Not just a basketball school: UConn football built to bowl-winning status

BOSTON — Rante Jones was the first player Jim Mora met at the University of Connecticut in 2022.

The former NFL coach, entering his first season leading the Huskies’ football team, walked into the training room that day and saw Jones, then a sophomore defensive back, rehabbing from injury. Mora, now in hindsight, recalled Jones being “scrawny” in frame at the time.

UConn was 1-11 the year before. Mora still saw promise.

“I felt his passion. I felt his emotion,” Mora said of Jones. “I knew if you had guys like that, and guys like Val (senior lineman Valentin Senn), who are so committed and he holds everyone to such a high standard that we would have a chance to do something like we’re doing. And I say ‘doing’ because we’re not done.”

And here Mora and Jones were on Saturday, sitting side-by-side in the dwellings of Fenway Park, recapping the Huskies’ season-ending 27-14 win over North Carolina in the third annual Wasabi Fenway Bowl. It marked UConn’s first bowl win since 2010 and the third time notching nine or more victories in the program’s 128-year history.

UConn’s Rante Jones, left, and Tui Faumuina-Brown lead the team out of the tunnel during the third annual Wasabi Fenway Bowl against North Carolina at Fenway Park on Saturday, Dec. 28, 2024.

“To me, that’s historic,” Mora said. “For these guys – on my right, Rante, and on my left, Val – who represent the rest of the players down there, I feel like a proud father towards this team. I’m so fortunate to have had the time with these guys. They’re truly special, and they’ve made a difference in my life. I thank them from the bottom of my heart.”

Minutes before Saturday’s Fenway Bowl, it was reported by ESPN’s Pete Thamel that Mora, who is 18-20 in three seasons at UConn, agreed to a contract extension that will run through 2028 and be worth an…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/not-just-basketball-school-uconn-033426245.html

Author : The Bulletin

Publish date : 2024-12-29 03:34:00

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