UConn football preview vs. Boston College: Time, TV info, betting line

UConn football was the only FBS program to play eight games without a bye week, and, as exemplified by the second-half collapse that led to a loss at Ball State Oct. 15, the Huskies needed it.

Now 3-5 after that loss, UConn enters a much-anticipated homecoming weekend, hoping to hand Boston College a second defeat in three days – the first coming in men’s ice hockey Thursday night, when No. 10 UConn downed the Golden Eagles, 5-1.

Last week’s bye was, to use one of head coach Jim Mora’s favorite words, “critical” for both the players and coaches to take a step back and refresh. The Huskies got a couple days of practice in before players were let loose to relax and focus on school and family.

Quarterback Zion Turner went home to Miami to spend time with his family, Justin Joly, a self-proclaimed “momma’s boy” was able to spend time with his mother, sister and his dog, and those who stayed on campus visited the state capitol building in Hartford for an etiquette dinner, among other things.

“The coaches got a chance to get a little bit of a head start on Boston College, got out on the road and did some recruiting and got a chance to rest a little bit ourselves – not much,” Mora said.

Mora, who’s used to a longer NFL schedule, didn’t take much time off. Instead, he went back and did a heavy self-scout, analyzing what’s working and what isn’t, what might need to be taken out of or added into the playbook. There are also the bye-week evaluations for the players, where coaches bring them in to discuss where they are and what might need to improve.

“Every week we analyze what we did in the previous week, you have statistical data that tells you what you’re doing well and what you’re not, so you have feelings about it and then you have pieces of paper that give you the raw numbers, so we’re always keeping up with that,” Mora said. “We do go back and say, ‘okay, why are we playing this guy and not this guy? Do we play this guy more? Are we asking this guy to do the right thing?’ Because our objective is always to maximize what our players do well. So you have to constantly think about those things.”

Now Mora and the Huskies ready to renew a rivalry with Boston College that dates back to the early 1900s. Two of the first three meetings between the teams resulted in scoreless ties in 1908 and 1910 and before 1928, records are not entirely clear on where the games were played.

On Saturday, though, the game will be played at The Rent – UConn’s first home game since stunning Fresno State Oct. 1.

Site: Rentschler Field, East Hartford

Line: Boston College by 7.5

Time: 12 p.m.

Weather: Sunny, 54 degrees

TV/Streaming: CBS Sports Network – Rich Waltz, Aaron Taylor, Sherree Burress

Radio: UConn Sports Network from Learfield, ESPN 97.9

Online: The Varsity Network App – Mike Crispino, Wayne Norman, Adam Giardino

Current record (2021 result): UConn: 3-5 (1-11), Boston College: 2-5 (6-6, invited to Military Bowl vs. East Carolina but it was cancelled)

Series: Boston College leads, 12-0-2. UConn is 6-22 all-time against the ACC, including losses to Syracuse and NC State earlier this season.

Last matchup: Nov. 18, 2017 – Boston College 39, UConn 16 at Fenway Park. BC running back AJ Dillon, now a Green Bay Packer, ran for over 200 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

Receiving threats: Keelan Marion, the Huskies’ leading receiver last season as a freshman and the pass-catcher expected to repeat in his top-receiver role without Cam Ross, was injured on the first passing touchdown of the season for the Huskies against Utah State. In the first quarter, after Zion Turner had already come in to replace starting quarterback Ta’Quan Roberson (ACL), Marion went up to grab Turner’s first collegiate touchdown pass.

When he came down, however, the weight of the defender on top of him, Marion’s collar bone broke. He had surgery to place a metal plate on the bone, an advancement in medical technology that allowed him to begin the recovery process much sooner.

Now, it seems he’ll be back to help a receiving corps that has generally gotten better week-to-week, but still in need of a jolt – one that Marion provides.

“Just having him back, that energy that he brings to the game, we all know he can ball,” Turner said. “It’s a good feeling if we’re gonna have him back.”

UConn ranks fourth-worst in the FBS with 103.1 passing yards per game.

Zay Flowers, Boston College’s top receiver, has almost as many receiving yards this season as UConn does as a whole. Through seven games, Flowers has tallied 691 yards receiving – UConn has just 825 as a team. Flowers also has six receiving touchdowns and is averaging 13.3 yards per carry.

What makes him so good?

“Speed, quickness, changing direction, the ability to get off a bump and run,” Mora said. “The ability to avoid the hits – people try to jam him to try to get hands on him but he’s so nifty as he’s running up the field or running across the field or running down the field. He’s just hard to get. I’ve watched every game that they’ve played and I haven’t seen a kid that can hit him, it’s just amazing body control. And, he’s got confidence.”

Mora compared Flowers to a young Isaac Bruce, who was the second wide receiver in NFL history to surpass 15,000 receiving yards and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2020.

Still thin at running back: After Devontae Houston suffered a high ankle sprain against FIU, Nate Carter already out for the season, it was true freshman Victor Rosa and graduate transfer Robert Burns who were forced into carrying the rushing load at Ball State – the only two healthy running backs on the depth chart. It appears Houston, who was also dealing with a shoulder injury he suffered early on, will miss another game.

The duo ran for 143 yards combined on 28 carries, 72 for Rosa, 71 for Burns, and helped the team to 195 total yards on the ground. The task will be similar this week with Rosa the main back.

“Not only is (Rosa) playing running back, but he’s our punt returner and our kick returner. He’s a true freshman, and it’s only him and Robert Burns, so it’s not like he can take a blow, or take a break. So just the fact that he’s maintained his intensity that he has and attitude that he has, the work ethic, the focus – it’s very impressive.”