UConn Football Picks Up Graduate Transfer Wide Receiver

On Sunday, UConn football received a verbal commitment from WR Ardell Brown, formerly of Seton Hill University in Pennsylvania. According to the story from TribLive, Brown was contacted by UConn after putting his name in the new NCAA transfer portal after a big season with the Division II program.

The speedy wideout is fresh off a 1,267 yard campaign in 2018, with nine touchdowns on his way to a Don Hansen All-American nod. He broke a school record for receiving yards and sat atop the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference in both receptions and yards. In all of Division II, he was third in the country in yards.

The transfer portal officially opened up on Oct. 15, 2018, and this is the first player UConn has picked up through this new tool built to help players better navigate their options as student-athletes. The database permits schools to contact players without incurring any sort of penalty.

The 5-foot-11, 190-pound speedster will hope to stretch AAC defenses next fall, but until then, here’s a little slice of what he can do on special teams:

UConn’s pass-catching corps loses receivers Aaron McLean, Kyle Buss, Hergy Mayala and Tyraiq Beals to graduation, and tight end Tyler Davis, who transferred to Georgia Tech. That group includes last year’s top four receivers by yardage.

With Brown in the mix, the Huskies will also be looking to rising junior Keyion Dixon to fill the gap. Beyond that, the field is wide open for anyone hoping to grab some receptions next year.

After a 1-11 season, Randy Edsall and his staff might be smart to look into additional players in the transfer portal, at receiver but really across the roster, to help improve the talent and competitiveness of next year’s team.