2009 Connecticut Huskies football team The 2009 Connecticut Huskies football team represented the University of Connecticut in the 2009 college football season as a member of the Big East Conference . The team was coached by Randy Edsall and played its home games at Rentschler Field in East Hartford , Connecticut . The team finished with a record of 8 – 5 , 3 – 4 in Big East play and won the PapaJohns . com Bowl 20 – 7 against South Carolina . Preseason . Coaching changes . Connecticut lost its offensive coordinator of the previous three years when Rob Ambrose left the school to become the head coach at Towson . He will be replaced by Joe Moorhead , who was hired from Akron , where he held the same position . Key losses . Four players on the 2008 Connecticut Huskies football team were selected in the 2009 NFL Draft on April 25 , 2009 . Donald Brown was selected at No . 27 by the Indianapolis Colts , Darius Butler was selected by the New England Patriots at No . 41 , Will Beatty and Cody Brown were selected late in the 2nd round at No . 60 ( Will Beatty , New York Giants ) and No . 63 ( Cody Brown , Arizona Cardinals ) . After the Draft , four other Huskies signed free agent contracts with NFL Teams . Those Huskies include : Julius Williams ( Jacksonville Jaguars ) , Dahna Deleston ( Chicago Bears ) , Tyler Lorenzen ( Jacksonville Jaguars ) , and Keith Gray ( Carolina Panthers ) On May 2 , 2009 , Senior Martin Bédard was taken in the second round of the CFL Canadian Football League Draft by the Montreal Alouettes . Recruiting . On February 4 , 2009 , Randy Edsall announced that 21 student - athletes had signed a National Letter of Intent to attend Connecticut . Three ; Keensen Chambers , Jesse Joseph and Trevardo Williams ; entered school in January to participate in spring practice . Spring practice . Connecticut kicked off spring practice with the first of fifteen practices on March 17 , 2009 . Among the priorities set by the coaching staff are to have the team learn the newly installed up - tempo offensive game plan , determine how the running backs would replace Donald Brown , and take steps in determining who would replace Tyler Lorenzen as the starting quarterback . The annual Blue - White Spring Game , which concludes spring practice , was held on April 18 , 2009 at Rentschler Field in East Hartford , CT . The game featured a modified scoring system , which would pit the offense directly against the defense . The offense prevailed , 83 – 57 . Awards watchlists . The players listed below have been named to the following preseason award watch lists . Doak Walker Award : Ted Hendricks Award : Lou Groza Award : Chuck Bednarik Award : Game notes . Ohio . The Huskies were led by 157 yards rushing from Jordan Todman , as they defeated the Ohio Bobcats 23 – 16 in front of a record crowd at Peden Stadium . They were able to overcome four turnovers and a missed field goal with a solid running game and stout defense . UConn opened the scoring with a four yard touchdown pass from Zach Frazer to fullback Anthony Davis in the first quarter . The score culminated a 91 yard drive which began following an Ohio turnover . The Bobcats found the scoreboard for the first time in the second quarter when quarterback Boo Jackson found Taylor Price for a 43 - yard touchdown . The Huskies , however , answered with a 35 yard touchdown pass from Frazer to Brad Kanuch on the subsequent drive . Lindsey Witten sacked new Ohio quarterback , Theo Scott in the endzone for a safety to provide the only scoring in the third quarter . A four yard touchdown run from Todman increased the Huskies lead to 23 – 7 . The Bobcats attempted to make a fourth quarter comeback with a touchdown pass from Scott to Riley Dunlop , and a 50 yard field goal from Matt Weller . However , the comeback was thwarted when the Huskies recovered an onside kick with under three minutes in the game . Andre Dixon joined Todman by also rushing for 100 yards . It was the first time that two Huskies rushed for 100 yards in the same game since November 11 , 2006 , in a double overtime win against Pittsburgh . After the victory , game balls were awarded to Dixon ( offense ) , Witten ( defense ) and Robbie Frey ( special teams ) . For his performance , Lindsey Witten was awarded the Big East Defensive Player of the Week . Jordan Todman was named to the weekly honor roll . The game was the second and final in a two game series between the two schools . The first game of the series was played on September 21 , 2002 at Memorial Stadium in Storrs , Connecticut . Connecticut is 2 – 0 all time against Ohio . North Carolina . Aided by a late holding penalty which resulted in a safety , the North Carolina Tar Heels escaped their first visit to Rentschler Field with a narrow 12 – 10 victory . Both teams were powered by stout defenses and provided rough going for both offenses . The Huskies reached the scoreboard first when David Teggart kicked a 47 - yard field goal at the end of the