We wrote just last week that while new UConn football coach Paul Pasqualoni plans to fit his scheme to his players, in the long run the life blood of any program is recruiting, and the Huskies weren't faring well in that regard for the 2012 class.
Yes, it's early, and sure, there is still plenty of time to stockpile players for next year's class. The problem is that if other schools are busily getting verbal commitments from high school recruits, it means less available talent for UConn.
Seven days ago, the Huskies didn't have a single player committed to the class of 2012. By comparison, Big East rivals Cincinnati already has seven commitments, Louisville two, Rutgers four, South Florida six, Syracuse three, and West Virginia four. Pittsburgh is the only other program without any commitments.
Good news: the Huskies are on the board. Via the Hartford Courant' s Desmond Conner, UConn has signed Don Bosco Prep offensive lineman Tyler Samra.
“They want me to come in as a guard or center,” Samra told Scout.com. “It actually doesn’t matter. It’s not too hard for the change from tackle. They said they’ll figure it out when I get to camp."
As for how Samra settled on the Huskies, he "It was just the atmosphere, the whole school, the education there is very good. ... It felt like a good fit for me. The facilities there are really good. Everything there is brand new. It feels like they really care about football there. It felt like the right place to be.”
As far as the 2012 class goes, the Huskies still have plenty of work to do. But it's not like this is Pasqualoni's first rodeo. Prior to joining the Huskies he was an NFL assistant, and before that, the head coach at Syracuse. He understands the value of recruiting. If Samra's thoughts on Pasqualoni are any indication, UConn could be in good shape. “He’s a really good guy. He seems like an honorable man. He seems like a good leader.”
