Spring Break
Football To Face West Virginia
Brown To Make Second Career Start At Quarterback
Mark Osborne
Issue date: 11/2/05 Section: Sports
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"It's a 60,000-seat stadium and their fans usually get pretty loud," Edsall said. "They're not going to be very hospitable."
But that didn't stop Edsall from joking he hoped it would rain in order to keep some fans away, even going as far as to mention the early weather report he saw that forecasted showers.
Rain or shine, the Huskies' trip to Morgantown, W.Va., for the first time in school history, will not be an easy one. The No. 18 Mountaineers are coming off 46-44 triple-overtime victory over Louisville on Oct. 18. Due to Hurricane Wilma, which postponed their game at South Florida, and a bye week, West Virginia hasn't played in over two weeks. However, just before their extended vacation, the Mountaineers (6-1) were establishing themselves as the team to beat in the Big East. They are 3-0 in the conference - the only team still undefeated.
"It doesn't surprise me, what they are doing," Edsall said. "They are a good program and they have talented people."
The good news for UConn (4-3) is they should be more or less healthy going into tonight, for the first time in weeks. No one was injured against Rutgers last week. Linebacker Anthony Barksdale is listed as probable, recovering from a left shoulder injury, while cornerback Tyvon Branch is listed as probable with a quadriceps injury. Brandon Young is also listed as probable with a right ankle injury.
But for most UConn fans the injury they are keeping their eye on the most is that of quarterback D.J. Hernandez. Hernandez, who broke his non-throwing hand against Cincinnati, resumed practicing Oct. 27 and has continued to since. He is not wearing a brace or cast, he is just taping it.
However, Edsall said he still had Dennis Brown, who made his first career start against Rutgers on Oct. 22, as the starter on the depth chart. With that in mind, Brown is preparing to make the start in the hostile confines of Mountaineer Field.
"He's handling it the same way he did last week," Edsall said. "I haven't seen anything different out of him. That's not saying that's a bad thing because I thought what he was doing before was good. He's out there doing what a quarterback supposed to do. He's taking charge; he's being a leader."