first half . Following Twyon Martin ' s first career interception , the Huskies scored the game ' s first touchdown on a four yard run by Jordan Todman . However , North Carolina quickly responded in the fourth quarter with a 22 - yard field goal , and , after a Huskies punt , followed with a two yard touchdown pass from T . J . Yates to Zack Pianalto , which tied the game at 10 . Facing a third and long from their own eight yard line , the Huskies ' Dan Ryan was called for a holding penalty in the end zone , resulting in a safety , and a two point Tar Heel lead . UConn ' s Alex Molina recovered the ensuing on - side kick , but the Huskies were unable to score . The Huskies ' Lindsey Witten recorded four sacks , bringing his season total to seven through two games and placing him first in the FBS in that category . He was named to the Big East weekly honor roll for his performance . Injuries played a large roll in the game for the Huskies . They played without starting linebacker , Scott Lutrus , who was out with a shoulder injury . During the game , starting quarterback , Zach Frazer , and starting tight end , Ryan Griffin were both lost to injuries . The game was the second and final in a two game series between the two schools . The first game of the series was played on October 4 , 2008 at Kenan Memorial Stadium in Chapel Hill , North Carolina . Connecticut is 0 – 3 all time against North Carolina . Baylor . The Huskies overcame multiple injuries to defeat the Baylor Bears 30 – 22 . They were led by a strong rushing game , led by the tandem of Andre Dixon and Jordan Todman , and a stout defense . Dixon scored his first touchdown since 2007 , and had his first multi touchdown game as he rushed for 149 yards and 3 touchdowns . The UConn defense was able to force three Bear turnovers , and held vaunted Baylor quarterback Robert Griffin in check for most of the game . For the second time in three games in 2009 , the Huskies had two rushers eclipse the 100 - yard mark , as Todman gained 103 yards . UConn played the game without starting quarterback Zach Frazer , tight end Ryan Griffin and linebacker , Scott Lutrus missed his second consecutive game with a shoulder injury . After the victory , game balls were awarded to Dixon , Lawrence Wilson , Desi Cullen and Jasper Howard . Dixon was also named to the Big East ' s weekly honor roll . The game was the second and final in a two - game series between the two schools . The first game of the series was played on September 19 , 2008 at Rentschler Field in East Hartford , Connecticut . Connecticut is 2 – 0 all time against Baylor . Rhode Island . The Huskies overcame seven fumbles to beat Rhode Island 52 – 10 before a crowd of 38 , 620 at Rentschler Field . The game was the 1000th played in Connecticut football history , which dates back to 1896 . Three Huskies set career highs in the game – Redshirt sophomore quarterback Cody Endres ( Washington , Pa . ) set career - highs in completions and passing yards and threw the first two touchdowns of his career . Sophomore wide receiver Michael Smith ( Houston , Texas ) , who set career standards with eight catches and 82 receiving yards . Sophomore running back Jordan Todman , who rushed for 70 yards on 15 carries and registered a career - best three rushing touchdowns . For his performance , Lawrence Wilson was named to the Big East Weekly Honor Roll . The Huskies improved to 3 – 1 on the season , while the Rams dropped to 1 – 2 with the loss . Pittsburgh . UConn took a 21 – 6 lead with 3 : 56 to go in the third quarter after Andre Dixon scored on a two - yard run that capped an eight play - 61 yard drive . The Panthers then came right back to make it 21 – 13 as they had an eight - play 74 - yard TD drive in the final moments of third quarter . Stull completed a 26 - yard TD pass to Jonathan Baldwin for the score . Pittsburgh tied the game at 21 – 21 with 7 : 35 to go on a 27 - yard TD pass by Stull to Dorin Dickerson . In the final seconds of the game , University of Pittsburgh kicker Dan Hutchins knocked in an 18 - yard field goal to give the Panthers the 24 – 21 comeback lead and the victory in front of 44 , 893 at Heinz Field . Despite the loss , and largely due to his two interceptions and one touchdown , Robert Vaughn was named the Big East Defensive Player of the Week . Connecticut dropped to 3 – 3 all time against Pittsburgh . Louisville . In the homecoming game the Huskies scored in every quarter to win the game 38 – 25 . Senior running back Andre Dixon ran for 153 yards and three touchdowns and Connecticut beat Louisville for the Huskies first Big East win of the season . Another Husky who had a great game was junior cornerback Jasper Howard , who had 11 tackles and recovered a fumble . It would prove to be Howard ' s last game . He was stabbed to death at an official function in UConn ' s Student Union just after 12 : 30 am the next morning . With a season high 16 tackles , Lawrence Wilson was named Big East