On the heels of several days of getting my soul restored after watching Hawaii's defense, I am back with this week's FFFF. No, it's not a good team this week. In fact, it's likely another very bad one, but I can guarantee you this piece will be less grim than either of the Hawaii ones from last week. Today we're looking at the offense for the University of Connecticut, who return to the schedule for the first time since 2013, when the main photo for this piece was taken by a then-much-younger Patrick Barron of The Michigan Daily in his pre-MGoBlog days. The Huskies are 1-2 on the season and in the first year of head coach Jim Mora Jr. Can he fix UConn football? Too early tell, but we can learn a few things in doing this exercise. 

The Film: We're using film from UConn's week zero matchup with Utah State for this one. I had hoped to use last week's game against Syracuse due to the Orange being a Power 5 opponent but I could not find a usable copy of that in time to start charting, perhaps because it was approximately the 39th most important game from last weekend and the kind of people who upload these games have enough self-respect. Week zero, though? It was one of only a few games, so footage was ready to use. An important thing to know here is that Utah State does not appear to be the Aggies of the past. USU went 11-3 last season and won the MWC but this year they appear to be horrendous, getting spanked by FCS Weber State last weekend. That Utah State still ended up beating this UConn team in the game I broke down, so, yeah. 

Personnel: Chart, click to enlarge. PDF.

Quarterback appeared to be the most ominous position for UConn coming into the season and that has mostly stayed the same. Anointed starter Ta'Quan Roberson lasted just two drives to begin the season before suffering a torn ACL that ended his 2022. Backup Zion Turner is now the starter, a 3* true freshman who is very much playing like one right now. Cale Millen, brother of CSU starter Clay Millen, is now the backup QB and has been used as a run-first QB option, almost like a Wildcat QB. 

Nathan Carter gets the start at RB and he is this week's dangerman, a fine player who shoulders a sizable load for the Huskies as the primary every-down back. Brian Brewton is #2 back who comes on in 2 RB sets for receiving purposes and occasionally in relief of Carter, a smaller, more lightweight option. Robert Burns has two carries this season and is the nominal FB for when UConn goes to the I-Formation. His lone carry in this game was a FB dive. 

UConn uses TEs a decent amount, with Brandon Niemenski being the one who is used most often. He is a poor blocker and doesn't offer a ton as a receiver either. Reserves who come on in 12 personnel include Russell Dixon and Bo Estes, the former being the biggest receiving threat at the position. As for the WRs, Quebecer Kevens Clercius has emerged as the primary big outside guy, while Aaron Turner is a smaller slot type who gets the most catches (because spoiler, UConn runs a lot of screens). Keelan Marion, Nigel Fitzgerald, and Jacob Flynn are other outside WR options who rotate, while Devontae Houston doesn't get many snaps but gets lot of touches as the designated jet motion handoff guy who comes across the formation. 

The offensive line is relatively stable for the Huskies, with the headliner being Christian Haynes, a very solid player who is definitely the best of the bunch. Dartmouth transfer Jake Guidone starts at center next to Noel Ofori-Nyadu to complete the interior, while Colorado transfer Valentin Senn anchors LT opposite Chase Lundt at RT. Lundt was the weakest piece of the line in your author's opinion. Chris Fortin is the sixth OL, notable because UConn uses six OL a not-insignificant amount of time. Fortin may also rotate in at one of the five starting positions as well. 

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Spread, pro-style, or hybrid: I was pleasantly surprised at the variation in formations that UConn was operating with and unlike the last two opponents, who were both 100% shotgun teams, UConn represents a bit of a change: 

Formation	Run	PA	Pass	Total
Shotgun	23	3	27	74%
Under Center	16	3	--	26%

UConn could probably be classified as modern pro-style, which is to say that it has some spread elements but is definitely not a full-on spread with its use of under center alignments, multiple tight ends, and the I-Formation. They ran more than they passed it in this game, especially when not trailing in the game, but it's hard to know how much of that is what Jim Mora Jr. wants to do and what he has to do because his QB is a true freshman.

Here's the play type distribution by down: 

Down	Run	Pass
1st	21	13
2nd	12	11
3rd	6	4
4th	1

Pretty balanced overall! Again, they prefer to run more than they pass, but a pretty reasonable split. I will reiterate my general surprise at how competent the scheme underpinning the team was in terms of keeping opponents guessing and doing interesting, funky stuff. Now if they could ever get the players to pull it off.... 

