UConn football coach Randy Edsall spent a few minutes with the media Friday morning to talk about the Huskies’ newest player: USC transfer D.J. Shoemate.
For starters, Edsall made it clear what position the versatile “athlete” will play.
“He is a tailback. He’s going to be a tailback,” Edsall said.
So, does he immediately challenge incumbent Jordan Todman for the No. 1 job? Well, sort of.
“He’s going to have an opportunity to come in here and compete for playing time,” Edsall said. “It’s no different than what we tell all our guys. Whoever the best guy is, is going to play.”
It sounds as if Edsall expects Todman to hold on to the top spot but he’s far from giving the junior the position now. As usual, the coach is hoping to have a 1-2 punch in which multiple backs can contribute.
“I think we’ve been successful when we’ve had two guys,” Edsall said. “You have to have more than one guy at that position.”
Obviously UConn had a connection to Shoemate with his former high school teammate, Johnny McEntee. McEntee is now a quarterback at UConn.
So how did Shoemate end up in Storrs?
“It was after all those sanctions came down at USC,” Edsall said. “We found out that there was an interest in us, and we went through the proper channels.”
Shoemate came to UConn on an official visit and apparently liked what he saw.
In other news:
– Incoming freshman WR Geremy Davis had knee surgery recently and won’t play in the upcoming season.
The 6-foot-2, 205-pounder from Lawrenceville, Ga. will have to wait.
“We don’t expect him to play this year,” Edsall said.
– Edsall awarded a scholarship to senior FB Bret Manning.
The large (255 pounds) bulldozer from Acton, Mass., was a special teams performer and backup fullback last season.
- Neill
