BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) -Connecticut has endured plenty of so-called heartbreaking losses on the field, and one tragedy off it.
The Huskies (7-5) are still standing, though. They will play South Carolina in Saturday’s Papajohns.com Bowl thanks to a late surge that came after the season threatened to go into a tailspin following the stabbing death of cornerback Jasper Howard.
The five losses by a combined 15 points spread a little salt on the wounds.
“We’ve had a rough journey this season,” linebacker Scott Lutrus said Wednesday. “The close losses and Jas’s loss. Everybody’s worked so hard. Everything this team has been through, to get to this bowl game everyone really did earn it and it is a reward.”
The Huskies lost their first three games after Howard was stabbed Oct. 18 during a fight outside a school-sanctioned dance, falling to 4-5. Then came a double-overtime upset of Notre Dame and wins over Syracuse and South Florida to salvage their bowl hopes.
this,” coach Randy Edsall said. “This wasn’t something that we backed into. We won three straight at the end of the season and played pretty good football. The guys never gave up. They just kept pressing forward and hung together.”
UConn linebacker Lawrence Wilson said Howard’s death still fuels the Huskies, whether he’s the subject of a pre-game speech or not.
“The guys kind of try not to talk about it but I’m sure it’s on everybody’s mind that they’re going to go out and play hard for him,” said Wilson, a native of nearby Tuscaloosa. “I know that’s how I do it. I don’t really talk about it but I go out there and make sure I play hard for him.”
The Huskies attended Howard’s funeral in Miami. The tribute to him at UConn’s next home game included Howard’s former teammates wearing stickers bearing his initials on their helmets, while Rutgers players wore his No. 6 on theirs.
The marching band wore No. 6 jerseys on the field and inserted the “O” in UConn with his number during its pregame show.
The man accused of killing Howard has pleaded not guilty to murder.
South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier went through a player’s death when he was at Florida before the 2001 season. That July, incoming freshman fullback Eraste Autin collapsed after running sprints. He went into a coma and died six days later.
fayette, La., and went to the funeral, went to the gravesite and went to the home,” Spurrier said. “They had the team over to their house. We did all we could to try to (handle) it the right way. I think UConn did the same thing.
“The Cincinnati Bengals did the same thing when Chris Henry died. You do all you can to try to keep their memory alive and move on.”
Encouraging words from Howard’s family helped, Lutrus said.
“Everything his family said to us was to keep pushing forward, and they’re behind us,” he said. “’Stop crying,’ is what his stepfather told us. ‘Wipe away the tears. Jas wouldn’t want to see you guys crying. He’d want to see you guys playing football. That’s what you’re going to do. You’re going to go out and win some games.’
“To hear that from his family helped us tremendously to get through this whole thing.”
Add A Comment