The UConn Huskies face a massive challenge in Provo, UT tonight against the BYU Cougars, looking for their first win on the road since the 2013 road win in Philadelphia over the Temple Owls 28-21. The Huskies are a much improved squad from the previous years, especially from last year when BYU came into East Hartford in week 1 and throttled the Huskies from the opening kick off. There are a few keys to the game that I believe UConn can and should implement in order to give themselves a good chance to win this game as a 14 point underdog:
Keep Arkeel Newsome as the primary back: Newsome was one of the main reasons the UConn offense looked more explosive from the beginning of Saturday's game vs Navy. Newsome is threat in multiple ways on offense, as his versatility is his strong point. Lining him up in the slot, in the backfield, or even using him in the screen game allows for UConn to show multiple looks to the Cougars while still getting the ball in their best threat from the backfield's hands.
Take shots down the field to Noel Thomas: If Noel Thomas is given single man coverage, you take that shot 100% of the time. Time after time Thomas has proven himself to be a reliable deep threat, and I often wondered during the Missouri game why UConn seemed to go away from this after successfully completing a deep pass to Thomas in the first quarter. While a majority of the offense will be generated on the ground and from the screen/quick pass game for the Huskies, large gathers keep the defense honest, which is needed to keep those screens and quick passes open.
Keep Arkeel Newsome as the primary back: Newsome was one of the main reasons the UConn offense looked more explosive from the beginning of Saturday's game vs Navy. Newsome is threat in multiple ways on offense, as his versatility is his strong point. Lining him up in the slot, in the backfield, or even using him in the screen game allows for UConn to show multiple looks to the Cougars while still getting the ball in their best threat from the backfield's hands.
Take shots down the field to Noel Thomas: If Noel Thomas is given single man coverage, you take that shot 100% of the time. Time after time Thomas has proven himself to be a reliable deep threat, and I often wondered during the Missouri game why UConn seemed to go away from this after successfully completing a deep pass to Thomas in the first quarter. While a majority of the offense will be generated on the ground and from the screen/quick pass game for the Huskies, large gathers keep the defense honest, which is needed to keep those screens and quick passes open.
Noel Thomas makes a catch in the first quarter against the Missouri Tigers in Columbia, MO.
Press the BYU receives to throw off their timing on routes: BYU's starting 3 receivers are 6'6, 6'6, and 6'5. The Huskies secondary will no doubt be tested in this one, especially after getting beat deep by Navy receivers on multiple occasions last week. Getting up on these receivers in press coverage is a risky move, if the corners get beat then it is almost assuredly a big gain. However, getting up in press coverage allows for the Huskies to also provide adequate pressure on the receivers throughout their routes, as well as help over the top from safeties Andrew Adams and Obi Melifonwu
Control the clock by forcing 3 and outs: This is the biggest aspect of the night for the Huskies. BYU is having serious running back issues, down 3 running backs for this game. UConn needs to step up on D to stop the pass, as the front 7 should be able to bottle up the run effectively. While UConn needs to force 3 and outs on defense, the opposite holds true on offense. Leaving the D out there to continuously get tested deep against the large BYU receivers is not a recipe for success. If the Huskies can limit their total 3 and outs to 2 or less, they should be in this one to the very end.
So what do you think? Is there a key to the game that is missing from this article? Comment below to let us know!
Control the clock by forcing 3 and outs: This is the biggest aspect of the night for the Huskies. BYU is having serious running back issues, down 3 running backs for this game. UConn needs to step up on D to stop the pass, as the front 7 should be able to bottle up the run effectively. While UConn needs to force 3 and outs on defense, the opposite holds true on offense. Leaving the D out there to continuously get tested deep against the large BYU receivers is not a recipe for success. If the Huskies can limit their total 3 and outs to 2 or less, they should be in this one to the very end.
So what do you think? Is there a key to the game that is missing from this article? Comment below to let us know!
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