UConn opens as 33 point underdog at Utah State in Week 0

[Drew]

 

[mikedog10]

Give me those points baby

 

[ShakyTheMohel]

I guessed 15-20 point dog...lol. #shakyfail

Hopefully people will look at this game a little more realistically now.

 

[businesslawyer]

Hopefully people will look at this game a little more realistically now.

Not much chance of that.

Jim Mora is a good, professional football coach. Given time, he will make our program better. His track record is not one of being a miracle worker. People who want us to be good quickly -- as opposed to sucking less as we climb out of a deep hole -- are likely to be disappointed.

I know my friend Pudge is looking down and saying don't be so pessimistic, but none of that is anti-Mora. It's just pro-realism. I hope Pudge is right and I am wrong.

 

[Waquoit]

I know my friend Pudge is looking down and saying don't be so pessimistic, but none of that is anti-Mora.

None? Not even just a little? You don't seem to have missed a chance moisten the cornflakes that I've noticed.

 

[Drew]

Already down to 29

 

[Fairfield_1st]

Jim Mora is a good, professional football coach. Given time, he will make our program better. His track record is not one of being a miracle worker. People who want us to be good quickly -- as opposed to sucking less as we climb out of a deep hole -- are likely to be disappointed.

I don't know what to expect. My hope is that if nothing else changed but the coaching staff, maybe we'd win 2 more. With the influx of players, especially portal players, and my lack of knowledge about our opponents, it's hard to predict. I figure having Mora & Charlton has to be cause for optimism given they are both huge upgrades. I expect that first game to tell me a lot.

 

[Stinger92860]

Betting on UConn will pay off at some point. The Martingale system will pay off once they turn the corner. Not if, but when.

 

[Skiblets]

Hope we pack the right cleats

 

[CL82]

Hopefully people will look at this game a little more realistically now.

Winning it is the first step to our being ranked?

 

[uconnbill]

covering no problem

 

[RSTuthill]

To quote my post on another thread, "If only. More like 24." Even I was too low. Which should tell us something. But I suggest that we relax. Even if we get a blowout, it's not a big deal. UConn lost the two best players from a 1-11 team which squeaked by FCS Yale for its only win. It is gonna take time, even for a guy like Mora.

There is kind of a dichotomy on this board. The fanboys and fangirls in one camp, and the realistic analysts (for lack of a better term) in the other. Both care a lot about UConn FB. The analysts will be happy if UConn beats the spread and really happy if they beat it by more than a little. The other camp expects UConn to beat the spread, will take the points, and will be gnashing teeth if it turns out like Fresno. Personally, if it turns out like Fresno, I'll just shrug my shoulders and say "what did you expect?"

 

[Jimdish255]

I need to see who Utah State has coming back on the offensive line and at quarterback. If it's not something special then the spread is waay too high.

 

[Woof 101]

Winning it is the first step to our being ranked?

We are ranked preseason @ 130 with UMass @ 129 with identical records but their win being over us...... U St is 24.

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Reading above from Drew the spread has dropped 4 points in an hour, a positive sign.
Jim and cast has much film and bio on Utah St, they have little on what we may be bringing with all the changes.
Another factor will be just how well the Utah St staff can convince the team to not look ahead to their next weeks game @ Alabama.

Would love a win but a convincing cover would be nice.

 

[Guru13]

I need to see who Utah State has coming back on the offensive line and at quarterback. If it's not something special then the spread is waay too high.

Their spring game stats were interesting, their rushing yards for the game was 77 yards on 44 attempts. They can pass on the air. Their starting qb didn’t play at all during the spring game but the backup qbs threw for 548 yards. They’re returning all of their o-line starters and on defense they’re returning just 5 starters. Source is from Utah State website and a local sports writer that covers the team. I think our secondary will be tested right out the gates but I hope we can stop them on the ground and on the air and I am hoping for a shootout but will see how our offense is looking week 1.

 

[huskysupporter]

Spread seems a little high but not to far off. If I were gambling I’d probably stay away.

It’s not a good matchup for UCONN. We have zero pass rush and Utah State can sling it.

 

[Buffett10]

Guess Vegas has no faith in Lou’s 120th ranked defense either

 

[UConnJim]

At this point, nobody knows how good UConn will be this year as we have many transfers and a new coaching staff. As a result, you have to default to recent performance as an indicator of how good the team will be until proven otherwise.

There was one common opponent last year, Wyoming. UConn lost at home 24-22 and Utah State lost at home 44-17.

 

[RSTuthill]

At this point, nobody knows how good UConn will be this year as we have many transfers and a new coaching staff. As a result, you have to default to recent performance as an indicator of how good the team will be until proven otherwise.

There was one common opponent last year, Wyoming. UConn lost at home 24-22 and Utah State lost at home 44-17.

Wow. Thanks for that.

 

[mike012]

Lol pretty sure I read these same responses before the beginning of last year. We all know how that went.

 

[uconnric]

Lol pretty sure I read these same responses before the beginning of last year. We all know how that went.

It will probably take a couple of games this team to find some sort of identity, but this team will be much better than last year's team.

 

[billybud]

Things can turn around..

Wake Forest, last season, was AP #15 and an 11 game winner...after a losing season year before last...and the Deacons had a coupkle of three win seasons 6-7 seasons back.

 

[FfldCntyFan]

Lol pretty sure I read these same responses before the beginning of last year. We all know how that went.

Last season at Fresno, we played a pretty solid program in difficult conditions (exceptionally hot, dry and air quality problems), compounded by the fact that our shoes melted during the first half. After being (at least on defense) competitive for the first quarter, the wheels fell off.

Unfortunately, we will be facing a similar challenge (albeit altitude instead of oppressive heat) with this year's opener. One guess is that we were able to land these games because a lot of schools don't want to start a season under those conditions. Such is the life of an independent.

Yes, we have upgraded our overall talent and experience significantly from this time last year, but football requires cohesion and familiarity. I believe the team that we see in week six will be considerably better than the one we will see in game one (without any personnel changes).

If hypothetically we keep the game within one score for most of the first half, start feeling the impact of the altitude and end up losing by something like 48-17, it won't mean that Mora is a failure.

 

[CONN78SEJ]

To quote my post on another thread, "If only. More like 24." Even I was too low. Which should tell us something. But I suggest that we relax. Even if we get a blowout, it's not a big deal. UConn lost the two best players from a 1-11 team which squeaked by FCS Yale for its only win. It is gonna take time, even for a guy like Mora.

There is kind of a dichotomy on this board. The fanboys and fangirls in one camp, and the realistic analysts (for lack of a better term) in the other. Both care a lot about UConn FB. The analysts will be happy if UConn beats the spread and really happy if they beat it by more than a little. The other camp expects UConn to beat the spread, will take the points, and will be gnashing teeth if it turns out like Fresno. Personally, if it turns out like Fresno, I'll just shrug my shoulders and say "what did you expect?"

………and those two best players were? I wouldn’t say best btw, I would say most important.

 

[PNolanFan]

I think it's fair to be reasonable about this season and assume we are not going to be good and we will lose this game while also assuming that we can cover a 30 point spread. My hope and my expectation is that we open the season losing like 35-21, and then win a few games against some of the weaker opponents on our schedule