UNH notebook: No time for playoff talk
Roger Brown
nhfootballreport.com
It's getting late in the season, but not late enough for University of New Hampshire coach Sean McDonnell to start talking about a league championship or the NCAA playoffs.
"There's a lot of football left with a bunch of teams playing each other,"McDonnell said when asked about the possibility of earning a home game for this year's NCAA tournament. "The next one is the most important one. We've got Rhode Island. We have got to say on course here. We better be ready to go."
UNH (7-1 overall, 4-1 in the Colonial Athletic Association) will meet Rhode Island (1-7, 0-5) on Saturday at Cowell Stadium. The game, which is scheduled to start at noon, can be seen on Comcast Sports Network.
Rhode Island's only victory came against Fordham (41-28). The Rams have lost seven in a row since then.
"They have so many weapons," Rhode Island coach Joe Trainer said. "They're kind of a benchmark of what we're trying to get to."
Although UNH is a heavy favorite this weekend, McDonnell didn't bite when asked about the possibility of winning the CAA championship.
"Again, it won't matter if we don't beat Rhode Island this week," he said. "The only destiny that we control is what happens on Saturday. You got to look down the road after that at two very good football teams (William & Mary and Maine). It doesn't matter what happens in those next two games if we don't take care of business this week."
Talking points
It's becoming customary for opposing coaches to mention defense first when asked to size up this year's UNH team. Here's what Trainer had to say about the Wildcats:
"The reason I think they're a much better team this year than they were last year is because of their defense. They're much more athletic.
"Up until probably this year they've always been prolific on offense and done a great job on special teams, but I think they were gonna have to win a lot of those games 38-35. Just try and win shootouts against quality teams.
"I think this year they're exceptionally better on defense.than they've been probably at any point since my time in the CAA. They're not giving up big plays. They're athletic. They pressure the quarterback."
Noteworthy
There are two New Hampshire residents on the Rhode Island roster: junior wide receiver Greg Wicks (Bedford/Tabor Academy) and freshman safety David Zocco (Nashua/Nashua South). Zocco was named New Hampshire's Mr. Football last season. ... UNH is ranked eighth in The Sports Network's FCS Top 25 poll. ...Rhode Island quarterback Chris Paul Etienne is a transfer from Rutgers. ... Rhode Island sophomore Ty Bynum has 17 receptions for 168 yards in the last three games. ... UNH leads the all-time series with Rhode Island 50-28-5.
