UConn football expecting ‘big things’ out of its veteran defensive front seven

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STORRS – UConn’s defensive front is ready to get after an opponent.

The Huskies’ most-known commodity entering Saturday’s season-opener against Lafayette, the front seven features a number of older players with proven experience at their previous stops now looking to wreak havoc in Ryan Manalac’s system. Both the defensive line and linebacker rooms – deep with talent – have impressed new head coach Jason Candle throughout fall camp.

“It’s our chemistry,” said defensive end Avery Dunn, who began his career at Michigan State before joining Candle at Toledo last year. “We have a lot of veteran guys on the D-line and overall we have a lot of experience. A lot of us come from different places, but overall, we have a lot of plays under our belts so I think that allows us to play much faster and aggressive. Ultimately, I think for the D-line, our biggest motto is to play violent and fast, and also be intelligent. Chemistry helps with the intelligent part and just being violent and playing fast is what makes it all come together.”

Dunn, who made 14 tackles and a sack in seven games last year for the Rockets, was named one of four team captains for the season alongside returning offensive lineman Ty Chan and the linebacker duo of K’Von Sherman and John Lista, which has very high expectations entering the season.

He’ll be one of four down linemen as the program moves away from the 3-3-5 defensive scheme fans had gotten used to over the last two years under outgoing coordinator Matt Brock. Esean Carter, another Toledo transfer expecting to thrive in Manalac’s system, played all 13 games at defensive tackle last year and made a combined 36 stops, including 3.0 sacks, 3.5 tackles for loss and a pass deflection.

The Huskies should have the fortune of rotating several players in on the line, including Andrew Laurich, a DT from Colorado State who made three fumble recoveries in one game last season, Joshua Mickens from Ohio State, Tahjae Mullix from Oregon State, Desmond Aladuge from Duke and Shamar Riser-Pressley from Buffalo. Not to forget Texas transfer Melvin Hills III or Matt Hoffman, who made 22 tackles off the edge for the Huskies last year.

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“Especially off the edge, we have a lot of competition there and that allows us to just get better every day. I think you’ll see, as the season goes on, that we’ll continue to excel and just get better throughout the whole season,” Dunn said.

The linebacker position is in good hands with Sherman and Lista, a UPenn transfer, leading the way, along with Luke Murphy, a fifth-year player who made 94 tackles at Eastern Michigan in 2024 before spending last season at Coastal Carolina, and Rickey Williams, another Toledo transfer.

Jayden Davis, a fifth-year player from Fresno State, figures to fit into the new hybrid linebacker/safety role for the Huskies, which could also fit Kylish Hicks, a player who started his career as a receiver at UConn before moving to linebacker and spending most of his time on special teams in 2024.

UConn isn’t as experienced in the secondary, though safety Braedyn Moore is a player who’s been developed by Candle and played in all 13 games for the Rockets last season, Saxton Suchanic is entering his second year in Storrs and cornerback Moussa Kane made two interceptions and a sack as a junior last year at Duke. Other players, like corners Tyler McKinstry, CJ Bell and safety Tracy Revels come into the season with something to prove.

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“Manalac’s defense allows for a lot more freedom,” Suchanic said. “I think they trust the players a little more to make our own checks. At the end of the day, we’re the ones that are out there, so we might see things differently than coaches and I think they give us a lot more freedom to give our own suggestions. It’s a very flexible defense… Our job on the back end, all I care about is making sure we get right from a communication standpoint and an execution standpoint so we can cover and let our guys up front get home. I love seeing them eat. They’re a very big, physical, fast, aggressive group, so expect big things out of them.”

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