Football heads to East Hartford this weekend to battle UCONN

9/25/09 - As fall lurks around the corner the football season picks up steam and the matchups intensify, especially this weekend when the University of Rhode Island heads to the University of Connecticut for an East Coast battle.Last time out the Rams struggled on both sides of the ball against a strong University of Massachusetts squad. This week Rhode Island faces perhaps an even tougher challenge playing against the Division 1 A Huskies.

Head coach Joe Trainer had his team prepare this week by working on what they need to do to improve rather than worrying about UCONN.

"Our focus this week is on getting better," Trainer said. "We're going to do what we do. This is a great experience for our kids. It's exciting and we are really looking forward to it."

The 2-1 Huskies enter the game off of a 30-22 road victory against Baylor University. Both of the Huskies' victories came on the road and their loss came late in a tight game against the nationally ranked University of North Carolina Tarheels.

The Rams will need to bring their A-game in order to hang in with the strong Big East foe. Currently the Huskies defense ranks third in the Big East allowing 260.3 yards per game.

Offensively their rushing attack ranks second in the Big East as their leading rusher sophomore Jordan Todman is averaging 108.7 yards per game.

"We're going to try and force them to play left handed," Trainer said. "They're going to do what they do best which is run the ball."

URI will need to continue their imposing turnover ratio. After the first two games the Rams have a plus seven turnover ratio. The Rams defense has two consecutive games with a defensive touchdown.

Junior linebacker Rob Damon has been wreaking havoc on opposing teams, recording back-to-back career highs in tackles with 11 and 16 respectively. He has also been a force stripping the ball away from opposing running backs and return specialists.

The offensive line will also have to continue their impressive play protecting quarterback Chris Paul-Etienne who has only been sacked once this season. Paul-Etienne needs to continue to put up strong numbers through the air and on the ground.

Saturday afternoon will mark the 94th meeting between these two teams. Currently UCONN is tied with Brown University as URI's most common opponent meeting 93 previous times. The Huskies own a 50-35-8 lead in the series. The last time the Rams went to East Hartford was in 2006 where UCONN dominated in a 52-7 victory.

"I'm pretty sure they're not even looking at the film on us, Trainer said. "This is a tune up game for them for their game against Pittsburgh. I'm sure they are not sweating us."

This weekend the Rams will be looking for their first win against the Huskies since 2000. The game can be seen live at noon on ESPN360.com.