UConn football future opponents: Week 5

UConn scored the game’s first 17 points on Saturday, but Utah State came right back and won the game. The Huskies showed some great fight, but a blocked PAT at the end sealed the Huskies’ fate as they fell to 0-5 on the season.

Here’s how their upcoming opponents fared on Saturday.

Rice (3-2) - Oct. 7

Rice won its first American Athletic Conference game on Saturday night, taking down ECU 24-17 with a late 44-yard touchdown pass by JT Daniels serving as the game-winning points. The Owls’ offense flustered through most of the night, with just 277 yards and 14 first downs, but after the Pirates scored the first points, Rice scored 10 unanswered points and never gave back the lead.

Despite the road team’s offensive struggles, the Owls’ defense came up big when it needed to, holding ECU to a trio of field goals inside 40 yards through the first three quarters.

Daniels was 18-of-32 passing for 232 yards and a pair of touchdowns, along with an interception. As a team, Rice ran the ball 20 times for just 37 yards, led by Chase Jenkins, who had four attempts for 27 yards.

USF (3-2) - Oct. 21

The Bulls have a winning streak, as USF went into Annapolis and grabbed a 44-30 win over Navy, despite going down 14-0 just a few minutes into the game and committing three turnovers. One quarter after Navy scored its second touchdown, USF had a 21-14 advantage and never trailed again, though the game was tied at 23 in the third.

The Bulls grabbed 435 yards and prevented Navy and its triple option from churning the clock and controlling possession. The Midshipmen gained 330 yards and held the ball for just 31:08.

Byrum Brown had a solid game under center, though he was sacked four times. He completed 26-of-34 passes for 338 yards and a trio of touchdowns. K’Wan Powell led the Bulls in rushing yards, with 48 on 11 carries, but Nay’Quan Wright had 14 rushes and got into the end zone.

Boston College (2-3) - Oct. 28

Virginia scored a long touchdown pass at the end of the second quarter to go 21-7 headed into the locker room, but the Eagles stormed back with a field goal and two touchdowns to secure a 24-21 advantage. The teams traded field goals in the fourth and Boston College moved to 1-2 in ACC play.

The home team committed an astounding four turnovers compared to just one for Virginia, but still outgained the Cavaliers, 386-to-306, while also winning the time of possession battle.

BC QB Thomas Castellanos was 16-of-26 passing for 183 yards, throwing a pair of touchdowns and picks each. He also ran for 78 yards on 16 attempts. Pat Garwo III had 23 carries, grabbing 87 yards and a touchdown.

No. 21 Tennessee (4-1) - Nov. 4

After sacking Spencer Rattler six times, No. 21 Tennessee notched a convincing 41-20 home win over South Carolina on Saturday night. The Gamecocks went up 10-7 late in the first quarter, but the Volunteers had scored 24 consecutive points and secured a lead that they’d hold through the end of the game.

Despite two turnovers, the Volunteers outgained South Carolina, 477-to-333. The Gamecocks relied on big plays, including a 75-yard touchdown run, with just 11 first downs.

Joe Milton III didn’t have a long rush this week but was 21-of-32 passing for 239 yards with a touchdown and two picks. Jaylen Wright was the star of the offense this week, rushing 16 times for 123 yards and a touchdown. He was joined in the end zone by Jabari Small (11 carries, 59 yards) and Dylan Sampson (nine carries, 49 yards).

James Madison (5-0) - Nov. 11

JMU hosted South Alabama on Saturday afternoon and came away with a 31-23 victory. The Dukes were up 31-10 early in the fourth quarter, but the Jaguars scored a pair of touchdowns to make it one possession. They had the ball at midfield with 1:16 to go, but got intercepted on fourth down.

The hosts had a slight edge in yardage (377-to-326) and won the time-of-possession battle, while also forcing two turnovers and committing just one.

Jordan McCloud only threw the ball 22 times, completing 12 passes for 241 yards with three touchdowns and an interception. He also ran 10 times for 61 yards.

Sacred Heart (1-4) - Nov. 18

Defense was the name of the game on Saturday afternoon in Sacred Heart’s battle with Merrimack. The Warriors had the game’s only offensive touchdown, which came with 7:02 to go, and there was no scoring between the 2:47 mark of the first quarter and 13:03 left in the fourth, as the Pioneers fell, 17-7.

The two teams each committed three turnovers and each scored defensive touchdowns. Sacred Heart had 225 yards of offense to Merrimack’s 223 and the teams combined for just 23 first downs and 17 punts.

Rob McCoy was 16-of-33 passing for 129 yards and a pair of interceptions, while Jalen Madison led the Pioneers in rushing. He ran 10 times for 40 yards.

UMass (1-5) - Nov. 25

UMass may have scored 28 points on Saturday against Arkansas State, but the Red Wolves scored the game’s first 17 points and were up 31-10 at the half on their way to a 52-28 victory behind a program-record six touchdown passes by Jaylen Raynor.

Arkansas State had 556 yards of offense to the Minutemen’s 381, while UMass had the game’s only turnover. The teams also were also close as could be in time of possession, as UMass held the ball for 30:02.

Taisun Phommachanh returned from an injury and was 29-of-38 for 269 yards with a touchdown and an interception. Kay’Ron Lynch-Adams carried the ball 13 times for 41 yards and a touchdown, but Greg Desrosiers Jr. (three carries, 75 yards) ripped off a 60-yard rush to lead the team.