SYRACUSE, N.Y. – With a power conference victory seemingly in its grasp, the UConn football team let it all slip away.
The Huskies lost in an overtime heartbreaker to Syracuse, 27-20, at the JMA Wireless Dome on Saturday.
UConn (1-1) appeared to have an overwhelming edge over the Orange for three quarters, but failed to move the ball on offense and saw its 17-6 lead dissipate as it punted six consecutive times in the second half. Syracuse QB Steve Angeli, who was under duress for most of the afternoon, led a methodical two-minute drill and handed the ball off for Yasin Willis to take the first lead, tacking on a two-point conversion with 48 seconds left in regulation.
Skyler Bell brought the Huskies to life with three receptions during their desperation drive. He made a one-handed catch for 26 yards on fourth down and moved the ball into the red zone with another, setting up Chris Freeman’s 41-yard field goal to grant overtime.
It took five plays for the Orange to find the end zone in the first overtime period and UConn couldn’t answer.
UConn linebacker Bryun Parham catches up to Syracuse quarterback Steve Angeli during the Huskies’ game at Syracuse on Saturday, Sept. 6, 2025. (Courtesy of UConn)
“Very disappointing loss for our young men,” head coach Jim Mora said. “We played hard, but we didn’t make plays when we needed to make plays – and I’m talking about everybody, not just the players. When I say ‘make plays’ I’m talking about the staff, coaches. We were playing great defense but we weren’t getting anything going on offense, and our defense didn’t make the plays to get off the field… It was just very disappointing.”
Mora challenged UConn’s new-look defense after he said it played “soft” up the middle in the season-opening win over Central Connecticut State, and the Huskies answered the call for most of Saturday’s game.
The Huskies made a stop on 4th-and-2 in front of their own end zone on the opening drive and continued to dominate in short yardage, holding the Orange to just 3-for-8 on third down and 0-for-2 on fourth in the first half.
Offensively, the Huskies moved down the field with their own sequence of chunk plays and finished their second series with some trickery.
On a double pass to start the second quarter, John Neider completed a 15-yard touchdown to tight end Alex Honig that started the scoring. Neider, from Milford, Conn., was the state’s Gatorade Player of the Year in 2022, when he passed for 2,289 yards and 30 touchdowns for Jonathan Law High, but has spent most of his time at UConn as a receiver and on special teams.
Syracuse continued to advance the ball but was stopped again on 4th-and-short inside the 10 as UConn DB Tyrece Mills came clean around the edge and knocked the arm of QB Steve Angeli for a strip sack that was recovered by Bryun Parham.
But not all of UConn’s Week One issues were cleaned up.
UConn receiver Reymello Murphy (6) looks for running room during the first half of the Huskies’ game at Syracuse on Saturday, Sept. 6, 2025. (Courtesy of UConn)
Another long snap sailed over the head of punter Connor Stutz, which set the Orange up in the red zone. But the defense held strong again, igniting a series of boos from the home crowd as Syracuse lined up a 38-yard field goal for its first points.
UConn had a 73-23 advantage in rushing yards after the first half, most of which came on a 45-yard touchdown sprint from Mel Brown, who took advantage of great execution by the Huskies’ offensive line and gave the Huskies a 14-3 lead with a minute left in the half.
Syracuse moved down the field quickly for another field goal to make it 14-6 at the break.
Joe Fagnano hit Cam Edwards for a 34-yard catch-and-run before the opening drive of the second half stalled and resulted in a 35-yard field goal from Chris Freeman that made it a two-score difference.
The Orange started to get some momentum early in the fourth quarter, after Angeli connected with Darrell Gill for a 40-yard gain, but missed a field goal wide right with 12 minutes to go.
D’Mon Brinson, one of two returning starters on the defensive side of the ball, hauled in the Huskies’ first interception of the season on the next drive. But Cam Chadwick, UConn’s other returning starter on defense, got fooled on a 47-yard touchdown pass from Angeli to Justus Ross-Simmons to start the comeback.
UConn’s offense had to punt for a sixth time in seven second-half drives and gave the Orange the ball with 2:06 to go and one timeout before Yasin Willis found the edge and got into the end zone. The two-point conversion made it a three-point game.
In overtime, after Freeman’s field goal, Ross-Simmons scored the game-winning touchdown from six yards out. UConn advanced the ball to the Syracuse 4-yard line but Fagnano’s pass to tight end Juice Vereen on fourth down fell incomplete.