Base Set: UConn alternated between 11 and 12 personnel for much of the game until the final couple drives, when passing and limited substitutions took over, forcing the Huskies to be in 11 personnel on 15 of the final 17 plays. This is what the base set in 11 looks like: 

Pretty standard 11 personnel Str. And here's what a version of their 12 personnel base set looks like: 

One thing to note with these pictures is that UConn uses some sort of pre-snap motion on the vast majority of plays, including the one above (the stacked receiver to the bottom motioned into the slot). Jet motion is the most common, with a whole package of plays designed for this, but Cross and In motion both appear a decent amount as well. 

The final formation I wanted to show off was the 6 OL formation, which appeared on seven different snaps: 

The 6th OL there is Chris Fortin, lined up to the left of LT Valentin Senn and to the right of TE Brandon Niemenski. Different than the Air Raid, that's for sure! 

Basketball On Grass or MANBALL: UConn runs mostly zone stuff, but there is some variation. I had them down for Down G at one point and Counter (+ Counter GT) for another few plays but for the most part they are in the Basketball On Grass territory. 

Hurry it up or grind it out: Contrary to the last two Michigan opponents, the Huskies are much more in the grind it out territory, often taking the playclock down under 10 seconds and rarely using tempo. This is partially the consequence of using so many different personnel packages, as substitutions take time. The only two instances of tempo I caught were tempo sneaks on short yardage situations. Other than for gaining a small advantage on those mosh-pit plays, tempo was not a major component of the UConn play book. 

Quarterback Dilithium Rating (Scale 1 [Navarre] to 10 [Denard]): Zion Turner is a quarterback who is certainly capable of rushing, even if it is not something he does all the time. Turner has 15 rushing attempts on the season, a few of which are sacks, but it is indicative of the element that Turner brings. This is not an offense that is built around the QB run element, but like Michigan with JJ McCarthy, it is something that's there you have to think about. They gave Turner a few zone reads in this game:

That one might've had a shot to be successful if Turner doesn't fall over. Right now he is struggling with making the right reads on those plays, so they don't get dialed up too often. Turner's ability to move means you can't get too aggressive pass rushing and leave your lane, because he'll take it on the run and pick up the first down: 

I'll give Turner a solid 5 here. He isn't a burner, nor are his legs a central feature of the offense, but you can't lose contain on a big third down and the EDGE guys need to know how to defend a zone read because some will be in there. It's still not super dangerous right now but UConn's QB run ability is far more threatening than either of the first two opponents Michigan has faced. 

Dangerman: Today our Dangerman is RB Nathan Carter. So far this season Carter has 384 yards on 59 rushes for a cool 6.5 yards per carry. Of course we have to keep in mind strength of schedule for those stats (two of UConn's three opponents have been this Utah State team and a bad FCS team in Central Connecticut State), but Carter showed some traits I like even when his OL is not winning consistently. His longest rush in this game was mostly the doing of his offensive line, but he makes the right cutback: 

I don't think it's terribly likely that we see Carter rip off a run like that against Michigan, but when faced with tougher circumstances, Carter still had some encouraging moments. Here's an example: 

Carter is forced to find positive yardage out of this semi-minefield and he does so well, weaving between the blocks and picking up eight yards on 1st down. Carter can also break tackles and grind out extra yardage: 

While Carter is primarily a runner, he does get the occasional catch on a screen. Here's one from this game: 

Carter is not an incredibly flashy player. His talent-level is limited since he's on UConn, but he's a gem on this offense, a really solid runner with a solid sense of when to cut up-field, how to find the hole, and get an extra yard after contact. He did fumble in the game I saw, but that is not a habitual problem like it was for Dedrick Parson of Hawaii last week. I'm a fan of Nathan Carter. 

HenneChart: Zion Turner was thrown into the fire against Utah State. It was his first NCAA game and he was not expected to play much at all with Roberson as the starter. But just a few minutes in, it was Turner's turn. What I saw from Turner was not good and that's to be expected. He has posted better numbers in the two games since this one, but the stat line against Syracuse indicates a limited QB: 14/17 for just 92 yards, 5.4 Y/A. I would've loved to be able to chart that game because I presume, with a line like that, Turner was throwing screens the whole game. 

