Army football prepping for Connecticut football team with notable coach, player defections ahead of Fenway Bowl.
Prepping for bowl games has not been an easy task in college football.
Historically, it's been difficult for some teams to be motivated to play in a postseason game with no playoff implications, or compete in a bowl game considered inferior to preconceived notions of grandeur and higher bowl payouts. Then there's the three- or four-week layoffs for most schools that have not played since late November. Throw in the growing exodus list of coaches who have taken new jobs before the New Year, and hundreds of players who have opted out to preserve their bodies before all-important pro showcase events or have joined the NCAA transfer portal.
So what kind of University of Connecticut team will line up against Army at next Saturday's Fenway Bowl in Boston? For starters, UConn will be utilizing offensive coordinator Gordon Sammis as its interim head coach with the defection of Jim Mora to Colorado State — former Toledo coach Jason Candle has taken the UConn job but will not be involved in prepping for this game.
Army football: Facing the unknown
"There's challenges,'' said Army head coach Jeff Monken late last week, ahead of a host of defections from the UConn program. "I guess just the expectations of certain guys in (certain) jersey numbers. Maybe all of their players are going to play in the game; we're assuming they are and we're preparing for that. But we don't know.''
The picture has become a bit clearer, with four starters, a pair of defensive backups and four additional players telling UConn officials they will be sitting out. Most notable is starting quarterback Joe Fagnano, who has said he will focus on prepping for three college bowl showcase events rather than lead the Huskies.
Left tackle Ben Murawski is another offensive player sitting out. On defense, tackle Vincent Carroll-Jackson and end Stephon Wright will be missing from the starting front. Two backups missing from the secondary are safeties Tyrece Mills and Kamo'i Latu. Four additional players (not on the last-released two-deep) who will sit out are Carsten Casady; Tank Green; Dom Toy; and, Chris Hudson. There were reports that All-American wide receiver Skyler Bell was going to opt out but he announced that he will be playing.
Additional portal entries have included starting cornerback and kick returner Cam Chadwick and starting running back Cam Edwards — their Fenway status remains unclear. Backup running back Victor Rosa may also be in the portal.
On the other hand, Army will roll out the same lineup it used in its Dec. 13 setback to Navy. The only notable change to the two-deep chart has running back Jake Rendina moving back to a starting nod and Carson Smith on the second unit (Smith missed the Navy game).
Also, sophomore Sean Donovan is now listed as the backup at nose tackle, with senior Jacob Tuioti off the two-deep - Donovan has appeared in just five games, missing the last two, while Tuioti missed three November games to injury but returned for the UTSA and Navy games.
Stephen Nnadozie is listed as the backup at strong safety after missing the Navy game. Backup running back David Clerk saw action against Navy after missing the previous six games.
BetMGM has Army (6-6) listed as a 10-point favorite over UConn (9-3), with an over-under of 43.5 points. ESPN will televise the 2:15 p.m. contest.
Monken said the main objective of the bowl game is to win, so he's not making any plans of utilizing seniors more in a farewell party, nor does he plan on experimenting with younger players or those deeper on the depth chart as a first-look for the 2026 season.
"We're going to try to do everything that we can to win that game,'' Monken said. "We'll do what we think we need to, to try to win the game. .... I don't think experimenting at this point and trying to see things we can do in the future ... We have to figure out those in the future.''
Army has had its share of bowl pullouts. The COVID pandemic prompted a number of players and coaches to miss the 2020 Liberty Bowl. Last season, standout running back Kanye Udoh played in the Navy game but immediately announced his entry into the transfer portal, sitting out the 2024 Independence Bowl game against Louisiana Tech. Udoh played for Arizona State in 2025.
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Army offense depth chart
QB - No. 3 Cale Hellums, Jr.; No. 10 Dewayne Coleman, Sr.; No. 1 Zach Mundell, Jr.
RB - No. 33 Jake Rendina, Jr.; No. 34 Carson Smith, Jr.
RB - No. 27 Samari Howard, Jr.; No. 2 Aden Self, Soph.
Slot - No. 15 Noah Short, Sr.; No. 26 David Clerk, Jr.
WR - No. 84 Brady Anderson, Soph.; No. 4 Liam Fortner, Jr.
TE - No. 44 Parker Poloskey, Jr.; No 86 Tex Brannan, Soph.
LT - No. 58 Henry Appleton, Jr.; No. 78 Xavier Archawski, Soph.
LG - No. 59 Will Jeffcoat, Sr.; No. 72 Lane Parks, Jr.
C - No. 51 Brady Small, Jr.; No. 75 Kyle Kloska, Jr.
RG - No. 71 Paolo Gennarelli, Jr.; No. 50 Braden Bartosh, Sr.
RT - No. 74 Teddy Williams, Jr.; No. 56 Tyler Lee, Jr.
Army defense depth chart
DL - No. 92 Jack Latore, Sr.; No. 94 Javon Smith, Soph.
NT - No. 52 Kody Harris-Miller, Sr.; No. 91 Sean Donovan, Soph.
DL - No. 99 Jack Bousum, Soph.; No. 98 Deshontez Gray, Sr.
