This is the kind of article we should be seeing from our local press.
The end may be nearing.
If Warde Manuel is to take control of his own destiny, and raise the fortunes of the UConn football program, then Paul Pasqueloni has five games left to prove he deserves a crack at a 3rd season coaching the Huskies. Five more games to prove this team can start faster, finish stronger, put away inferior teams, protect fourth-quarter leads and not fold in the amazing way they did on Saturday against a Temple team that for 3½ quarters couldn't get out of its own way.
The Huskies lost a game that good teams, winning teams, teams that are trying to vie for the Big East title simply don't lose. UConn had a 7 point lead with less than 3 minutes to play---at home---against an opponent that had shown little in the way of a passing game all afternoon. Yet it was a pass play, with less than a minute remaining, that sent the game into overtime. Whether the defense was prepared for Temple's formation is up for debate, but the players appeared confused and, as seems to be his penchant, Coach P did not call a time out to get organized----and this just a week after losing to Rutgers while inexplicably saving time outs at a crucial point at the end of the first half. In both instances the puzzling response from the coach was the same--"we were in good shape, no need to call a time out". Really?
Good teams step on a floundering opponent's neck, particularly at home. But even after displaying a surprisingly diverse and robust offense during the first quarter, the Huskies eschewed going for it on 4th and 1 from the Temple 43 and decided instead to punt. The resulting loss of momentum and swagger was palpable. That swagger, born of offensive success to that point, simply disappeared. While Temple's defensive coaches made several necessary adjustments, there were few counters by the Husky offensive brain-trust. Field goals then drifted agonizingly wide and a game that had started with such promise slipped away, leaving the Huskies and their fans departing East Hartford shaking their collective heads.
UConn is now a decidedly unimpressive 3-4 and while Athletic Director Warde Manuel has never been vocal about exactly how far Coach P has to take the Huskies this season in order to keep his job, it’s pretty clear that finishing with a worse record than last season and sitting home for a second consecutive year without the benefit of a Bowl game, would be solid grounds for a coaching change.
The Huskies don't have to win the Big East---no one realistically expects that---yet the chance for a Bowl bid, while no doubt challenging, is still there for the taking. Still, while technically not out of it, their seven game sample has made it increasingly clear that every weekend will be an adventure and any win hard to come by. These Husky players have talent and the coaches won't stop trying, but the simple fact is the clock is ticking and time is short. You can be sure of one thing, Mr. Manuel and Ms. Herbst will be extremely interested observers. Coach P will certainly be working hard to prepare for Syracuse and beyond, and may even talk of seeing a light at the end of the tunnel, but my hunch and my fear is that what he's actually seeing, is an oncoming train.
