What UConn Can Learn from the Loss to Memphis

It wasn’t too long ago when Memphis had a first-year head coach coming in from a successful program as a former assistant coach. Justin Fuente helped lead TCU to an undefeated 2011 season and then found himself accepting a head coaching position at the University of Memphis.

Sounds similar to Bob Diaco’s journey to UConn, right?

After a near undefeated season as a defensive coordinator for Notre Dame in 2012, Diaco took his first head coaching gig for the Huskies in December of that year. Sure, Diaco’s coaching resume goes back almost two decades, but both Diaco and Fuente were granted their first opportunity as head coaches at struggling programs in recent years.

Fuente helped groom Andy Dalton in his college career, and the defensive-minded Diaco coordinated the top defense in the country led by Heisman candidate Manti Te’o.

Both coaches now find themselves in the AAC, with one program turned around and the other in rebuilding mode.

Memphis was in its last year in Conference USA when Fuente took over in 2012. Coming off a two-win season, the Tigers lost eight of their first nine games under Fuente before they ended the season on a three-game win streak to finish the year at 4-8. Then came the AAC.

Fuente’s second season began with the debut of redshirt freshman quarterback Paxton Lynch. The Tigers went 3-9 with only one conference victory, but Lynch showed promise of becoming a leader under center as he threw for over 2,000 yards.

This year, the Tigers have made tremendous strides and have flipped the script from last season to finish at 9-3. The team’s non-conference schedule is arguably the toughest in the AAC with games, and two losses, against UCLA and Ole Miss (For the record, SMU also had an extremely tough non-conference schedule). Nevertheless, the Tigers clinched at least a share of the AAC title with a 41-10 win against UConn over the weekend.

Diaco’s entrance for the 2014 campaign in Connecticut is similar to Fuente’s story.

After losing their first nine games of the season, UConn rallied to end the 2013 season at 3-9 including a season finale win against Memphis.

The Huskies thought they found their next great quarterback in Casey Cochran after he won the starting job, but numerous concussions resulted in an early retirement from the game after one game into the 2014 season.

Senior quarterback Chandler Whitmer took over for the majority of the season, but poor play led to the redshirt being removed from his backup Tim Boyle. The plan was to keep Boyle sidelined with Cochran running the show, but repetitive head injuries take priority over football.

Sitting at 2-9 with one game remaining, UConn is not just rebuilding. It’s tearing down.

Diaco is ready for Boyle to be the quarterback of the future and solid youth at running back for years to come is promising. Losing the two best skill position players next year in Geremy Davis and Byron Jones will certainly hurt, but a strong recruiting class is just one of the many reasons why Diaco fit the job description.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z30jYrNQ8_E?list=UUCpTipFQZJNTTpIFx-j-aSg]

UConn doesn’t have the toughest non-conference schedule next year, but a matchup against an SEC opponent in Missouri is nothing to look over.

So, what was the key for Fuente turning it around in Memphis?

Maturity at the quarterback position was first. Lynch’s impressive freshman season didn’t reflect the record of the team, but still strides were made. Along with returning a majority of their offensive weapons in the backfield and on the front line, Lynch became more familiar in the offense and it showed in his increased completion percentage and TD to INT ratio (9-10 turned into 18-6).

Discipline on both sides of the ball is something every new head coach should implement, and UConn is the perfect example. The Huskies committed 10 penalties against Memphis that accounted for 115 yards. Often it was UConn shooting itself in the foot that led to its defense giving up an average of 30 points per game. The pre-snap penalties are something that Diaco wants to eliminate and it starts and ends with order in the trenches.

Their history may be similar and their path to success may be different, but Diaco can take a page out of Fuente’s playbook and make UConn a contender by installing the winning ways to turn around and save an AAC football program.