Connecticut Huskies 2009 Football Betting Preview

With the College Football 2009 Season just around the corner, we are providing season previews for all 120 Division I-A college football teams to give you the betting edge. Follow the best College Football Handicappers as they analyze their teams in this 2009 season preview. Be sure to bookmark SportsbookBuzz.com your source for Sportsbook Reviews. Use our comprehensive and insider info to bet successfully on the College Football in our recommend sportsbooks.View the rest of our 2009 NCAA Football Season Previews here.

UConn 2008 Record: (8-5, 3-4)
UConn 2008 Bowl: International Bowl vs. Buffalo (W 38-20)
UConn Coach: Randy Edsall (58-60 at Connecticut, 58-60overall)
UConn Offensive Coordinator: Joe Moorhead
UConn Defensive Coordinator: Todd Orlando
UConn Returning Stats Leaders:

• Rushing: Jordan Todman, RB, 296 yards
• Passing: Zach Fraser, QB, 536 yards
• Receiving: Kashif Moore, WR, 273 yards
• Tackles: Scott Lutrus, LB, 106
• Sacks: Lindsey Witten, DE, 5.0
• Interceptions: Jasper Howard, CB, 4

Notable UConn Returning Players: OT Mike Hicks, G Zach Hurd, WR Brad Kanuch, LB Greg Lloyd, DT Twyon Martin, G Moe Petrus, FB Anthony Sherman, S Robert Vaughn, LB Lawrence Wilson

UConn Key Losses: OT Will Beatty, TE Martin Bedard, DE Cody Brown, RB Donald Brown, CB Darius Butler, S Dahna Deleston, C Keith Gray, WR D.J. Hernandez, QB Tyler Lorenzen, DT Rob Lunn, DE Julius Williams

Connecticut proved that they were no fluke in 2008, posting back to back winning records for the first time since joining the Big East. UConn’s 8-5 record was notable for another reason as well: The Huskies finished only 3-4 in conference play meaning that they represented the conference very well against a non-conference slate that included 3 BCS opponents and a bowl game. However, the Huskies have some serious losses to the NFL draft and will face a difficult road en route to their 3rd consecutive winning year.

The Huskies’ offense in 2008 was very run-heavy. In fact, their ground game accounted for 61% of their total yardage! This is especially significant as two of UConn’s biggest cogs in the running game, tailback Donald Brown (2083 yards, 18 touchdowns!) and left tackle Will Beatty, were taken in the first two rounds of the NFL draft. In short, replacing Brown means replacing more than half of their offense and they will have to diversify their attack. In that regard, the Huskies will turn to junior Notre Dame transfer Zach Frazier, who threw for 2 touchdowns against 6 picks in limited action last year, to kick start what has been a putrid passing game for four straight years. At receiver, there were only 5 passing touchdowns all season so there is nowhere to go but up for the aerial attack. Replacing Brown at tailback is sophomore Jordan Todman, who rushed for 296 yards and 3 touchdowns in a limited role last fall. The Connecticut O-Line should be the brightest spot on offense as they bring back three starters and should be solid despite the loss of Beatty. However, with so many question marks and the departure of Brown, UConn’s offense will be lucky to come close to last year’s 25 points per game average.

Defensively, UConn was very good last fall, allowing less than twenty points per game. There are some question marks up front though, as UConn must replace 1st team All-Big East choice and 2 nd round draft pick Cody Brown, who notched 11 sacks last fall. Senior Lindsay Witten did pick up five sacks last fall as a part time player and could fill in well but it won’t be a stretch to say that the line will take a step back. At linebacker, junior 2 nd team All-Big East choice Scott Lutrus was the team’s leading tackler in 2008 with 106 stops and is the leader of a strong group, all of whom started last season. Expect UConn to have one of the conference’s strongest sets of linebackers. In the secondary, two starters return but they must deal with the loss of Darius Butler, another 2 nd round choice in the NFL draft. Not all is lost however; senior safety Robert Vaughn was a 2 nd team All-Big East pick after making 67 tackles and junior cornerback Jasper Howard led the team with 4 interceptions. So despite the loss of a lock down cornerback, I still expect UConn to field a solid pass defense. Overall, the big question is up front. If the Huskies can field a serviceable D-Line then their defense shouldn’t be notably worse. However, the lack of a strong ball control offense will make 2009 a lot more stressful as the Husky defense should be on the field a lot more. Don’t expect UConn to hold foes under 20 points per game this fall.

