There was almost optimism that players who had led UConn to the 6-7 record in 2022 were being leap frogged on the depth chart by transfers.
After all, if the players did well in year one under Mora were being beat out by newcomers, the newcomers must be good, right?
Turns out that mindset was all wrong. Across the board on offense, defense and special teams leaders from 2022 were shut out at the beginning of 2023.
Who was shut out? Maybe QB, but based on how Roberson looked this year, I don't believe he was 100% recovered from his injury at the start of the season. RB? I don't think so. Houston was running about as much as last year and Brewton didn't run that much in 2022. WR? If you are talking Clercius, he had major drop problems in 2022. Kicker? Maybe. Defense? What players were shut out?
Like I said, you could argue about who should start at QB, but Turner had one the lowest PFF QB grades of any FBS starting QB in 2022. I think the coaches wanted to redshirt and develop him this year if he wasn't head and shoulders better than the other QBs. And, Roberson was recovering from injury and didn't appear to be 100% at the start of the season. I would have bet that he would have won the position during the season, but his legs did not seem 100% this season as he didn't scramble or run until the very end of the season.
The bottom line is that we needed better offensive skill talent and at LB. LBs were a step down from last year with the loss of Bouyer-Randle and Swenson as they weren't replaced.