Laying a lot on the linebackers
LB corps will be key to the Huskies’ success this season
D.J. Morgan smiled, looked to his left at Jackson Mitchell and heaped praise upon his teammate in the UConn football linebacker corps. Mitchell returned the favor moments later, explaining what makes Morgan a good teammate.
“When I’m on the field with Jackson, I can depend on him,” Morgan said.
“I know he’s going to do his job, and that makes it easier on me,” Mitchell added.
Morgan, a Notre Dame transfer from Norwalk, Calif., now in his second season in Storrs, and Mitchell, a sophomore from Ridgefield who shined as a freshman, are both expected to start at linebacker for the Huskies and help anchor the team’s front seven, the strength of UConn’s defense this season.
In 2019, Morgan suffered a torn labrum in his left shoulder in Week 3 against Indiana but played through it for the remainder of the season recording 49 tackles — including 11 against Illinois. Mitchell led the nation in tackles per game among true freshmen (6.5) the same season, UConn’s last before opting out of 2020 due to COVID-19. Omar Fortt, a junior from Stamford who led the team in tackles two years ago, also returns. Redshirt junior Ian Swenson (40 tackles in 2019) will be in the linebacking mix as well.
In front of them stands a defensive line anchored by New Haven native Travis Jones, a captain and one of UConn’s premier players. The junior defensive lineman led the team in tackles for loss from 201819 and was recently named to The Athletic’s “freak” list, highlighting players from across the country who showcase “rare physical abilities.” He also was named to the 2021 Chuck Bednarik Award watch list last month. The Bednarik Award is presented annually to the nation’s top defensive player in college football.
“He’s huge,” Mitchell said of Jones. “There will be plays where he’s taking on three blocks, which makes it way easy for us because you’ve got no one getting to the second level. He’s a captain this year. He’s a great leader on the field. He’s dependable. I know he’s going to be there, and he’s going to make plays. He’s a guy that offenses are going to have to worry about.”
East Hartford’s Kevon Jones
(40 tackles, 3.5 sacks as a sophomore in 2019) and junior Luwak Uguak (four sacks in 2019) will play alongside Travis Jones.
The collective defense has been assigned a simple goal this season: improve. The Huskies set FBS records for points allowed in a season and most yards given up per game in 2018. The 2019 season wasn’t much better, as UConn allowed 467.3 yards of offense per game, 14th most in the country.
“We’re definitely motivated to not have that happen again,” Morgan said. “You can see that just in the way we were in the spring. Our whole mentality has just been we’re just working. We’re playing nameless, faceless opponents. As long as we execute, we’ll be fine. Even if we mess up or have a bad practice, we’re going to respond.”
Experience and maturity is helpful. So is pure physical growth. Mitchell gained 19 pounds, Fortt 16 and Swenson and Uguak put on 10. Both Travis and Kevon Jones refined their physique, turning raw weight into more hardened muscle.
“Last time we were on the field it was very evident that everybody needed to get stronger in the weight room,” Kevon Jones said. “That was one of the things — people weren’t moving blockers or getting off blocks like they wanted to because they weren’t strong enough or fast enough to move around it. I think that was the emphasis in the year off.”
The Huskies have until Aug. 28 — their season opener at Fresno State — to mesh experience, strength and motivation into a competent defense.
“That year off, it just gave us a chance to look ourselves in the mirror and determine if we were going to change and get bigger, faster and stronger,” Kevon Jones said. “And that’s what we did. Now we’re feeling it, and now the season is here, and everybody is ready to show that off. All the hard work we’ve been putting in since last year around this time. We’re just ready to get back on the field.”