Defensive Player of the Week , the second consecutive recognition for a Husky . Andre Dixon was named to the weekly honor roll . Connecticut improved to 3 – 3 all - time against Louisville and 3 – 2 in Big East Conference contests against the Cardinals . West Virginia . The game had an emotional start as there was a moment of silence for Connecticut junior cornerback Jasper Howard . Following the moment of silence both teams had a pregame handshake at midfield . The Huskies had a sticker of Jasper ' s initials put on each of their helmets to honor him . West Virginia got off to a quick 7 – 0 lead as Tavon Austin returned the opening kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown in the fastest score against the Huskies in the FBS era . UConn then scored the next 10 points of the game as Jordan Todman scored his seventh TD of the season on a five - yard run that wrapped up a nine - play , 67 - yard drive with 5 : 46 left in the first quarter . UConn took a 17 – 14 lead into halftime . A 56 - yard touchdown run by Noel Devine with 2 : 10 remaining in the game gave West Virginia a 28 – 24 lead and the victory over the University of Connecticut football team before a crowd of 58 , 106 at Mountaineer Field at Milan Puskar Stadium . Rutgers . Just like in the previous game against West Virginia , UConn had the lead in the fourth quarter but with 22 seconds left in the game Tim Brown scored on an 81 - yard pass from Tom Savage to give Rutgers a 28 – 24 victory . The loss drops the Huskies to 4 – 4 on the season , 1 – 3 in conference play . The Scarlet Knights improve to 6 – 2 , 1 – 2 in league action . Robbie Frey was named to the Big East Weekly Honor Roll after the game . Cincinnati . Both teams used their backup quarterbacks due to injuries to the starting quarterbacks . Zach Frazer for the Huskies and Zach Collaros for the Bearcats . The two teams traded touchdowns on their opening possessions as the Bearcats drove down the field 80 yards on eight plays to score on a one - yard run by Isaiah Pead less than three minutes into the game . The Huskies came right back and moved the ball 79 yards in 11 plays as Todman had his first score of the night on a six - yard run to tie the game at 7 – 7 . Cincinnati scored the next 10 points on a 41 - yard field goal by Jacob Roberts with 4 : 57 to go in the first quarter and a four - yard TD run by Collaros to complete a 10 play - 87 yard drive 48 second into the second quarter . Cincy took a 30 – 10 score into the half . UConn scored two touchdowns coming out of the half to cut the Cincinnati lead down to eight . On a fourth and one with a little more than five minutes remaining in the game , Todman recorded his career best fourth touchdown run of the game to pull the Huskies within two points . Frazer dropped back to pass on the two - point conversion but was knocked down by Curtis Young as Cincy kept their lead heading into the final minutes of the fourth quarter . It looked like the Huskies had stopped Cincinnati on their final drive of the game when junior Lawrence Wilson ( Tuscaloosa , Ala . ) put pressure on the running game to force a fourth down . But the Bearcats went for it and Isaiah Pead broke free from the UConn defense to run in a 14 - yard score putting Cincy back up by nine with just 1 : 52 remaining in the game . Easley brought the Huskies within three points with 13 seconds remaining in the game scoring his first touchdown of the night on a nine - yard pass from Frazer . Teggart tacked on the extra point to bring the Huskies within two . UConn ' s on side kick attempt was fielded by Charley Howard to seal the Cincinnati victory . UConn fell to 4 – 5 on the season and 1 – 4 in the BIG EAST while the fifth - ranked Bearcats improved to 9 – 0 and 5 – 0 in the BIG EAST . With 162 rushing yards and four touchdowns , Jordan Todman was named to the Big East Weekly Honor Roll . The Huskies dropped to 1 – 5 against the Bearcats . Notre Dame . Clausen got the Irish on the board first with an eight - yard touchdown pass to Tate with 10 : 59 to play in the opening quarter . The score would remain 7 – 0 until the 14 : 32 mark of the second quarter , when Clausen capped an 11 - play , 80 - yard scoring drive with a one - yard scoring plunge to put Notre Dame on top , 14 – 0 . The Huskies cut the deficit to 14 – 7 on their next possession , when Todman broke free for a 43 - yard touchdown run . UConn made it a 14 – 10 game late in the second quarter on a 39 - yard field goal by Dave Teggart . The Irish pushed their lead back to seven after David Ruffer kicked a 20 - yard field goal at the 9 : 29 mark of the third quarter . But Todman returned the ensuing kickoff 96 yards for a touchdown to make it a 17 – 17 game . After the teams traded field goals in the fourth quarter , the UConn defense recovered a fumble at the Notre Dame 41 with 49 seconds to play . Teggart had a chance to give UConn the victory at the end of regulation , but his 37 - yard field goal sailed