Top 10 Games I Attended in 2010-11 #1: Football vs. West Virginia, October 29th, 2010

Sorry for the delay in posting this. I've been having some personal issues. But here it is, right now. By the way, for those of you wondering why the Big East and NCAA Tournaments aren't on here, the answer is simple - I wasn't at those games. Also, look at the bottom for an in-depth analysis of this list.

What: Football vs. West Virginia (original post)

When: October 29, 2010

Where: Rentschler Field

Result: Win 16-13, OT

What a game! This completely turned our season around. We came back from being down 10-0 just before halftime (at which point Teggart made a field goal) to win  16-13 in overtime. It wasn't as much due to our good play as because West Virginia kept fumbling, but I'll take it. It was the first time we beat them, ever. And after that, it launched a five game win streak that took us to our first BCS game.

This was probably the most exciting football game I've ever watched. It didn't seem that way for most of the first half though, when we couldn't score. Finally, Dave Teggart made that field goal just before the half to make it 10-3. It JUST made it inside the crossbar. I've read The Garden of Forking Paths and I wonder how we would have been different if that kick had gone wide. We wouldn't have the momentum heading into the second half, and in all likelihood, we wouldn't win the game. We wouldn't take momentum into the Pitt game and win, and could very well go 3-9. Maryland wouldn't hire Randy Edsall, but of course, he could get fired. And Pasqualoni might not have taken the job. Who knows? And if years down the road, we are an elite football program, this could have been the crucial moment in that. We will just have to see.

I'll probably post sporadically until the beginning of next season, which is just over a month away. Until then, Go Huskies!

Analysis:

Let's review the Top 10 first:

10. Men's Soccer vs. Boston University, August 28 (first game I attended)

9. Baseball vs. Holy Cross, March 22 (first baseball game, 16-inning contest)

8. Field Hockey Big East Semifinal vs. Louisville, November 6

7. Men's Soccer Big East First Round vs. DePaul, November 5

6. Men's Basketball vs. Stony Brook, November 12 (first regular-season game I attended)

5. Men's Ice Hockey vs. Sacred Heart @ Rentschler Field, February 13 (outdoor game as part of Whalers Hockey Fest)

4. Baseball Doubleheader vs. St. John's, April 2 (possible turning point of our season)

3. Men's Basketball vs. Villanova, January 17 (first game back from winter break, Kemba Walker hits game winning shot with 1 second left)

2. Women's Basketball vs. Baylor, November 16

1. Football vs. West Virginia, October 29 (see above)

 

Note that two of these were the first game I attended in a sport (including one which was the first game I attended in any sport) and a third was the first regular season game I attended in that sport (I had attended an exhibition game vs. American International). A fourth was the first game I attended after Winter Break, and it had been over a month since I'd attended one. Three more could be classified as "special" games - two Big East Tournament games and Whalers Hockey Fest. Two more are turning point games - West Virginia football and St. John's baseball. And the women's hoops game vs. Baylor was the first major contest I'd attended in women's basketball, after we clobbered Franklin Pierce and Holy Cross.

Well, that's all for now. Go Huskies!

Men's Ice Hockey Schedule Released! (UPDATED X2)

Edit: This schedule appears to be incorrect and I have no idea how or why it was posted. The correct schedule is available here now. I will post more later tonight or tomorrow.


Edit 2: Please find the updated home schedule and notes below. As of 10:32 AM on July 7, there is no press release. All times are 7:05 PM except as noted.

Saturday, October 1, 2011: vs. Ryerson (exh) TBA
Friday, October 21, 2011: vs. Sacred Heart
Thursday, October 27, 2011: vs. Holy Cross
Saturday, October 29: vs. Army, TBA
Friday, December 2: vs. RIT
Saturday, December 3: vs. RIT
Friday, December 9: vs. Bentley
Thursday, December 29: Toyota UConn Hockey Classic vs. Army, 7:15 PM
Friday, December 30: Toyota UConn Hockey Classic vs. UMass Lowell or RPI, third place game will be at 4:00 PM, championship game at 7:15 PM
Friday, January 6: vs. Niagara
Saturday, January 7: vs. Niagara
Friday, January 20: vs. Robert Morris
Saturday, January 21: vs. Robert Morris
Friday, January 27: vs. Holy Cross
Friday, February 10: vs. Sacred Heart
Friday, February 17: vs. Bentley
Saturday, February 25: vs. American International

 

Notes:

• The October 21 game is the same date, time, and place as the women's game vs. Maine. I am verifying to see if this is an error or if one game will be played at a location other than Frietas Ice Forum. Any information would be helpful.


• Apparently there are no home games during the month of November. We have home games on October 29 and December 2 but none in between.


• The Ryerson exhibition is the same day as the football game vs. Western Michigan, however since times are not available for either yet, we can't say if there will be a conflict.


• The final game of the season against AIC is the same day as the Hockey East women's quarterfinals. Should we be hosting the latter, I don't know how the matter will be resolved.

 

Top 10 Games of 2010-11 #2: Women's Basketball vs. Baylor, November 16, 2010

This is game #2 on the list of Top 10 games I attended in 2010-11. It should have been posted yesterday but I was out of town for a wedding. So here it is. Expect game #1 to be posted next Monday as usual.

What: Women's Basketball vs. Baylor

When: Tuesday, November 16, 2011, 6:00 PM

Where: XL Center

Result: UConn 65 Baylor 64

This was my first game at XL Center, as my first few basketball games were all at Gampel. It was also the third women's basketball game I attended, and the second regular season one. The first two were both blowouts, but I knew better than to expect the same here.

Due to an overloaded and late-departing bus as well as rush hour traffic, I only arrived in the arena about 15 minutes before the game started, and had difficulty finding the student section. And then I couldn't see about half the court over the people in front of me and had to watch the game on the jumbotron.

But this was still an exciting game. Unfortunately, I neglected to make a post about it for some reason, though I did find it as #3 in the Top 10 games of Fall 2010 . This game was on the 24 hours of basketball marathon, one of ESPN's more interesting ideas. I'm just glad we weren't playing at 6 AM like Monmouth, although if it were at Gampel at that time I might have gone. Then again, probably not because I had 8 AM class on Tuesdays. Although the building was right next to the arena, but I doubt they'd let me bring my backback well whatever.

Back to the game. It was exciting throughout, with Baylor choosing not to foul at the end and ultimately getting the ball back down only by one but with only a few tenths of a second left. It didn't work, and we won 65-64. Very exciting game although it was the closest we've come to losing on our home court in quite some time.

That's all for now. Check back next Monday for game #1.