UConn sports

In case you didn’t realize, tickets for Saturday’s UConn-Rutgers game at Rentschler Field are still available.

The game, which will be the Huskies’ first at home since the death of Jasper Howard, starts at noon.

Tickets can be purchased at uconnhuskies.com or by calling 1-800-745-3000.

The Rentschler Field box office, which is located near Gate B, will open at 9 a.m. on Saturday for walk-up sales.

- Neill

UConn police on Thursday arrested a fourth man in connection with the murder of football player Jasper Howard.

Christopher J. Mutchler, an 18-year-old from Wethersfield, was charged with hindering prosecution in the first degree, interfering with an officer, breach of peace in the second degree, threatening in the second degree and with an “act of terrorism.

Police said Mutchler posted messages on the internet that appeared to threaten potential witnesses from contacting police with information about the Howard murder.

One of the postings was on a blog on the ESPNU Sports Network that was dedicated to news about Howard’s death. The second was on a Facebook wall titled “RIP Jasper Howard.”

Police said in a news release that they “had reason to believe that the postings were instilling fear and preventing witnesses from coming forward.”

Investigators determined that Mutchler was responsible for the postings, though police said they believe he had no link to the others arrested in the case. They called his posts “empty threats.”

Mutchler was released on a $15,000 non-surety bond and is due in court Nov. 10.

John W. Lomax III has been charged with murder and conspiracy to commit assault in Howard’s death. He is being held on $2 million bond.

Hakim Muhammad is charged with conspiracy to commit assault and is being held on $450,000 bond.

Muhammad and Lomax escalated what had been a minor disagreement Oct. 18 outside the Student Union, a prosecutor said Wednesday. The two went back to Lomax’s car for knives, State’s Attorney Matthew Gedansky said in court, and Lomax eventually stabbed Howard.

Jamal Tood, a 21-year-old from Hartford, has also been charged with pulling the fire alarm that preceded the stabbing. He is charged with falsely reporting an incident and reckless endangerment.

- Neill

Had something of a state of the union with the coach Jim Calhoun this afternoon. The coach covered a myriad of topics:

– The Huskies have been battling a few minor injuries.

PG Kemba Walker hyperextended his right knee last week and missed four practices. He was back on the court Tuesday.

“It was a fast break between me and Darius. I was going to try and block his shot,” Walker said. “And then Jerome came out of nowhere, blocked his shot aggressively and just knocked everyone down. My knee kind of went backwards.”

SG Jerome Dyson has left early in seven of the Huskies’ nine practices, Calhoun said. None of his injuries have been serious but…

PF Ater Majok (stress fracture in left shin) practiced for the first time Thursday. The Huskies are easing him back into their workouts. He was scheduled to practice for just 45 minutes on Thursday then 50 on Friday and maybe 55 minutes on Saturday.

– Calhoun attended a meeting Thursday morning at UConn that discussed the building of a basketball practice facility. He came away rather enthuses about the prospects.

“We looked at what it would look like and where it would be,” Calhoun said.

The building will (eventually) be built on the site of the former Memorial Stadium _ or just to the North, closer to the old football facilities building.

“We need it desperately, for a whole bunch of reasons,” Calhoun said.

In addition to both basketball teams having the freedom to practice whenever they want (and allowing individuals to practice on their own whenever they want), the building would obviously be a major recruiting tool.

“We want to be able to tell our story as loudly and as boldly as we can,” Calhoun said while sitting in his office, which happens to be full to the brim with memorabilia.

– The Huskies have worked on both their 1-2-1-1 full court press as well as the 2-2-1 press.

– He was, of course, not overly specific but Calhoun expects some recruiting news soon.

“We’re awfully close to having two or three things happen to us,” Calhoun said.

Two of UConn’s assistant coaches (Andre LaFleur and Pat Sellers) are on the road now recruiting. One is in Las Vegas and the other is in Florida. Perhaps a point guard or two are getting some attention.

– The television coverage plans for UConn’s opener against William & Mary Nov. 13 at Gampel Pavilion have changed. The game will now be seen on Ch. 8 (WTNH).

It was previously scheduled for Ch. 59 (MyTV9/WCTX).

– Boxer Chad Dawson, who has a fight coming up at the XL Center, will visit the Huskies when they practice Tuesday in Hartford.

- Neill

Just when you thought he was out…they drag him back in.

