EAST HARTFORD, Conn. — UConn football rode its dynamic rushing attack to earn a hard-fought 34-27 victory over Georgia State under the lights on Friday at Pratt & Whitney Stadium at Rentschler Field.
The Huskies advanced to 6-3 and earned bowl eligibility with three games remaining. UConn is well-positioned to secure its first winning season since 2010 as it finishes the remainder of the season on the road against UAB, Syracuse and UMass.
Friday was Senior Night in East Hartford. During a pregame ceremony, 24 Huskies were honored for their contributions to a program that finally appears to be on the rise under head coach Jim Mora.
Following the game, Mora reflected on what it means to become bowl eligible. He stressed the importance of winning at least one more game, which the 2022 team failed to accomplish. Nevertheless, that team went bowling, and this one should too.
“Bowl eligible doesn’t mean that you’re bowl bound,” Mora said. “Two years ago, when we got our sixth win, we were holding onto it like, ‘Are we going to get a bid?’ We’re not guaranteed anything, so what we have to do is we have to focus on getting this next game.”
Circling back to the game that happened Friday, UConn played from ahead for most of the contest. The Huskies jumped out to a quick 7-0 lead on a three-play drive led by a 52-yard burst from running back Mel Brown. Quarterback Nick Evers soon after found tight end Louis Hansen on a two-yard touchdown completion.
UConn extended its lead to 10-0 before Georgia State came back to tie to the game in the second quarter. The Panthers looked to take a halftime lead before quarterback Zach Gibson threw an interception to UConn’s D’Mon Brinson, setting up a Chris Freeman field goal to put the Huskies up 13-10.
UConn received the ball first in the second half and marched down the field, led by a 46-yard scamper from running back Cam Edwards. The Huskies punched the ball into the endzone on a one-yard touchdown by running back Durrell Robinson to take a 20-10 lead.
After a Georgia State field goal, the teams exchanged punts, before UConn embarked on a 57-yard touchdown drive that Evers finished off with a five-yard touchdown run early in the fourth quarter. The Huskies led 27-13.
Georgia State proceeded to turn the ball over again, and UConn capitalized immediately. Mel Brown exploded down the sideline for a 31-yard touchdown to ultimately put the Huskies ahead 34-13 with 11:26 remaining in the game. It would prove to be the winning score.
Credit to the Panthers, as they racked up the yards on two long fourth-quarter touchdown drives to cut the UConn lead to seven. Georgia State nearly recovered an onside kick in the closing minutes that would have given them an opportunity to tie the game with a touchdown, but UConn recovered.
On a key fourth-and-one play with 52 seconds remaining, Evers handed the ball off to Edwards, who ran four yards for a game-clinching first down. After a kneel from Evers, the Huskies ran the clock out and earned the win, finishing the season with a 6-1 home record. It is the first time since 2010 that UConn has one six games at home in a season.
On a night where Evers threw for only 75 yards on 10 completions, it was the offensive line and running back groups who did the heavy lifting.
Brown finished with 138 yards on 14 carries, while Edwards ran for 88 yards on 13 carries. Evers ran nine times for 25 yards, and Robinson had six carries for 21 yards.
It is the first time since 2022 that UConn is bowl eligible, but with three games remaining, the Huskies have a chance to accomplish much more.
Next up on the schedule is a game in Alabama against UAB. The Huskies find themselves in a favorable position. With one more victory, UConn can all but guarantee the program’s eighth bowl game appearance.
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Dalton Zbierski is a digital content producer and writer at FOX61 News. He can be reached at dzbierski@FOX61.com.
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