CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

2008 UConn

8–⁠5 (3–⁠4 Big East), coached by Randy Edsall.

Schedule and results

UConn in 2008, game by game: won vs. Hofstra 35–3; won at Temple 12–9; won vs. Virginia 45–10; won vs. Baylor 31–28; won at Louisville 26–21; lost at North Carolina 12–38; lost at Rutgers 10–12; won vs. Cincinnati 40–16; lost vs. West Virginia 13–35; won at Syracuse 39–14; lost at South Florida 13–17; lost vs. No. 23 Pittsburgh 10–34; won vs. Buffalo 38–20+35−26Won 35–3 vs. Hofstra+32HofstraWon 12–9 at Temple+3TempleWon 45–10 vs. Virginia+35VirginiaWon 31–28 vs. Baylor+3BaylorWon 26–21 at Louisville+5LouisvilleLost 12–38 at North Carolina-26North CarolinaLost 10–12 at Rutgers-2RutgersWon 40–16 vs. Cincinnati+24CincinnatiLost 13–35 vs. West Virginia-22West VirginiaWon 39–14 at Syracuse+25SyracuseLost 13–17 at South Florida-4South FloridaLost 10–34 vs. No. 23 Pittsburgh-24No. 23 PittsburghWon 38–20 vs. Buffalo+18Buffalo
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Aug 28vsHofstraW 35–⁠381%
Sep 6atTempleW 12–⁠962%
Sep 13vsVirginiaW 45–⁠1061%
Sep 19vsBaylorW 31–⁠2878%
Sep 26atLouisvilleW 26–⁠2148%
Oct 4atNorth CarolinaL 12–⁠3854%
Oct 18atRutgersL 10–⁠1257%
Oct 25vsCincinnatiW 40–⁠1647%
Nov 1vsWest VirginiaL 13–⁠3547%
Nov 15atSyracuseW 39–⁠1474%
Nov 23atSouth FloridaL 13–⁠1748%
Dec 6vs23PittsburghL 10–⁠3456%
Jan 3Bowls & playoffvsBuffaloInternational BowlW 38–⁠2051%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Beat Buffalo 38–⁠20 in the International Bowl; unranked in the final AP poll; 5th in the Big East.

In program history: The 5th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 72 on file).

AP poll, week by week

  1. Wk 6: 24

Led the nationDonald Brown: rushing yards (2,083 yds)

Record
8–⁠5
Conference
3–⁠4 5th in Big East
AP final
Unranked peak No. 24
Points
324–⁠257
Coach
Randy Edsall
Elo
1563 +23 this season
SP+ rating
4.9 No. 50 of 120; offense No. 84, defense No. 24, special teams No. 32
SRS
5.0 No. 39 of 120 in FBS
Recruiting class
No. 81
Offensive coordinator
Rob Ambrose
Defensive coordinator
Todd Orlando
Offense
Multiple
Defense
3–⁠4

How good, play by play

  • Offense75th of 120
  • Defense4th of 120
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted86th of 120
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted4th of 120
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.0041%0.8175th of 120
Defense-0.0834%0.824th of 120
Opponent-adjusted0.01 off
-0.04 def		41% off
35% def		—86th off
4th def
How these are measured

Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played.

Drives and havoc

Points per trip inside the 40Average startHavoc
Offense-0.1own 324% allowed
Defense-0.1own 323% caused

A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. From CollegeFootballData.com.

Top recruits in the 2008 class

Erik Kuraczea OG★★★No. 473
Matt Edwards ATH★★★No. 1146
Jerome Williams SDE★★★No. 1207
Trevardo Williams SDE★★★No. 1247
Casey Turner PRO★★★No. 1399

247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.

The 2008 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks13.00.799
Receivers62.00.741
Offensive line22.50.811
Defensive line42.50.791
Linebackers32.00.719
Defensive backs12.00.767
Athletes and specialists13.00.826
Whole class182.30.765

High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.

Drafted in 2009

The 2009 draft
Rd 1Donald Brown RBIndianapolis Colts
Rd 2Darius Butler CBNew England Patriots
Rd 2Will Beatty OTNew York Giants
Rd 2Cody Brown OLBArizona Cardinals

2008 Big East standings

TeamConf.OverallAP final
Cincinnati6–⁠111–⁠317
Pittsburgh5–⁠29–⁠4
West Virginia5–⁠29–⁠423
Rutgers5–⁠28–⁠5
UConn3–⁠48–⁠5
South Florida2–⁠58–⁠5
Louisville1–⁠65–⁠7
Syracuse1–⁠63–⁠9

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.