Well, it was probably more like HE did the dragging. Anyway, linebacker Scott Lutrus, he of the oft-stingered left shoulder, will be back on the field Saturday against Rutgers.

Coach Randy Edsall dropped that little bomb during his Thursday afternoon chat with reporters.

Edsall says his medical staff came to him on Tuesday (it was probably Sunday but we’ll argue with the coach another day) and told him Lutrus had been cleared.

“He’s practiced all week and practiced well,” Edsall said. “He’s cleared to go. He wants to go.”

- Neill

Prior to being individually arraigned, John William Lomax III, right, accompanied by his attorney Deron Freeman, second right, and Hakim Muhammad, with his attorney Gerald Klein, far left, appear for their arraignment before a Superior Court judge with regard to charges connected with the slaying of UConn football player Jasper Howard, in a courtroom at Rockville Superior Court in Vernon on Wednesday (Associated Press-George Ruhe).

Just finished writing for the print side. Sorry for the delay in updating the blog world.

Spent the day in Rockville Superior Court covering the arraignments of John W. Lomax III and Hakim Muhammed, the Bloomfield men charged in connection with Jasper Howard’s death.

Lomax, who is charged with murder and conspiracy to commit assault, remains in custody on $2 million bond. He’s due back in court Nov. 13.

Muhammed, who is charged with conspiracy to commit assault, has his bond reduced from $750,000 to $450,000. He’ll be back in court Nov. 20.

The two men, who are neighbors in Bloomfield, both work at Intechra in Windsor. They were arrested at work and were still wearing shirts with the company logo Wednesday in court. They were, of course, handcuffed and shackled, too.

Neither man has a criminal record.

Matthew Gedansky, the State’s Attorney in the Tolland district and the prosecutor in the case, said the two men went back to Lomax’s car to get knives in the early morning hours of Oct. 18 outside the UConn Student Union.

“The investigators have located a number of witnesses that identified this defendant (Muhammed) as going to his co-defendant’s car with his co-defendant, Mr. Lomax, in the middle of what started out as a very minor altercation, arming themselves with weapons _ knives _ and returning to his minor altercation and escalating it,” Gedansky said. “There are witnesses that put a knife in this defendant’s (Muhammed) hands.”

Lomax is accused of doing the actual stabbing of Howard.

“The investigators found a number of witnesses that identified (Lomax) as the killer in this case,” Gedansky said.

Lomax’s attorney, Deron Freeman, called the arrest warrant affidavits in the case “convoluted.”

“This was a mutual combat situation,” said Freeman, who argued Lomax’s bail should be reduced to $250,000. “He was being engaged.”

Freeman said his client did not stab Howard.

Muhammad’s attorney, Gerald Klein, argued that no witness had come forward to say that his client “did anything with a knife” and that his bail should be reduced based on the fact that he was charged with a Class B felony and not the more serious offense.

“He’s entitled to a bond that he can make based on a Class B felony,” Klein said.

Jamal Todd is accused by police of pulling the fire alarm that preceded the altercation, and has been charged with falsely reporting an incident and reckless endangerment. Todd, an ECSU student originally from Hartford, is due in court Nov. 10.

But Todd’s attorney, Jonathan Budlong, says his client has cooperated fully with investigators and did not know either Lomax or Muhammad.

“Jamal was not involved in the death of Mr. Howard and he is not associated, in any fashion, with John W. Lomax III or Hakim Muhammad,” Budlong said in a statement. “Unfortunately, and by pure coincidence, Jamal was at the wrong place at the wrong time, and only because of the unforeseeable criminal actions of others is Jamal now being associated with these two men.”

Lomax appeared to have some 20-30 friends and family in the courtroom to support him. His mother Troylyn Grimes was there, as was his 2-year-old daughter.

- Neill

STORRS — The University of Connecticut and its division of athletics will honor the memory of Jasper Howard as the team returns to Rentschler Field on Saturday for the first time since Howard passed away on Oct. 18. UConn will take on Rutgers at noon in a Big East Conference game.

All fans who attend Saturday’s game will receive a “6” card in honor of Jasper Howard’s jersey number. In addition, the first 15,000 fans who enter the gates will receive “Jazz Live 365” wristbands.

UConn students who attend the game will receive the same “eye-black” that the Husky team is wearing — one with a “6” and the other with a “JH”. All UConn students will also receive a “6” button.

Prior to the contest, the UConn Marching Band will come onto the field all wearing No. 6 jerseys and will display the formation of a “6” in the word “UCONN” during its pregame program.

