It was a tale of two halves for UConn (1-4, 0-2 AAC) on Saturday in a 36-10 loss to Temple (3-1, 1-0).
The Huskies trailed 7-3 going into halftime, but after giving up three straight touchdowns to the Owls in the third quarter, UConn could never recover an offensive tempo and dropped their third game in a row.
The scoreboard might scream blowout to your average fan, but there were bright glimpses for Bob Diaco’s rebuilding team and with an extra week to prepare for their next opponent, the Huskies can build off these positive notes.
1. First Drive Improvement
Before you say it, yes, a turnover did occur on UConn’s first drive of the game, but the 15-play opening drive was the longest drive of the day clocked at 8:37 and produced four first downs. Including Saturday’s game, the Huskies have turned the ball over on their first drive of the game in four of their five contests (all losses). The one outlier doesn’t give the Huskies any comfort as a fumble came on the second drive against Stony Brook.
Against Temple, Chandler Whitmer found Geremy Davis three times on the initial drive of the game. Max DeLorenzo carried the rock eight times on the drive and even converted on fourth down. The lengthy drive cost the Owls two early timeouts, but the drive ultimately ended as Whitmer gave up an interception to Tavon Young that went the other way for a touchdown. But hey, it was improvement.
2. Defensive 3rd-down Efficiency
UConn is holding its opponents to an impressive 37 percent conversion rate on third down, including Saturday’s game where the Huskies only allowed the Owls to convert a third of their third downs. That’s good for second in the AAC. The only problem? Temple is ranked first in that category in the conference, only allowing opponents to convert 32.4 percent of third downs.
3. Arkeel Newsome
UConn’s lone touchdown came by a check down pass from Whitmer to Newsome, and the freshman showed exactly how speedy he is. Newsome attempted seven rushes and had two receptions on the day to total 107 all-purpose yards.
This is just the beginning for Newsome. In a crowded backfield full of underclassmen, Newsome can establish himself as a reliable target for Whitmer when he’s under pressure. With Max DeLorenzo being the between the tackles runner for the Huskies, Newsome can be the lightning to his thunder.
4. Run Stop
Despite the final score, the Huskies looked great against the run as they only allowed 34 yards to the Owls’ four running backs. Quarterback P.J. Walker kept it himself nine times and added a touchdown on the ground, but on a positive note, the longest run UConn gave up was an 11-yard scamper by Kenneth Harper.
The defensive line looked more agile and explosive off the snap of the ball, and contained Walker and company to limited yardage — something the Huskies will have to do again against Tulane’s Sherman Badie in their next matchup after a bye week.
5. Immediate Scheduling
That’s right, the Huskies have next Saturday off to prepare for a road game against Tulane. As a team, the Green Wave are averaging 171 yards on the ground thanks to a pair of underclassmen running backs that have a combined 682 yards and five touchdowns. Tulane also has an extra week to prepare for the game, as they will host the Huskies on October 11, with the first conference victory awarded to the winner. The next time UConn will be back on Rentschler Field will be November 1, after another bye week and a date with East Carolina.
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