PAVING THE WAY
Led by Haynes, UConn’s O-line provided a path to postseason
STORRS — In the preseason days of August, UConn football junior offensive lineman Christian Haynes made it clear his group was striving to be the best in the country.
Four months later, UConn is going to the Myrtle Beach Bowl, its first bowl game since 2015, in large part because of the Haynes led offensive line. With a plethora of injuries to its starting quarterback, top two receivers and various running backs, the big men up front have paved the way for the runheavy UConn offense.
Haynes was named a second team All-American by Sporting News and a third team All-American by the Associated Press on Tuesday.
“The (offensive line) has completely set the tone,” UConn offensive coordinator Nick Charlton said. “They have missed a collective eight snaps on the year or something like that. Obviously congrats to Christian (Haynes) on the All-American stuff, but he doesn’t want to hear it. He is not interested in that stuff. But I think (the O-line) is extremely well coached, they do an outstanding job and they are the core and base of our offense.”
Charlton’s job has been difficult this season. He lost his top receiving weapon, Cam Ross, to a broken foot in preseason. He then lost starting quarterback Ta’Quan Roberson and receiver Keelan Marion in UConn’s opening loss to Utah State.
Additionally, a revolving door at running back was implemented as Brian Brewton and Nate Carter were sidelined with injuries, while Devontae Houston missed some time as well, forcing true freshman Victor Rosa into the spotlight.
Thanks to Haynes and his fellow offensive linemen, it has not mat
tered much who is in the backfield on any given day.
“Our motto is always still be the best, we are trying to show every game that we are the best offensive line,” Haynes said. “Our group being as good as it is now shows our camaraderie with each other... We came out trying to set the tone, we mean business, we are not the old UConn.”
UConn is expecting to get a handful of its injured players back for Monday’s Myrtle Beach Bowl (2:30 p.m., ESPN) against Marshall (8-4), perhaps lending
a glimpse into what the full offensive picture could look like next year.
“Brian (Brewton) has really made some progress here the last couple of days, so we will see,” Charlton said. “At first it was kind of trending towards ‘we don’t know,’ but he has looked pretty good. Devontae (Houston) is fine, he should be good. Keelan (Marion) is getting back into it, just trying to get his wind back, that has been the biggest thing. Cam (Ross) is kind of in that same category. We have to see how many reps we can get out of them, but we do expect them to play.”
Throughout the entirety of UConn’s 6-6 season, the
Huskies’ offensive playbook has been limited by limited personnel and depth.
“We have really had to fit the scheme to who our players are and who we have had,” Charlton said. “To get a couple guys back would certainly be meaningful to the offense and what we are capable of doing.”
“We didn’t want to make excuses about where we were at. At the end of the day you have to win games and nobody cares,” Charlton said. “We certainly lost some guys. We lost the starting quarterback in the first 10 plays of the year and Zion (Turner) stepped
up. The rest of these guys went down and other people stepped up, you look at Victor Rosa. We just had to figure it out and find a way, and this team has a lot of resolve.”
Rosa, who leads the team with nine touchdowns, was the most recognizable player to shine once he was forced into a starting role. He has no disillusions as to those who enabled his performance.
“The (offensive linemen) are amazing and Christian (Haynes) is getting noticed, it is wonderful,” Rosa said. “Best offensive line in the nation. Pound the rock, that is our motto and they have been doing a hell of a job. I can’t thank them enough.”
The Myrtle Beach Bowl will give UConn a chance to showcase its full offense, even if only in a limited capacity. More than anything, a more active passing game could give the offense an added boost.
“These last two weeks of practice, speaking for me personally, I needed it,” Ross said. “Just a lot of reps. Going back to the basics, fundamentals and those are the kinds of practices I have needed to get back into my grove and work on my craft.”
The current UConn roster only includes 10 seniors, creating a rare opportunity through a wealth of starting experience leading into next season.
“One thing one of our coaches said that stuck with me is the 2022 season is over,” Ross said. “We are going into this (bowl) game with all intentions of winning. This game is kind of the initiation of our 2023 year and what we plan on doing there. I do kind of look at this game like a reboot to get my feet back under myself and give me a good indicator of what I need to work on in the offseason.”