UConn Football: Huskies dominate CCSU Blue Devils in Week 1, 59-13

The battle of Connecticut belongs to the UConn Huskies, who manhandled Central Connecticut State in their Week 1 football contest to the tune of 59-13, to win its first opening game in a decade. While the Blue Devils took a quick 7-0 lead after a plethora of unforced errors from the Huskies, UConn dialed in. They led by 28 and halftime and finished with a 46-point demolition at The Rent.

UConn has now improved to 22-2 against FCS opponents since moving to the FBS, and are undefeated under the Jim Mora regime.

UConn Football: Huskies vs. CCSU Week 1 Recap

Overcoming a Slow Start

A packed student section at Rentschler field was welcomed to an uneven start in the first few plays of the game. The Huskies lost the coin toss and received the football, though didn’t gain much traction on the opening drive.

On an attempted punt, the snap from long snapper Nilay Upadhyayula was well over the head of punter Connor Stutz, who collected the ball inside the 10-yard line for a loss of 42 yards. The Blue Devils turned that into a touchdown from the reigning NEC Offensive Player of the Year Elijah Howard.

However, the Huskies overcame those hiccups and didn’t allow Central Connecticut to regain control. They responded with a touchdown drive of their own, scoring on their next three drives and seven of their next eight.

“What I didn’t like was the way we started the game,” Mora said postgame. “Not characteristic of what we wanted to be. What I did like was how we responded to what I thought was a pretty poor start.”

UConn never let a slow start phase them, cruising to a six-score victory without any turnovers.

Never Taking the Pedal off the Medal

After Skyler Bell tied the game on the second offensive drive for UConn, the Blue Devils never stood a chance. UConn continued to dominate in all phases, particularly offensively.

Quarterback Joe Fagnano picked up from where he left off from last season, where he was one of the country’s most efficient signal callers. Fagnano finished 18-for-25 with 260 passing yards, three touchdowns through the air as well as one on the ground. He felt in control from the get-go, commanding the pocket and distributing the football. While Bell was a top target, his connections with Jackson Harper and Raymello Murphy could pay dividends later on in the season.

Rushing wise, Camryn Edwards and Mel Brown led the way, putting up strong outings. An early 49-yard rush paved the way to an 83-yard game for Mel Brown. Meanwhile, Edwards ran for 116 yards climaxed by a 73-yard score. The stars came to play, an omen the Huskies hope will play in their favor for the remainder of 2025.

Biggest Positive

The turnout at Pratt & Whitney Stadium at Rentschler Field for the opening day game is by far the biggest positive of this Week 1 matchup. This wasn’t the ordinary game that used to sell tickets for UConn home games. Hardly any would, to be fair, in recent years. Yet after a 9-4 season, clearly the energy and passion surrounding the program has shifted. In perhaps its least important and most likely easiest contest of the season, the 37,000-plus that packed the rent was its highest attendance since 2013, per the team’s X account.

This season, UConn has some critical games at home. That includes an ACC-clash with Duke later in the season. If this is the new attendance expectation at football games, then Huskies fans are in for a treat in 2025.

Glaring Negative

One thing that the team will need to fix, and soon, is the sloppiness. Fans are hoping this came from early-season rust and jitters, but it was rough. UConn was not crisp in their Week 1 football matchup, at all.

The Huskies had seven penalties for 78 yards, a few of which were costly and erased large gains in the first quarter. The botched snap was also concerning for a team that didn’t have too many negatives on special teams last year.

Luckily for UConn, a lot of these problems were masked from big chunk-gains that erased many of their errors. Plays of 80, 73, 49, and 45 yards were instead the takeaway. But if these mistakes carry into Week 2, Syracuse will take what is for the taking.

UConn Football: Other Key Takeaways from Huskies Week 1 Matchup

Camryn Edwards and Mel Brown are the Lead Backs

Edwards and Brown were two of the Huskies lead rushers a season ago, while Flowers and Rosa provided the potential to bring themselves into the mix. Lundberg Coleman also received touches on Saturday. However, Mora seems to have a lot more trust in Edwards and Brown, at least for now.

As Rosa becomes fully-healthy and Flowers and Lundberg Coleman become more involved in the offense, maybe that changes by October and November. But in the mean time, Mora will lean on its upperclassmen who are familiar with the system.

Tucker McDonald Showed out in Limited Time

McDonald was the third Husky quarterback to suit up after Fagnano started and Nick Evers stepped in to get some reps. He attempted just two passes, though his one completion went for 45 yards on a rope.

UConn’s quarterback room will be overturned next year. Fagnano (and most likely Evers) won’t be back for 2026. Maybe McDonald can fit into that equation if he continues to impress.

UConn’s Great Third Down Defense

Despite some of their inefficiencies throughout the contest, UConn’s third down conversion rate was strong. Central was just 5-of-16 on third down, an area in which UConn thrived in last year. While Central will probably be the weakest opponent they’ll face, it was refreshing to see a relatively new defensive group stay strong on third down.

Standout of the Game: Skyler Bell

Anyone surprised? Bell entered year two in Storrs with high expectations. Before the season, he was placed on the East-West Shrine Bowl watch list, as well as the Biletnikoff Award watch list for the country’s best receiver.

Saturday was a great first impression for the 2025 season, catching four passes for 135 yards and two touchdowns. This included an 80-yard catch-and-run for the first score of the game, and a marvelous catch in the red zone to set up another TD. Bell impressed, and the strong connection that was apparent in his short time with Fagnano last year remained pivotal.

“He is a guy that Joe has a tremendous amount of trust in,” Mora said on Bell postgame. “We want to get the ball in his hands.”

Stat To Know

The Huskies 638 yards of total offense was the most in a single game in program history since joining FBS. This even includes UConn’s 42 yards lost on the botched punt attempt. The offense compiled 680 total yards, which would shatter the previous record of 624 yards in last year’s meeting with FCS’ Merrimack.

UConn Football: What’s next for the Huskies?

UConn prepares for one of the biggest games for the program in recent memory. They travel to Syracuse for an ACC meeting with the Orange, who took care of business against them last season 31-24.

While Syracuse’s offense looks a whole lot different, UConn’s defense is a relatively new group as well. UConn either has the opportunity to put themselves on the map, or fall in yet another regular season ACC battle.

Mora and the Huskies understand the task at-hand. “Big big big challenge this week with Syracuse,” Mora shared. “We wanna narrow the gap and we want to do all we can to put ourselves in a position to win but it presents a great challenge, which is what we embrace. We want that challenge. What competitor doesn’t want that challenge? But they’re going to be big, they’re going to be physical, they’re gonna be experienced. They get to play at home. That’s what’s exciting, is having that opportunity to go play a team like that.”

While UConn lost by just seven points, the final score wasn’t a great representation of the separation between the two teams. The Orange offense went for over 530 yards, which included 470 from the country’s leading passer Kyle McCord. “Syracuse was certainly the better team that day,” UConn reporter Adam Giardino told The League Winners. “A very talented team, [but] they’re not as talented [now].”

McCord has moved on, and many of its key pieces from a season ago don’t return. Even so, this is still a major opportunity for the Huskies. If they secure a road ACC win, the path to a ten or eleven win season feels more attainable.