure I follow your comment about the team being 1-11, I don’t think special teams was the issue last year.

 

[BigTenFan]

Definitely need to give Ruelas a shot at the job. That being said, I’m not sure I follow your comment about the team being 1-11, I don’t think special teams was the issue last year.

My point is if you are 1-11. It's not the kicker who has the most impact on your team's success

 

[Hoophound]

My point is if you are 1-11. It's not the kicker who has the most impact on your team's success

Ha. I was actually counting on having a money kicker to help us steal a game or two. He's a great kicker.

 

[Palatine]

Dez was a nice person when you met him. But he was one of the "cupboard is bare" chorus about the team Paqualoni inherited. That team had 12 future NFL rostered or training camp players.

So, yeah, he deserved some of the criticism.

He also said that UConn could not "compete" with USF. That was after a game we lost in final quarter on a fumble and a year after we has beaten them. His acumen was not high.

 

[uconndogs]

Dez was a nice person when you met him. But he was one of the "cupboard is bare" chorus about the team Paqualoni inherited. That team had 12 future NFL rostered or training camp players.

So, yeah, he deserved some of the criticism.

He also said that UConn could not "compete" with USF. That was after a game we lost in final quarter on a fumble and a year after we has beaten them. His acumen was not high.

PP inherit an NFL defense and there was some talent on the offense. He set the stage perfectly for a bad hire in Diaco to bury the program.

 

[OGinsider]

Looks like surgery. Watch this story by Joe McFadden on Instagram before it disappears.

 

[Blades]

 

[cttxus]

Looks like surgery. Watch this story by Joe McFadden on Instagram before it disappears.

Thx. Just sent Joe a get well message from his home town fan here in Southlake, TX.

 

[huskymedic]

 

[huskymedic]

Looks like surgery. Watch this story by Joe McFadden on Instagram before it disappears.

McFadden/Ruelas update here:

-> The season is just under a month away, but UConn has already suffered from some unfortunate news. Joe McFadden, the team’s placekicker who played all 12 games in 2021, got his foot stuck in the grass during the team’s last offseason workout and tore the ACL in his kicking leg.

He had successful surgery at noon Friday but will be out for the season, Mora said.

“Obviously that’s a big blow. He’s an outstanding kicker. He’s also a guy that would be a backup punter for us. He’s a team leader. He’s someone our players really respect. He’s dependable. And we just wish him a speedy recovery. I know that he will continue to have an influence on this team even though he can’t do it on the field,” Mora said.

Noe Ruelas, a sophomore from Hall High in West Hartford, will replace McFadden. Ruelas broke the state high school record for longest field goal when he nailed one from 56 yards out in September 2019.

“We have a lot of confidence in Noe to go in and kick for Joe,” Mora said. “In talking to (special teams coordinator) Doug Shearer through spring it was, ‘You know, we’ve got two really good kickers.’ And so, the next man’s up. We wish Joe the best and feel really awful about it, however we’re excited about Noe.” <-

 

[uconnfan68]

Best wishes for a quick and perfect recovery.