The schedule is a mixed bag. UConn does have four conference home games but must travel to Pittsburgh, West Virginia and Cincinnati. Considering that UConn is 29-10 at Rentschler Field but 12-19 on the road since its opening in 2003, those three games will be very tough tasks. Even worse is the non-conference schedule. The Huskies travel to Notre Dame and Baylor and also host North Carolina! All three teams are improved from a year ago and will be a very heavy task for the Huskies. To make matters worse, only USC and Ohio State lost four players in the first two rounds of the NFL draft this fall and UConn has a lot more trouble reloading than those two powerhouses. Expect the Huskies to suffer a down season thanks to a tough schedule and talent drain. I believe that UConn will struggle immensely on offense and that will in turn wear out their defense, which spent a lot time on the sideline last fall while Brown beat up opposing defenses. An ineffective offense and a tired defense is never a formula for success. Don’t expect to see the Huskies playing in a bowl game this year.

UConn Big Games: Sept. 12th vs. North Carolina, Oct. 10th @ Pittsburgh, Oct. 24th @ WVU, Nov. 7th @ Cincinnati, Nov. 21st @ Notre Dame, Nov. 28th vs. Syracuse

Connecticut’s Strength:

Connecticut won games with their defense last year and that should be the case again this time around. There are some big names to replace, but at least the linebackers return. Scott Lutrus, Greg Lloyd and Lawrence Wilson are an experienced bunch in the middle of the field and that should help the entire unit while they learn to live without defensive end Cody Brown and cornerback Darius Butler. Twyon Martin is the lone experienced lineman and some players like Lindsey Witten have to step up and get some pressure on the opposing quarterback. In 2008 the Huskies ranked third in the conference in sacks, but that was mostly Brown and Julius Williams. The secondary lost two very experienced players in Butler and safety Dahna Deleston, but there is talent left, most notably Jasper Howard and Robert Vaughn.

Connecticut’s Weakness:

In 2008 the offense relied on Donald Brown to carry the load. He rushed for 2,083 yards and 18 touchdowns and then split a year early for the NFL. Who is going to take over that large workload? Jordan Todman had a good spring and will likely split carries this season with Andre Dixon. Either way, the ground game will not be as good as it was last year and without the ground game running on all cylinders, Connecticut has to put the ball in the air. The team only threw five touchdown passes all year and now Lorenzen, who threw three of those, is gone. That leaves Zach Frazer and Cody Endres as the quarterback options. Neither were very impressive when they played last season and one of them better step up or the offense could be going nowhere.

Our Prediction for the 2009 UConn Huskies:

The quarterbacks threw a ton of interceptions last year, but it was not because they did not have time to look down field. The offensive line barely allowed more than one sack per game. The line may not be quite as good as they were last year without tackle Will Beatty and center Keith Gray, but there are some experienced players who are ready to fill the void and tackle Mike Hicks could be playing on Sunday’s after this season.

UConn Betting Odds

Will UConn go to a Bowl Game this year? Or, will their season be lackluster? Either way, you can still enjoy UConn Football Betting at our feature sportsbooks. UConn & College Football Betting is serious business; where you can make a ton of loot placing informed, smart UConn bets. Check out these highly reliable, trustworthy, online sportsbooks.

Join BetUs.com Today and Bet on UConn and receive a 50% Sportsbook Bonus!

NCAA Football Handicapping Picks

Check out our weekly Sports Handicapping Picks from the world’s best handicappers. Trust our handicapping experts offering premium and free NCAA Football Picks and packages daily. Also stay up to date with weekly College Football Matchups, and buy some picks to win some BIG cash this football season at our recommended sportsbooks.