A pair of freshmen, running back Lyle McCombs and quarterback Scott McCumming, each scored two touchdowns Saturday to help the University of Connecticut defeat Rutgers University, 40-22, in a Big East Conference match up at Rentschler Field in East Hartford, CT. UConn (5-6, 3-3 Big East) also forced six turnovers, which led to three touchdowns, to end Rutgers hopes of earning a share of the Big East Championship, a feat accomplished by the Huskies last season. UConn also kept its bowl chances alive as it needs just one more victory to qualify for an invitation -- next Saturday, the Huskies play at Cincinnati.
UConn got off to a quick start turning two first-quarter turnovers by Rutgers into a pair of rushing touchdowns -- one by McCombs another by McCummings -- and led 14-0. The Scarlet Knights got on the board in the second quarter, but the Huskies answered each score to take a 24-10 lead into halftime. From there, UConn pulled away using 16-unanswered points, all coming in the third quarter, to take a 40-10 lead.
McCombs finished the game with 95 rushing yards on 20 carries. On defense, junior defensive end Trevardo Williams compiled four of UConn's six total sacks, while David Rowe had a team-best 10 tackles and a forced fumbled. Senior defensive tackle Kendall Reyes scored a touchdown after picking up a fumbled snap by Rutgers sophomore quarterback Chas Dodd and running it nine yards into the end zone for a second-quarter score that gave UConn a 21-3 lead.
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