Time and again Saturday, UConn put itself in position to take hold of its game against Central Florida, moving swiftly through the open field and reaching the red zone, the 20 yards of quicksand that swallowed the Huskies hopes.
After a disheartening and even disturbing 24-16 loss before an announced crowd of 28,008 at Rentschler Field, UConn coach Bob Diaco used words such as “horrible” and “ridiculous” and “sickening.” Then he used a flying analogy to describe drives that moved seamlessly until blades of end zone grass could be seen with the naked eye.
“You get down there in the red zone and the game is on the line, it’s like you’re the pilot of the space shuttle and you’re re-entering the atmosphere,” he said. “It’s a big deal. It’s a much greater challenge than flying a propeller plane at 10,000 feet.”
UConn crashed on the Rentschler runways, turning six trips to the red zone into one touchdown, three field goals, a missed field goal and a turnover on downs. The Huskies also had a first down at the Central Florida 21 with just under two minutes remaining, after Bryant Shirreffs connected with Noel Thomas for a gain of 31. Four consecutive incomplete passes followed.
Central Florida took over and ran out the clock on the latest edition of “The Civil ConFliCT,” the UConn-created rivalry that the Knights have never embraced. After the game, no Central Florida player, coach or staff member approached the trophy, which was displayed on an otherwise empty UConn sideline. After about 15 minutes, with Central Florida having left the field, the trophy was taken away by a UConn staff member, destination unknown.
Last season, UConn celebrated wildly with the trophy after its victory in Orlando, Fla. The postgame mood Saturday in East Hartford was downright depressing. The Huskies (3-5, 1-4 AAC) need to win three of their remaining four games to qualify for a bowl.
“As things stalled more and more, momentum slowed,” said Shirreffs, who was 18 of 34 for 242 yards. “It went from, ‘Wow, we can really score on these guys,’ to, ‘Oh.’ It’s just unacceptable to make that many trips to the red zone and come up with so few points.”
UConn had its largest lead of the season, 13-0, after Arkeel Newsome’s 4-yard touchdown run with 9:41 left in the second quarter, but UCF (4-3, 2-1) outscored the Huskies 24-3 the rest of the way. The Knights started with a 93-yard drive that took just 2:51, making it 13-7 on McKenzie Milton’s 22-yard touchdown pass to Dredrick Snelson.
UConn’s Bobby Puyol added a 35-yard field goal with 1:25 remaining in the half, just enough time for Central Florida to respond. The Knights’ 75 yard drive was aided by a personal foul on UConn’s Cam Stapleton for a late hit and ended with a 19-yard touchdown pass from Milton to Jordan Akins to make it 16-14 with 1 second left.
“We had just enough time to take a shot at the end zone with 9 seconds left, and Jordan made a fantastic play,” Central Florida coach Scott Frost said. “He’s a big-time athlete and as good a guy going up for a ball in the air as I’ve ever been around.”
Said Diaco: “We let the proverbial rope slip out of our hand a little bit there, and it’s a different ballgame.”
Thomas had another spectacular day with nine receptions for a career-high 165 yards (six for 108 in the second half). Newsome finished with 101 yards on 21 carries, but had just 18 on five carries in the second, when UConn was out-scored, 10-0.
UCF took the lead on a 22-yard pass from the elusive freshman Milton (29 of 45, 317 yards, three touchdowns) to Adrian Killans on the first drive of the third quarter. That gave the Knights 318 yards of offense in the span of four drives. UConn finished with an overall edge of 413-400
Puyol missed a 31-yard field goal attempt off the right upright with 3:14 left in the third, a play UConn had initially lined up with a fake in mind. UCF’s ensuing drive ended with a career-long 50-yard field goal by Matthew Wright to make it 24-16 with 14:15 remaining.
UConn had two late opportunities tie it.
Trailing by eight with just over five minutes remaining, the Huskies took over at their 13. On third-and-4 at the UCF 19, Shirreffs passed to the end zone for Thomas, who clutched the ball but couldn’t hold on.
“I dropped it,” Thomas said. “Pass that I believe I can catch all the time. When I hit the ground, it just came out.”
On fourth down, Shirreffs ran and wound up a half yard shy of the first down. UCF took over at the 16 with 2:54 remaining. The Huskies defense created another opportunity, pushing Central Florida back to its 11 and forcing a punt.
UConn took over at its 49 with 2:23 remaining and moved to within 1 yard of the red zone, losing possession with 1:38 left.
“A lack of a real great, dynamic moment, whether it’s play selection, playmaking ability, in that high level moment,” Diaco said. “3-5 is not a representation of the work, investment, the improvement we’ve made. That’s what the worst part is. Because winning these games is the main thing. I got that. I’m not an idiot. We’ve got to win the games.”