He was mostly throwing short stuff in this game too, but took some more chances and it didn't go well. Chart: 

UConn vs. Utah St.	Good				Neutral			Bad					Ovr
Quarterback	DO	CA	SCR		PR	MA		BA	TA	IN	BR		DSR	Screens
Zion Turner	1	7	1		1	3		2	5	6	2		38%	3

If there are any UConn football fans reading this (any of the twelve who exist), I will tell you what you want to hear first. I actually think there might be a decent QB here a few years down the line. Turner was not a terrible prospect, 3* in the composite but #600 overall and the #36 QB. He attended St. Thomas Aquinas in Florida, which is a legit football power, and had P5 offers. There were some glimmers of a good QB here. I already highlighted the mobility (despite often making the wrong decision on those zone reads) and he made a couple throws that impressed me. This TD was dead-on: 

Perfectly thrown, putting the ball in a place so only his guy (Keelan Marion) can go and get it, given the inside leverage Marion has on the corner. That's a legit throw. This one also impressed me: 

Protection breaks down and Turner is forced to roll, but he spots an open receiver and delivers a catchable ball on the run seconds before getting hit. Those are building blocks I think Jim Mora Jr. can build on in coaching up Zion Turner in the next couple years. 

Unfortunately, there's a lot of true freshman stuff that needs to be weeded out. He threw two INTs in this game and both were "uh oh" moments. Here's #1: 

And #2: 

The first one is definitely worse, but the second is very fixable as well. Look at how Turner is falling down as he throws that ball. His footwork was weird in this game, not setting his feet enough but also fluttering his feet while in a throwing motion like on this one. Not being set and with his body in an odd position causes the short-arm throw that's easy to jump for the corner. 

Outside of the very good and the very bad, Turner was middling. They had him throw a lot of short stuff, which was likely a good idea. His arm accuracy does need some work when he heaves it down the field. He had several balls batted and others that were plainly airmailed: 

Turner also had to throwaway a handful of balls and a few were in the "marginal" category. It was about what you expect from a QB who is not ready. UConn has been forced to put the training wheels on but I maintain that there is a decent foundation to work with. The Huskies will need to nurture him over time and maybe they have something in a couple years. But for now, he's a limited QB who is not likely to hurt Michigan in any notable way on Saturday outside of the occasional throw. 

 

Overview 

The biggest takeaway I had from watching UConn's offense, and this is something I have mentioned a couple times already, is how surprisingly nuanced it is. After going through two non-conference opponents who are going with the same personnel every time in the same formation and tilting heavily to the pass, UConn has a lot of stuff going on, which was rather intriguing. I have mentioned the prevalence of pre-snap motion, and it sets them up to do this sort of play often: 

That's Devantae Houston, who I mentioned earlier is the guy that they put on the field exclusively for this play. Depending on how they run the play, if it's a flip pass like this one rather than a true handoff, it gets counted as a pass in the official stats for the QB, but I obviously did not count it in my charting and considered it a rushing play in the section earlier in the piece because, for all intents and purposes, that's what it is. 

The prevalence of two RB sets in 20 personnel, often with Brian Brewton next to Carter, was also interesting. This is two plays after the one clipped above: 

Brewton is a neat little RB. I didn't like him as much as Carter but he has the chops even for a guy his size to be effective against low-level competition like Utah State. UConn also likes themselves some screens. They were more effective in this game than they should have been because Utah State is bad. Brewton gets a share of those screen touches, like this one below: 

UConn mixes its formations up in part to help the short passing game. By throwing tons of different personnel looks, formations, and pre-snap motions at you, it's hard to know exactly what is coming next. That probably won't make a difference against Michigan, who is going to be better in every 1-on-1 battle, but against low-level opponents, it can be effective. They roll with 1-3 WRs, 0-2 TEs, 5 or 6 OL, 1-2 RBs/FBs, and move them all over the place. One play the WRs will be trips stacked out wide, the next play they'll have two on one side and one on the other, all pulled tight to the line. It was a decently creative offense, but the central theme is getting the ball out quick if it's a passing play, in addition to the rushing stuff. 

As for the rushing game, I encountered a bit of a disagreement with PFF. The fine folks at Pro Football Focus love UConn's line. I understand that their grades are not curved based on opponent, but even in the game I charted, looking at their numbers, idk. I saw a middling line that is better than the preseason projections (I once had them ranked behind CSU!) but I did not see a line that is going to do anything against Michigan. They had their fair share of wins on the ground, and were generally sturdy in pass pro, sure. There will still plenty of warning signs. 

