Conference Big East Conference | 2009 record 8–5 (3–4 Big East) | |
Head coach Randy Edsall (11th year) Offensive coordinator Joe Moorhead (1st year) Defensive coordinator Todd Orlando (5th as DC; 11th overall year) Home stadium Rentschler Field
(Capacity: 40,000) | ||
The 2009 Connecticut Huskies football team represented the University of Connecticut in the 2009 NCAA Division I FBS football season as a member of the Big East Conference. The team was coached by Randy Edsall and played its home games at Rentschler Field in East Hartford, Connecticut. The team finished with a record of 8–5, 3–4 in Big East play and won the PapaJohns.com Bowl 20–7 against South Carolina.
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Coaching changes
Connecticut lost its offensive coordinator of the previous three years when Rob Ambrose left the school to become the head coach at Towson. He will be replaced by Joe Moorhead, who was hired from Akron, where he held the same position.
Key losses
Four players on the 2008 Connecticut Huskies football team were selected in the 2009 NFL Draft on April 25, 2009. Donald Brown was selected at No. 27 by the Indianapolis Colts, Darius Butler was selected by the New England Patriots at No. 41, Will Beatty and Cody Brown were selected late in the 2nd round at No. 60 (Will Beatty, New York Giants) and No. 63 (Cody Brown, Arizona Cardinals).
After the Draft, four other Huskies signed free agent contracts with NFL Teams. Those Huskies include: Julius Williams (Jacksonville Jaguars), Dahna Deleston (Chicago Bears), Tyler Lorenzen (Jacksonville Jaguars), and Keith Gray (Carolina Panthers)
On May 2, 2009, Senior Martin Bédard was taken in the second round of the CFL Canadian Football League Draft by the Montreal Alouettes.
Recruiting
On February 4, 2009, Randy Edsall announced that 21 student-athletes had signed a National Letter of Intent to attend Connecticut. Three; Keensen Chambers, Jesse Joseph and Trevardo Williams; entered school in January to participate in spring practice.
Spring practice
Connecticut kicked off spring practice with the first of fifteen practices on March 17, 2009. Among the priorities set by the coaching staff are to have the team learn the newly installed up-tempo offensive game plan, determine how the running backs would replace Donald Brown, and take steps in determining who would replace Tyler Lorenzen as the starting quarterback.
The annual Blue-White Spring Game, which concludes spring practice, was held on April 18, 2009 at Rentschler Field in East Hartford, CT. The game featured a modified scoring system, which would pit the offense directly against the defense. The offense prevailed, 83–57.
Awards watchlists
The players listed below have been named to the following preseason award watch lists.
October stabbing
On October 18, the morning after the Louisville game starting cornerback Jasper Howard was killed after being stabbed during a fight on the university's campus.