By Ryan Barry
NEFJ Staff
BOSTON — The drive wasn’t long for many fans of the UConn Huskies on Saturday morning and it showed.
In front of 27,900 strong at America’s Most Beloved Ballpark, the Huskies took care of the North Carolina Tar Heels 27-14 to win the 2024 Wasabi Technologies Fenway Bowl.
With a mostly UConn-dominated crowd backing them, it felt like from the first snap this team had their sights set on a win.
Huskies head coach Jim Mora noted the support right at the start of his post game press conference.
“UConn nation showed up today in a way that I hadn’t seen in three years,” said Mora. “They talk about the Rent (Rentschler Field) being loud, and it gets loud, but nothing like today.”
Senior defensive back Rante Jones noted how the crowd was a huge boost on the field and from the sidelines.
“You see the crowd we had,” noted Jones. “You see how loud they were, you see how they reacted every time I walked to the dugout and started waving my hands, that energy was infectious.”
Despite the raw and rainy conditions at times, the game stayed mostly overcast which helped to keep fans in their seats.
With how excited the Huskies (9-4) played all game, even if it had started to downpour, it’s hard to say that folks would have even run for cover.
UConn senior quarterback Joe Fagnano (16-for-23, 151 yards, two touchdowns) was named offensive MVP of the game and was Mr. Consistent all afternoon.
His steady play helped set up a strong run game that saw the Huskies go for 210 total rushing yards.
Junior Mel Brown (11 carries, 96 yards) and redshirt sophomore Cam Edwards (17 carries, 74 yards, one touchdown) were dominant all afternoon, as their one-two punch wore down a tired Tar Heels defensive front.
Mora commented how key the running game was to securing the win.
“We ran the ball 46 times, I mean, that’s how you win a football game, especially when inclement weather has set in,” Mora said. “We take great pride in it.”
The stability of the offense was outdone by an outstanding defensive effort, where redshirt junior Pryce Yates was named defensive MVP.
As a team, the Huskies registered an impressive four sacks and ten tackles for loss, with an interception for senior linebacker Tui Faumuina-Brown as well.
From the start of the game, UConn set the tone.
With the Tar Heels deferring to the second half, the Huskies started with the ball, and just a few plays after the opening kick, Mel Brown’s 47-yard run into UNC (6-7) territory had fans rocking.
The Huskies weren’t able to put six points on the board, but graduate kicker Chris Freeman scored the first points of the game on a 32-yard field goal to give the Huskies an early 3-0 lead.
Two straight three and outs forced on the Tar Heels offense gave way to the Huskies first touchdown drive of the day.
In just two plays, Fagnano found redshirt junior wide receiver Skyler Bell (three receptions, 77 yards, one touchdown) on a perfect 38-yard strike to take a 10-0 lead.
With UNC graduate quarterback Jacolby Criswell injured on the previous drive, the Tar Heels needed a spark, and that’s exactly what they got courtesy of sophomore returner Chris Culliver’s 95-yard kickoff return for a touchdown to knock the lead down to 10-7.
Instead of letting UNC creep back into the game, the Huskies went on an 11-play, 79-yard drive that ended in a four-yard touchdown pass to redshirt junior tight end Alex Honig (two receptions, 10 yards, one touchdown) to increase the lead to 17-7.
A few drives later, the Huskies went on another clock-killing drive that finished with a two-yard run from Edwards to increase the lead to 24-7.
With 54 seconds left in the half, things went from bad to worse for the Tar Heels that ultimately changed how they played the rest of the game.
Facing pressure on a drive the Tar Heels were hoping would end in at least a field goal, UNC freshman quarterback Michael Merdinger’s (9-for-12, 86 yards, one interception) errant pass was intercepted by Faumuina-Brown, thus ending his reign as the lone starter.
When returning for the second half, UNC went with a wildcat offense approach, with senior running back Caleb Hood (1-for-1, 17 yards, one touchdown; 11 carries, 78 yards) leading the offense for the rest of the game.
The Huskies lone points in the second half came from another Freeman field goal to extend their lead to 27-7.
With the defense playing as strong as they were, things felt mostly safe, though a late score from graduate tight end John Copenhaver (four receptions, 44 yards, one touchdown) cut the lead to 27-14 with 4:09 to go in the game.
Though like so many times throughout the game, the Huskies defense came up big with a late stop under two minutes remaining to seal the deal.
Reaching nine wins for the Huskies marks the first time they’ve reached that clip since 2007, something that isn’t taken for granted around Storrs.
Senior offensive linemen Valentin Senn was quick to reflect on the game and the effort all season.
“We’re just grateful that we got it done today and that we executed the plan,” noted Senn. “It was not done just today, it was done all year, and especially this training week.”
With a two-year extension announced for Mora during the game, the sky’s the limit for the Huskies who won their first bowl game since 2009.
No doubt that Mora and his staff are eager to hit the road and get recruiting to try and make their 2025 campaign even better.