Following the entrance of both teams on to the field for the game, there will be a “Moment of Respect” in honor of Howard with both teams lining up on their respective sidelines.

“We encourage all Husky fans to arrive at their seats in Rentschler Field by 11:30 a.m. on Saturday in order to see the pregame band show and to be present for the Moment of Respect,” UConn head coach Randy Edsall said. “There are a number of pregame activities and we would like to see every seat occupied as a sign of respect for Jazz.”

The Connecticut team will once again wear a “JH” sticker on its helmet while Rutgers will wear a “6”.

As fans enter Rentschler Field, they will have the opportunity to donate to both of the funds that have been set up in his memory.

Fans are also reminded that they will be permitted to bring signs honoring Howard into Rentschler Field. This will be a one-time exception to the regular Rentschler policy prohibiting signs. Signs cannot be on sticks or poles — and signs cannot impair the enjoyment of the game for other fans.

“This is one more way that our fans can make a personal tribute to Jasper Howard,” UConn AD Jeffrey Hathaway. “We thank our friends at Rentschler Field for relaxing the ‘no signs’ policy for this one game only and providing fans another opportunity to honor Jasper.”

Prior to the game at approximately 9:40 a.m., the UConn football team will take part in their usual pregame “Husky Walk”. Fans can greet the Huskies from Gates D to C at Rentschler Field to welcome the team to the game.

- Neill

Here’s the Jasper Howard info:

STORRS _ Police arrested three men in connection with the death of UConn football player Jasper Howard Tuesday, including one who has been charged with murder.

Lomax

John W. Lomax III, a 21-year-old Bloomfield man, was charged with murder and conspiracy to commit assault in the first degree. He is being held on a $2 million bond and is due to appear in Rockville Superior Court Wednesday.

Another Bloomfield man, 20-year-old Hakim Muhammad, was also arrested Monday and charged with conspiracy to commit assault in the first degree. He is being held on a $750,000 bond and is also due in court Wednesday.

A third man has been accused of pulling the fire alarm that preceded the altercation and stabbing.

Muhammad

Jamal Todd, 21, of Hartford was arrested and charged with falsely reporting an incident and reckless endangerment. He was released on a $5,000 non-surety bond and is due in court Nov. 10.

Both state and UConn police announced the arrests in a brief press conference Wednesday on the UConn campus.

“We’ve worked non-stop since the night of the stabbing,” UConn Police Chief Robert Hudd said.

Todd

Maj. Ron Blicher, also of the UConn Police, said a task force of 40 investigators conducted over 200 interviews in the case.

- Neill

As we wait for news from the cops, here’s some info from football coach Randy Edsall.

– Jasper Howard’s funeral put a bit of closure on the tragedy. Saturday against Rutgers will be the first home game since Howard’s death, but the Huskies are almost back to normal.

“We had our normal Tuesday morning meeting this morning. The guys were attentive, alert. We didn’t have to talk about some of the other issues that have come up,” Edsall said.

– The Huskies will continue to wear the “JH” stickers in Howard’s honor for the rest of the season. The team will also wear the No. 6 Howard T-shirts on the Husky Walk as they enter the stadium.

There will also be a moment of silence before the game.

– K Dave Teggart isn’t likely to lose his job. Then again, Edsall is anxious to put a little pressure on Teggart to perform better.

“We kick Desi with him every week. And we’ll do that again this week. They both take reps and we monitor it,” Edsall said.

Teggart’s problems stem from his plant foot, according to Edsall, and his isssues are more technical than mental.

“He’s proven he can be a very good kicker,” Edsall said. “You try to help him by saying ‘Just go out there and kick.’ ”

There’s an outside chance Cullen comes in to do placekicking this season but Edsall said true freshman Chad Christen isn’t a real option at this point.

– Quarterback Cody Endres is now 16th in the country in pass efficiency. But that’s not all he’s done well.

“I think he’s gotten better with each game. You can see that,” Edsall said.

– CB Dwayne Gratz did well Saturday in his first significant action.

“That’s as good a play as we’ve seen a corner make on a ball in the air,” Edsall said of an early test the Mountaineers gave him.

“For his first extended time of playing, he passed.”

– No changes to the depth chart for (I believe) the first time this season.

– In the seven meetings between Rutgers and UConn since 2001 (the modern era of the series), six of the seven have been decided by 10 points or less.

- Neill