BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — UConn football delivered its signature victory of the 2024 season on Saturday, defeating UAB 31-23 in Birmingham in stunning fashion.
The Huskies improve to 7-3 after erasing a 20-3 halftime deficit by scoring 21 consecutive fourth-quarter points. With the victory, UConn secures its first winning season since 2010. It’s also the team’s first road win of the 2024 season.
After the two teams traded field goals in the first quarter, the Blazers dominated the second frame, 17-0, taking a commanding lead into the break. Two first-half turnovers and poor run defense for the Huskies set them back during the first 30 minutes of play.
UConn trimmed the deficit to 10 with a touchdown in the third quarter but still trailed by 13 entering the fourth.
Momentum changed when UConn starting quarterback Nick Evers was knocked out of the game with an injury with 12:41 remaining. Backup quarterback Joe Fagnano entered the game and made an immediate difference.
Despite limited play, Fagnano entered the game with 11 passing touchdowns and 999 throwing yards compared to Evers’ five touchdowns and 814 yards. Fagnano, a senior whose college career is coming to a close, sent a message in what could be his last appearance.
On his first drive, Fagnano seamlessly hit star wide receiver Skyler Bell with a 28-yard pass to reach the UAB six-yard line. The play sparked the Huskies’ offense.
Several plays later, on fourth & goal from the same distance, Fagnano connected on a touchdown pass to Shamar Porter to trim the UAB lead to 23-17 with 8:45 to go.
The UConn defense, which was lit up in the first half, found its footing in the second and made perhaps its biggest play of the season, forcing a fumble on the UAB 21-yard line with 8:42 to play. The ball was recovered by lineman Jack Barton, and the play stood after a review.
Two plays later, Fagnano delivered again, this time finding wide receiver Jasaiah Gathings on a 21-yard touchdown pass with 8:28 remaining. UConn took its first lead of the game, 24-23.
The UConn defense continued to build off the momentum, as the Blazers went three-and-out on their next drive. While the Huskies also went three-and-out on their next drive and were forced to punt, the defense made another tremendous play, forcing a fumble with 4:45 left in the game. That play also stood following a review. It was recovered by lineman Kervins Choute.
Once the Huskies got the ball back, they kept moving. After an eight-yard strike from Fagnano to Bell put UConn in UAB field position, running back Cam Edwards ran 48 yards for a touchdown, and the lead was extended to 31-23.
The Blazers then turned the ball over on downs with 2:02 to play, but UConn kicker missed a 36-yard field goal attempt to the left with 1:44 to go, a rare miss for one of the Huskies' most reliable players.
UAB was given one last chance and advanced the ball 46 yards to the UConn 34-yard line, but with 14 second remaining, on 4th & 10, the UConn defense stood tall, forcing an incompletion and another turnover on downs by the Blazers. UConn took a knee and ran the clock out.
For the Huskies, Evers completed 15 of 204 passes for 104 yards and an interception before being removed from the game due to injury. In his place, Fagnano completed five of 12 passes for 72 yards and two touchdowns, as he led UConn’s comeback victory.
On the ground, Edwards rushed 11 times for 82 yards and a touchdown, including his 48-yard burst to put the Huskies up eight points late in the game. Durrell Robinson also ran for 59 yards on 13 carries with a touchdown. Evers added 37 yards on 10 attempts, while Mel Brown ran five times for just 12 yards.
UConn’s offense featured a balanced attack from its wide receivers. Gathings caught six passes for 52 yards and a touchdown, while Bell brought in five balls for 45 yards, including the 28-yard reception that sparked the Huskies offense in the fourth quarter. TJ Sheffield also caught four passes for 38 yards, and Brown added 23 yards on two catches, including one for 18 yards.
Blazers quarterback Jalen Kitna threw for 233 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions, while completing 22 of 42 throws. Kitna was quiet, however, in the second half, as UConn mounted its comeback.
Lee Beebe Jr. was UAB’s most valuable player of the game. The running back rushed for 115 yards and a touchdown on 17 attempts, but his fourth-quarter fumble proved costly for the Blazers.
UConn entered the game already having clinched bowl eligibility, but with its seventh win, the team can feel even more confident it will be selected to its first bowl game since 2022 and the eighth in program history.
The Huskies are off next week and return to action on the road against Syracuse on Nov. 23. The time has not yet been announced.
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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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