Internet betting expectations and excitement were high in the preseason for the prospects of the Connecticut Huskies as they were favored to contend for the Big East crown.
16 Starters Returned from Bowl Season
There were plenty of legitimate reasons for the preseason optimism surrounding the UConn program. A total of 8 starters on each side of the line returned from last year’s 8-5 team that ended a season of character with a bowl win over South Carolina of the SEC. Connecticut had to play through the death of defensive back Jasper Howard, who was murdered on campus in midseason. The Huskies also lost four excruciatingly close games that could have gone either way and yet stayed together and focused as 12th year head coach Randy Edsall did his finest job. The Huskies were one of the best values in online betting last year with a mark of 9-2-1 against the spread.
Overrated?
Connecticut opened their season at Michigan and many handicappers were calling for an outright upset win by the Huskies over the struggling Wolverines, who were a 3-point favorite. UConn came out flat and was dominated in a 30-10 loss that has set the tone for the season. Last week the Huskies lost at Temple 30-16 as 4.5-point favorites to fall to 1-2 straight up and against the spread. UConn blew a 16-14 lead midway through the final quarter in a mirror opposite performance of what handicappers at the Sbg global sportsbook saw at the end of last year.
Hunted Instead of Hunter
Part of the problem for UConn is that despite going to bowls the past 3 seasons they are usually an afterthought as far as the typical gambling public is concerned. All of a sudden they were the hot pick in internet betting and that may have driven down their board value as a result. Beyond that, the recent success of the program has caught the attention of their opponents, such as Michigan, who now give the Huskies their full and undivided attention.
Favorite for Saturday
UConn opened as a prohibitive 20-point favorite for this weekend’s home game against Buffalo. Kickoff is at 12:05 PM Eastern. The Huskies need better production from quarterback Zach Frazier, who has completed just 52% of his passes for 459 yards and weak 6.0-yards per attempt average.