UConn's run game against Utah State looks good in the top line numbers. They rushed for 245 yards on 39 tries... 6.3 YPC. Woooooo! Happy days are here again in Storrs! Not so fast, says Lee Corso. It was a very boom or bust running game. They did well to generate big plays (also probably related to USU's ineptitude), generating 156 yards on just 5 carries... and 89 yards on the other 34 rushes. The YPC clip on the latter was a measly 2.62. Most of their rushing plays were not going anywhere, stopped for minimal gains. Plays like this: 

And this: 

The zone read game has room to grow and despite how interesting some of the formations UConn was using were, they had too many RPS- type plays for my liking, where they're down a man in the box or the LBs are able to read the play easily and shoot the gap. Like this one: 

In pass pro, I think they had a solid day, but again, we have to account for competition and there's plenty here for Michigan to exploit. Chase Lundt in particular at RT looks pretty beatable, with one example here: 

This next clip is a stunt that UConn's OL biffs, with two guys on the left side of the line assigned to block three rushers. Though Turner escapes and actually makes a nice throw (ruled incomplete because the receiver went out of bounds voluntarily), this is not what you want to see from an offensive line: 

Watching the line mess this sort of thing up makes me think that if Jesse Minter trots any of the confusing blitzes out of the garage, they will be able to succeed. 

We didn't get to learn much about the outside WRs because they were not throwing down the field all that much. The Marion TD from the section on Zion Turner was one of the lone notable throws to an outside guy that had a realistic shot of being caught that I saw all day. The sense I got in watching the game (without access to the All-22) is that the WRs weren't getting a ton of separation. The TEs also don't feature much in the receiving game, but do play a role in blocking, especially on the short passing offense. Unfortunately, I thought that Brandon Niemenski, the most used TE, has some major areas for improvement: 

TE #83 lined up to the right of the RT and to the left of the other TE and slot coming across

Fellow TE Russell Dixon (#85) doesn't do much better here either. 

The last clip I want to show is the Millen package, which I briefly dropped reference to earlier. For a couple plays a game, they take Zion Turner out and bring running QB Cale Millen on. Utah State had problems with it in a way that a competent team won't, but Michigan needs to be ready when they see it: 

Millen is a trained QB so I there is a chance he could throw it (3 passing attempts on the year), so it's not like the PeppersCat where you're telegraphing the playcall to the opponent, but when Millen comes on, it is likely a QB keeper. 

 

What does this mean for Michigan? 

I do not think this is a good offense and the SP+ numbers back that up as well. UConn put up 364 yards on a Utah State defense that gave up 401 to Weber State a couple weeks later. Against Syracuse, who is a mediocre P5 opponent, UConn was held to 202 yards. They can't do anything in the passing game down the field, giving touches to shifty slots in Houston and Aaron Turner but mostly neglecting their outside WRs and TEs because they have a true freshman QB who is not ready to start FBS games but is doing so because of the roster situation.

The rushing game, while possessing a good RB in Nathan Carter, does not appear likely to threaten a Michigan defense that gobbled up Hawaii. Against Syracuse, it was the same boom or bust story for UConn that it was against Utah State. The team's non-Zion Turner rushes went for 107 yards on 24 carries (4.46 YPC!), but 42 of those yards came on two carries. The remaining 22 carries drops you right back under 3 YPC. It's possible that the prowess of Carter or the play design will draw up a 17 yard carry that bloats the numbers against Michigan as they did against these two opponents, but if you're asking whether UConn will be able to consistently grind out 3-4 yards per rush, the answer is no. It would be very surprising if that occurred. 

I came away thinking that there are actual reasons for hope with Jim Mora's offense moving forward. I mostly understood what they're trying to do and they might have a player at QB one day in Zion Turner, with the proper maturation. The issue is that right now the players they have are not good enough. The line makes too many mistakes and the level of talent is far too low to compete on the same field with Michigan. I would expect that Michigan's DL will win battles on the ground pretty consistently against this OL, though it may not be the same bloodbath that it was against CSU. This is another week where I doubt the corners will be tested whatsoever. If UConn presents a test for Michigan in anyway, it may be to see how they handle the presence of a plausibly mobile QB for the first time this season, and how Minter as DC responds in his first exposure to large amounts of Weird Stuff, be it screens, formations, and personnel packages.