GOP Leader Wants Donors To Pay
The Story: Yes, politicians are back in the news as state senate minority leader Len Fasano said he wants the UConn Foundation to pay for the $20.5 million move to the Big East, not the school, students and taxpayers.
WHO IS THIS GUY? Fasano, a Republican from North Haven, proposed cutting $300 million a couple of years ago from UConn’s budget that could have resulted in the potential closing of regional campuses.
WHAT DID HE SAY? “I believe AAC departure expenses should not be shouldered by students or taxpayers,” Fasano said. “Money that students pay to UConn, whether it be for tuition, meals, housing or any other service, should not be misdirected.”
HE IS FOR THE BIG EAST MOVE: The hysterical part of this is that Fasano was for the Big East move before he was against it. Or, maybe he isn’t against the move but just doesn’t want to pay for it.
MAKES LITTLE SENSE: Fasano wants $20.5 million to be paid out of the Foundation coffers to the athletic department. The problem with that is nearly all of the Foundation’s money is directed toward specific gifts and programs. The Foundation can’t just cut a check, though if a donor or donors want to pay it off, we’re sure they will gladly listen. The funds will be paid from the nearly $13 million in TV rights fees that UConn is due from the AAC in 2018 and 2019 seasons. The rest will come from the athletic department, which said it has identified a revenue source to pay the exit fee. UConn has said it won’t use any state funds for the payment.
We won’t go that far and say state funds and/or student funds aren’t being used for this payment. On paper, that is true because the funding source isn’t taxpayer money. But, money is fungible, so as long as the department takes a healthy subsidy, the taxpayer is footing a portion of the bill.
OUR TAKE: This is silly. Fasano jumped for joy at basketball going to the Big East, and as a leader in Connecticut he could have raised his objection to the payment when the Board of Trustees, governor and school president were about to make a move. He said nothing about the potential payment and UConn knew it was likely to be around $20 million to get out of the Big East. Now he complains when there is no remedy? Way to play both sides of the fence.
Yesterday was also Thomas Kastouleas’ first day as President. We don’t know if he is a big athletics guy or not, but can the political apparatus of this state allow the man to actually get one day of work in before creating another crisis?
Is It Beaudry’s Job To Lose?
The Story: The football team has anold-fashioned quarterback competition at the beginning of camp with Mike Beaudry, Micah Leon and Steve Krajewski vying for the starting job this month.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW: UConn has never really had a quarterback come out of high school and take the starting job. Not since Dan Orlovsky, anyway. The Huskies’ record of recruiting a QB and having him start is abysmal, with most of UConn’s most successful quarterbacks having come in as transfers, such as last year’s starter, David Pindell.
OLD PLAYBOOK: There is a new offensive coordinator in Frank Giufre, but the Huskies only have one holdover from last season in Krajewski, a redshirt freshman. Beaudry arrived from Division II West Florida and Leon is from N.C. State, and as a walk-on-to-scholarship transfer, Leon is eligible right away. There are two freshmen in Jack Zergiotis and Miles Foerster, but they aren’t expected to be in the mix.
WHO GETS THE JOB? This is an open competition, though Beaudry is the most accomplished of the group, having led West Florida to the Division II national game in 2017 after he threw for more than 3,000 yards and 29 TDs. He played only one game in 2018 because of injury and graduated this spring. He’s a big QB at 6-foot-5 and 250 pounds and endeared himself to his offensive linemen by taking them out to the Dairy Bar this summer. We are not sure strength and conditioning coach Matt King will like that, but to us, ice cream is even better than Isotoner gloves.
OUR TAKE: Beaudry is the most experienced, and excelling at West Florida shows he can play the position. Beaudry missed all of last season and FBS defenses are quicker, but players don’t excel in D-II if they can’t throw the ball. Beaudry also wasn’t brought here to sit, and is the only quarterback on the roster to throw a college pass. He could have stayed at West Florida, so though we haven’t seen him play, our money is on the more proven commodity.
Krajewski is the longest-tenured quarterback (yikes) and at 6-foot-4 and 204 pounds is still developing. There is no need to push him into a starting role unless he wins it outright. Leon is a mystery to us. He hasn’t played in a real game since 2016 in high school. He sat out as a redshirt and then didn’t see any action his second year and comes to UConn with three years of eligibility left.
Morning Read
SHOULD FLORIDA STATE SCHEDULE UCONN? Could Florida State fill its open date in 2020 with a game against UConn? Who are we to argue? (Chop Chat)
KEEP AN ON JONES: There is one player on defense we should all keep an eye on: Defensive tackle Travis Jones. (WTNH)
BEAVERS ELIGIBLE: Former UConn defensive end Darrian Beavers, who led the team with four sacks last year, was granted immediate eligibility by the NCAA to play this season for Cincinnati. (Local12)