wide left as time expired . Each team scored a touchdown in the first overtime and at the end of the OT the teams were tied and went to a second OT . The Irish were not able to move the chains to open the second overtime , and they had to settle for a Ruffer field goal . Andre Dixon scored on a four - yard touchdown run in the second overtime , as the Connecticut Huskies finally pulled out a close game and beat Notre Dame , 33 – 30 at Notre Dame Stadium . Jordan Todman was named the Big East Conference Special Teams Player of the Week . Andre Dixon and Lawrence Wilson were also named to the Weekly Honor Roll . Connecticut is 1 – 0 against Notre Dame . After the victory , Randy Edsall sent the game ball to the family of Jasper Howard . Syracuse . The Huskies became bowl eligible for the third consecutive season with a 56 – 31 win over Big East foe Syracuse . The Huskies scored on their first possession after holding Syracuse to a three - and - out on the game ' s opening possession and Orange punter Rob Long ' s punt got caught up in the brisk wind that plagued the entire contest and went just 13 yards . Eight plays later , Dixon scored from the four to put the Huskies in front and give them a lead they would never relinquish . After a Syracuse field goal , Mike Lang returned the ensuing kickoff 80 yards for the Huskies ' third kickoff return for a touchdown of the season . Syracuse then scored a touchdown to make the score 14 – 10 . Later in the second quarter , Twyon Martin recovered a Delone Carter fumble setting up the Huskies at the Syracuse 43 . One play later , sophomore running back Jordan Todman rambled in from the 37 to put the Huskies ahead , 21 – 10 . The run gave Todman exactly 1 , 000 rushing yards this season and the score was Todman ' s 15th touchdown on the season . The Huskies took a 28 – 17 lead into the locker room . The Huskies continued their offensive domination in the second half when they marched 80 yards in 15 plays that saw Frazer hit Easley with an 8 - yard touchdown pass . Paulus hit Lavar Lobdell with a 12 - yard touchdown pass on the first play of the fourth quarter , but Connecticut answered right back when Dixon scurried in from the 45 to give the Huskies a 42 – 24 lead . Carter capped an 84 - yard drive with a 10 - yard scoring run , but late in the game , with Huskies facing a fourth - and - 11 from the Syracuse 28 , Frazer connected again with Easley on a touchdown pass to put the Huskies back safely ahead , 49 – 31 . Syracuse wide receiver Antwon Bailey caught a pass from Paulus and tried to lateral to Lemon , but the ball was fumbled and Connecticut ' s Dwayne Gratz scooped up the errant ball and took it to the end zone with the recovery . With 17 tackles , Lawrence Wilson was named to the Big East ' s Weekly Honor Roll . Connecticut improved to 4 – 2 against the Orange . South Florida . South Florida came from warm and sunny Tampa , Florida to cold and snowy East Hartford , Connecticut , but that did not stop the Bulls as they marched down the snowy field and were up 27 – 26 with 40 seconds left to go in the game . After the Bulls failed to make the 2 point conversion the Huskies were still in the game . Quarterback Zach Frazer made completions to Ryan Griffin , Andre Dixon and Kashif Moore put the Huskies at the USF 26 , and Dixon ran the ball to the middle of the field to set up kicker Dave Teggart ' s winning attempt . By then the snow slowed down and Teggart who missed a 46 - yard field goal earlier in the game made a 42 - yard field goal as time expired to give Connecticut a 29 – 27 football victory over South Florida before a crowd of 35 , 624 at Rentschler Field . The game was Senior Night for 16 Huskies who played their final game for Connecticut . After the victory , game balls were awarded to Zach Frazer ( offense ) , Scott Lutrus ( defense ) and Dave Teggart ( special teams ) . The three were also named to the Big East ' s weekly honor roll . Connecticut is 3 – 4 all time against South Florida . South Carolina . Andre Dixon rushed for 126 yards and one touchdown as the Huskies defeated the South Carolina Gamecocks in the fourth annual PapaJohns . com Bowl in Birmingham , Alabama . It was the Huskies third bowl victory in four attempts , and their first ever win over an opponent from the Southeastern Conference . The UConn defense came up strong by forcing two Gamecock turnovers , and holding the South Carolina offence to 205 yards . Dixon , who was awarded the Fred Sington Most Valuable Player trophy , eclipsed 1000 rushing yards for the year during the game , joining Jordan Todman . The Huskies joined Georgia Tech and Nevada as the only Football Bowl Subdivision teams with two runners with at least 1000 rushing yards . It was also the first time that UConn accomplished the feat . October stabbing . On October 18 , the morning after the Louisville game starting cornerback Jasper Howard was killed after being stabbed during a fight on the university ' s campus .