Diaco still changing the culture of UConn football

STORRS – From the moment he was hired as the new UConn football coach in December, Bob Diaco has focused on changing the culture of the program. He has attended university events. He led the Huskies through spring practice and the spring game, tweaking things along the way. He logged more than 2,000 miles traveling across the state this summer, going to chili cook-offs and talking to fans over buffalo chicken wings.

Saturday his long wait ended and Diaco had the opportunity to do the one thing he had anticipated the most. The new UConn coach led his team onto the field at the Shenkman practice facility, forced inside by a steady morning rainfall, and fall camp was open.

Nothing gets in the way of Diaco as he executes his masterplan.

After stretching drills, Diaco huddled his players together and asked them, “How hungry are you to improve?” He asked over and over and got an enthusiastic response. And why not? The returning Huskies still have a sour taste left from a 3-9 season that began with nine consecutive losses.

 

“I really, really liked it,” Diaco told the media after practice ended. “It was so fun to be with the guys and get back together. We missed each other. They missed us. They missed each other. It was nice to be on the field, running around with them. It was a good first practice.”

The change of venue didn’t stop Diaco from setting a tone that began with the foundation built in the spring. He greeted a group of players who are in better condition and no one was missing because of injury.

“We want to see winning,” Diaco said. “We don’t want to see things that cause losing. It’s pretty well documented, so I don’t mind saying that the program’s a long way, long way away. We’re closer. Practice one of fall camp was in sharp contrast to practice one in spring football. It shows the investment made during the spring and specifically post-spring.”

A major part of Diaco’s plan is eliminating the factors that lead to losing.

“It wasn’t necessarily what we want to see; we have a list of things we don’t want to see,” he said. “We’re still at that point. But they’ve made a lot of ground up in that area.”

The day began with a 7 a.m. wake up call in the dormitory. Diaco said Sarah Lawless, director of football operations, and her staff were responsible for sounding the alarm up and down hallways.

“Yeah, it’s fun,” Diaco said.

During stretching and speed drills that began just 10 a.m., two enormous sound speakers playing rap music  were belting out tunes for the players’ enjoyment and motivation. That is something that hasn’t been seen in previous coaching administrations at UConn.

Diaco explains the subtleties of adding to the positive attitude in this video.

“There’s an overall energy and excitement and enjoyment in the tasks,” Diaco said. “Things seem harder when you aren’t having fun. It seems longer when you’re not having a good time. When you’re having a good time and working hard, time really seems to fly. All of  those things contribute to guys wanting to be part of what’s happening.”

What happened Saturday was a lot of basic, individual work focusing on techniques and making sure everyone keeps up to speed. He said the three quarterbacks – Casey Cochran, Chandler Whitmer, and Tim Boyle – battling for the starting spot got an equal number of reps but there wasn’t much 7-on-7 or 11-on-11 live football.

“We are going to play great defense,” Diaco said. “We’re going to run the ball with authority and throw the ball aggressively downfield. Special teams become critical because possessions become a premium. You cannot give up possessions.”

Diaco will taking a long look at the tight end position, where the Huskies have a lot of depth. Freshman Steve Hashemi has been added to that group now that Quinn Thompson is no longer with the team.

“I’ve explained how we want to do our business,” Diaco said. “We want to create formations that can overwhelm the defense at the point of attack.”

UConn opens the season Aug. 29 against BYU at Rentschler Field in East Hartford. Kickoff is 7 p.m.