WEST HAVEN, Conn. (WFSB) – The first college football game in Connecticut this season will be played at the University of New Haven. The Chargers are preparing for their second season as a Division I program in the Northeast Conference.
Mark Powell, UNH head football coach, said the team’s experience from last season should make things more efficient.
“Absolutely, absolutely, the biggest thing is that now they know where things are and how we do things. I don’t have to condition them, so we should be able to be much more efficient and get on and off the field,” Powell said.
Senior quarterback AJ Duffy is the Northeast Conference’s pre-season offensive player of the year following last season.
“It feels great coming back having stability, knowing the guys, knowing the schemes. It’s been super cool,” Duffy said.
Braylon Williams, a UNH graduate defensive back, said the team wants to focus on starting games faster than it did last season.
“We’ve got to start off fast. Our motto is fast. We’ve got to start fast in the games. That was our downfall last year, but we’ve got guys ready this year to play ball. Our biggest thing is we’ve got to start fast and keeping that tempo every game,” Williams said.
Powell also emphasized ball security and takeaways.
“You know, I talk about it all the time: the ball is the program. You must protect the football and go take it away. We have to play complimentary football in all three phases,” Powell said.
The Chargers begin the season on the blue turf against Marist on Friday, Aug. 28, in West Haven.
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