OLB - No. 40 Eric Ford, Sr.; No. 47 Noah Nixon, Jr.
OLB - No. 14 Gavin Shields, Sr.; No. 10 Cole Searight, Soph.
ILB - No. 51 Andon Thomas, Sr.; No. 21 Baylor Newsom, Jr.
ILB - No. 53 Kalib Fortner, Sr.; No. 48 Bryson Banks, Fr.
CB - No. 7 Jaydan Mayes, Jr.; No. 6 Jabril Williams, Sr.;
SS - No. 20 Casey Larkin, Sr.; No. 3 Stephen Nnadozie, Jr.
FS - No. 30 Collin Matteson, Sr.; No. 13 Caleb Williams, Soph.
CB - No. 5 Justin Weaver, Sr.; No. 17 Jaxon Hammond, Jr.
Army special teams depth chart
P - No. 46 James Wagenseller, Jr.
K - No. 95 Dawson Jones, Soph.
Kickoff - No. 1 Anderson Britton, Sr.
Holder - No. 38 Cooper Allan, Sr.
Long snapper - No. 55 Owen Walter, Jr.
Kick return - No. 23 Lloyd Benson III, Jr.; No. 7 Jaydan Mayes, Jr.
Punt return - No. 23 Lloyd Benson III, Jr.; No. 7 Jaydan Mayes, Jr.
Connecticut officials will not be releasing a two-deep chart to the media ahead of the Army game, so here is the Huskies' last two-deep against Florida Atlantic on Nov. 22, with the announced opt outs listed, plus transfer reports:
Connecticut offense depth chart
QB - No. 2 Joe Fagnano, Grad (OPT OUT); No. 3 Nick Evers, R-Jr.
RB - No. 0 Cam Edwards, R-Jr. (PORTAL); No. 22 Victor Rosa, R-Jr. (PORTAL)
TE - No. 86 Alex Honig, R-Sr.; No. 81 Louis Hansen, Sr.
WR - No. 1 Skyler Bell, R-Sr.; No. 13 Chris Parker, R-Sr.
WR - No. 6 Reymello Murphy, R-Sr. No. 19 Jackson Harper, R-Soph.
WR - No. 5 Shamar Porter, R-Soph.; No. 80 John Neider, R-Soph.
LT - No. 77 Ben Murawski, R-Jr. (OPT OUT); No. 76 Toriyan Johnson, R-Soph.
LG - No. 58 Kyle Juergens, R-Sr.; No. 56 Tamarus Walker, R-Soph.
C - No. 73 Wes Hoeh, Sr.; No. 52 Deron McLaughlin, R-Fr.
RG - 69 Ty Chan, R-Jr.; No. 66 Brady Wayburn, R-Soph. (PORTAL)
RT - No. 5 - Shamar Porter, R-Soph.; No. 80 John Neider, R-Soph.
Connecticut defense depth chart
DE - No. 1 Ben Smiley, R-Sr.; No. 58 Antoineo Harris Jr., Grad
DT - No. 55 Vincent Carroll-Jackson, R-Soph. (OPT OUT); No. 96 Marquis Black, Grad
DE - No. 92 Stephon Wright, Grad (OPT OUT); No. 94 Matt Hoffman, R-Jr.
WLB - No. 32 Oumar Diomande, R-Soph.; No. 9 Amir Renwick, Grad
MLB - No. 6 Byrun Parham, R-Sr.; No. 10 Tyquan King, R-Sr.
SLB - No. 5 Aaron Key, Grad; No. 11 Donovan Branch, Sr.
CB - No. 2 Devin Pringle, R-Sr.; No. 20 Osiris Gilbert, Fr. (PORTAL)
S - No. 7 Malachi McLean, Soph.; No. 14 Tyrece Mills, R-Sr. (OPT OUT)
S - No. 21 Lee Molette, R-Jr.; No. 25 Saxton Suchanic, Fr.
S - No. 3 D'Mon Brinson, Sr.; No. 15 Kamo'i Latu, R-Sr. (OPT OUT)
CB - No. 13 Cam Chadwick, R-Soph. (PORTAL); No. 18 Kylish Hicks, R-Jr.
Connecticut special teams depth chart
Kickoff - No. 28 Chris Freeman, Grad; No. 35 Spencer Sullins, R-Fr.
Placekicker - No. 28 Chris Freeman, Grad; No. 35 Spencer Sullins, R-Fr.
Holder - No. 17 Connor Stutz, Sr.
Long snapper - No. 47 Zach Christinat, R-Soph.; No. 24 Tashi Crofut, R-Fr.
Punter - No. 17 Connor Stutz, Sr.; No. 35 Spencer Sullins, R-Fr.
Punt return - No. 19 Jackson Harper, R-Soph.
Kick return - No. 13 Cam Chadwick, R-Soph.; No. 22 Victor Rosa, R-Jr.; No. 15 Terrence Smith, R-Fr.
This article originally appeared on Times Herald-Record: Army faces unknown Connecticut lineup headed to Fenway Bowl
Category: General Sports
