Another Tuesday, another Bob Diaco press conference explaining that the UConn football program will improve ... but it will take time.
This time, Diaco delivered the message days after a 41-0 loss to Cincinnati in a game that served as a microcosm for a tough season.
"One of the greatest disappointments for me and the team, we really feel bad that the record is the way it is for UConn country," Diaco said, via the New Haven Register. "That hurts. That hurts that our Husky fans are not enjoying these Saturdays like they should be, need to and will be. Then we have this whole collection of former players and former athletes at the school that have created this incredible force of success and tradition.
"They deserve better, they should not be worrying if they will be putting their letterman coat on or not. They should feel like 'yes, I am going to the water cooler today like a peacock.' "I am looking for more, I am looking for more with the team and we are going to get it solved. The problem has been identified. I am not a problem identifier, I would like to think I am a problem solver so we have enacted an action plan to solve it. That is why I was brought here by Warde (Manuel) to get it done. I am going to get it done and I am excited about getting it done."
The Register's Jim Fuller asked Diaco if he's seen the same growth in himself that he expects out of his players as the season progresses.
"I have," the coach said. "The guy who showed up in the middle of December is not the guy who is standing here now. Hopefully in May I can say the same thing for the guy standing here. Every day you learn something new in that chair, every day a new thing is presented to you. It is exciting. I don't mean it in a disparaging way. It is a job I am really loving and enjoying. I am growing, just like Andreas (Knappe) at right tackle, I am growing in the same way."
