Progress comes in fits and starts. At least as it relates to the UConn football team. We saw glimmers of hope against ECU last month but no signs of it in last weekend's 41-0 loss to Cincinnati.
But as we've written for months -- and first-year coach Bob Diaco has said for much longer -- rebuilding a program is no small undertaking, and it takes time.
“We have a long way to go, we have a lot of work to do,” Diaco said this week. “This adversity is going to create an unbreakable foundation for championships in the future. There is no doubt.”
At this stage of the proceedings, you're looking for moral victories because at 2-8 there's not much else to be excited about.
“It is an honor to coach this team,” the coach continued. “Nobody quit. There was more leadership. More players leading the right way, saying the right things. There was an indomitable look on their face.”
Diaco has preached for some time that things may take awhile to come together, but once they do UConn's football program will again have to be taken seriously.
“We are going to love these guys, we are going to develop them we are going to teach the young men how to be men,” Diaco said of his young payers. “We are going to teach them how to play football… and as their eligibility expires they are going to have one of the greatest degrees in the country in their hand as they walk out. That’s how you have a great football team.”
One of those young players is sophomore quarterback Tim Boyle, who has struggled for parts of two season but who knows that getting better under these circumstances is a process.
“The game of football is about making mistakes, not trying to make them twice and trying to learn from them,” Boyle said. “I think the more snaps I get the more mistakes I’m going to make, which is weird to say, but down the road it is probably going to help me a little bit more. ...
“Football is not a flat line sport,” Boyle continued. “You know it’s up and down and I think you need to understand that when the lows happen who actually loves the sport. Who puts their head down and pouts a little bit, or who turns the page and tries picking the team back up. Coach wants guys that love football so when we do hit those lows we can bring them back up to a high again.”
