Spring Break
Running back Andre Dixon turned his ankle at practice Tuesday and is
day-to-day, according to head coach Randy Edsall.
Dixon will be evaluated tomorrow to see if he can go in Thursday’s season
opener against Hofstra.
“We’ve got to take a look at him and see what happened to him,” Edsall said.
If he is unable to play, redshirt freshman Robbie Frey will serve as the primary backup
to starting tailback Donald Brown.
Dixon was voted the team’s Co-Offensive MVP last season after rushing for
828 yards and three touchdowns while sharing time with Brown.
A redshirt junior, Dixon will likely split carries again this season.
Although it came two round later than most expected, UConn cornerback/kick returner Tyvon Branch was selected by the Oakland Raiders with the first pick in the fourth round (100 overall) of the 2008 NFL Draft.
Branch’s selection is the second highest for a UConn player in the modern era of the draft. Alfred Fincher holds the mark after being taken with pick No. 82 in the third round of the 2005 draft.
The Raiders, who hadn’t selected a player since taking running back Darren McFadden with the No. 4 pick in the draft, traded with the Dallas Cowboys to move up to the top of the round to select the Huskies defensive back.
Branch joins a crowded Oakland defensive backfield that just traded for Pro Bowl corner DeAngelo Hall from the Atlanta Falcons and already boasts three former first- or second-round picks, including the recently franchised Nnamdi Asomugha.
But the Raiders also traded away cornerback Fabian Washington, their first-round selection in the 2005 (No. 27 overall), to the Baltimore Ravens minutes after selecting Branch. This could open up some playing time for Branch on defense.
Regardless, he should inherit the second kick returner role next to Chris Carr immediately. Carr had a decent season returning kicks last year, accumulating 1,327 return yards, but the fellow defensive back did not record a touchdown and had 400 fewer yards on returns than he’d posted the past two years.
The ESPN crew also highlighted Branch after the selection, and draft guru Mel Kiper Jr. spent a good two minutes praising the pick and Randy Edsall for the progress he’s made with the program.
11:05 a.m.
No Branch siting yet, but the UConn corner has moved into Mel Kiper’s “Best Available Players.” He currently sits at No. 12.
10:15 a.m.
The second and final day of the draft is underway, and it is really early. The 3 p.m. start was nice yesterday, because I got to sleep in a bit, but I’m not really excited about waking up this morning. At least I have the dulcet tones of Trey Wingo joining the announcing crew. Also in the mix are Jaws and Chris Carter.
No running commentary today, as it’s way too early and there’s a chance I may fall asleep. But I’m eagerly awaiting the selection of Tyvon Branch — it could happen any minute now — and then the rest of the Huskies. Almost 10 picks have already gone off the board, and with players like Donnie Avery going at the top of the second round, Larry Taylor could be selected soon.
Stay tuned.
The first day of the NFL Draft has come and gone with no UConn player hearing his name called.
Although most of the Huskies were preparing to wait for the second day, Huskies cornerback/kick returner Tyvon Branch was being projected to land toward the end of the second round. However, Branch, who ran one of the fastest 40-yard dash times of all participants at the Combine, was not selected and will have to wait until tomorrow to learn his destiny.
Offensive Guard Donald Thomas should come off the board pretty early on Day 2. The senior, who blazed the second fastest 40 and one of the best three-cone times of all 48 offensive linemen in Indianapolis, is projected to land somewhere between the third and fifth round.
Linebacker Danny Lansanah could be chosen later on, perhaps in the seventh round, and defensive tackle Dan Davis and wide receiver Larry Taylor may have a shot in the final round.
Draft coverage resumes at 10 a.m. tomorrow on ESPN and the NFL Network.
As you might have guessed, the constant updates have stopped here at Draft central. I’ll be sure to post every so often with thoughts, and I’ll be sure to post when Branch is chosen — which is expected to come some time soon.
One I want to point out is the great move by the Ravens in moving up from pick 26 to 18 to select Delaware QB Joe Flacco. Not only is the gun slinger overrated, but 29 picks later and a quarterback still hasn’t been picked. Chad Henne and Brian Brohm, two QBs supposed to be flying off the shelves, are still hanging out at home.
I don’t know who the Ravens were talking to, but they received some pretty bad information.
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