Connecticut football Coach Bob Diaco may be the only person in America who considers Central Florida a rival.
But Diaco, the former Notre Dame defensive coordinator who won the 2012 Broyles Award as the nation's top assistant coach, has created a trophy and a countdown clock for the Huskies' game against the Knights.
Diaco's office posted a photo on Twitter of a trophy he had commissioned for the annual game between the American Athletic Conference schools, which he has called the "Civil Conflict." The clock above the trophy marks the amount of time until the Oct. 10 game in Orlando, Fla.
"First day back on campus for #UConnFootball! And just 130 days until the next Civil Conflict with @UCF_Football!" the post read.
However, Central Florida Coach George O'Leary told reporters last week he knew nothing about the Civil Conflict.
"My experience is you're more likely to have a rivalry against a team closer to where you live," he said. "When you go 10 states away, I think it's hard."
Diaco told reporters Monday he didn't see any need to consult with Central Florida before getting the trophy made and announcing he had named the game. The name "Civil Conflict" is a reference to UConn being the northern most university in the conference and Central Florida being "one of the most southern," per a UConn spokesman.
UConn beat Central Florida 37-29 at home last season. It was the Huskies' only victory over a FBS opponent in 2014 and the Knights' lone conference loss.
No more kicking?
Detroit Lions kicker Matt Prater told the Detroit Free Press on Saturday he thinks the NFL will abandon kicking in the future.
The NFL recently adopted a rule change that will move extra-point kicks from the 2 to the 15-yard line this season.
"I feel eventually that they're just going to take kicking out of the game completely," he said, "which is fine with me as long as I'm done playing."
The defense can return a missed extra point for two points, but while Prater isn't a fan of that rule, he understands why league owners voted for it.
"They want to make a more exciting play and give the defense an opportunity to score and everything," he said. "So I see where they're going with it. But I'm not a huge fan."
From the 2, NFL kickers had become nearly automatic on PAT kicks, with the league success rate regularly above 99 percent. Now they will have to convert a 33-yard field goal on PAT kicks. Prater's career success rate on PAT kicks is 99.3 percent, but his success rate on field goals from 30-39 yards is 90.6 percent.
He said it
From Brad Dickson of the Omaha World-Herald:
"A Chicago pizza in the shape of the Blackhawks logo is proving very popular. Oh, yeah, there's a real feat: Getting Chicagoans to consume pizza."
"Rob Gronkowski will drive the pace car before a NASCAR race in Chicago on June 20. Isn't there a 90 percent chance everyone will end up at a nightclub?"
"American Pharoah is the first Triple Crown winner in 37 years. Your move, Chicago Cubs."
"A Cleveland Cavaliers fan pledged to eat an 18-year-old candy bar if the Cavs win the NBA title. The coach: 'Don't win it for me. Don't win for yourselves or your families. No, go out there and take it to see the guy eat the 18-year-old candy bar!' "
SPORTS QUIZ
Tom Herman, who won the 2014 Broyles Award as an assistant at Ohio State, is now a head coach at what Texas school?
ANSWER
Houston
Sports on 06/09/2015