Copyright Hartford Courant
There’s a social media post going around that splits college football teams into two categories. It asks the question: Have you thrown an interception yet this season? “Of course, it’s Week 12” is one answer, with the logo of every FBS team other than UConn underneath. “No, we have Joe Fagnano” is the other, with the Husky logo staring back. It’s just one way of visualizing the incredible season Fagnano has put together. The senior quarterback has amassed video game-like numbers through 10 games, throwing 25 touchdowns to zero interceptions, the only quarterback in college football who’s started a majority of his team’s games not to have thrown a pick. He’s also passed for 2,840 yards, which ranks second in the country, and has a 71.8 quarterback rating. UConn is 7-3, with all three losses coming in overtime, and is bowl eligible for the third time in four years. Fagnano’s numbers have earned him the kind of national recognition very few UConn football players have ever seen, and now, he’s on the periphery of Heisman Trophy conversation. The Heisman Trophy website includes Fagnano as one of 72 players fans can vote for in the Heisman Fan Vote. Fans can vote on the website, or tagging @HeismanTrophy on social media and posting, “I want to vote for #PlayerName.” The fan vote will count as one official ballot in the race, while media members and former winners make up the other 928. He’s not considered a serious contender to win the award, as he’s not listed as one of the betting options on any of the major sports books, and doesn’t play for a national title contender like Ohio State QB Julian Sayin or Indiana QB Fernando Mendoza, the top two favorites. Still, UConn is campaigning for their star quarterback, posting a link to the Heisman vote on social media alongside a graphic of a billboard reading ‘Vote Joe For Heisman.’ Fagnano has also seen himself earn praise from national media voices after his performance against Duke, as ESPN’s Pete Thamel called him the “most under-appreciated QB in the country,” and CBS Sports put him at No. 1 in their national QB rankings this week, ahead of Sayin and Mendoza. “Fagnano became the third college quarterback in 25 years to reach 25 touchdown passes without an interception last week,” CBS’ David Cobb wrote, also pointing out that the UConn QB is the “first since Joe Burrow to have 250-plus passing yards, three or more passing touchdowns and no interceptions in five straight games.” UConn will look to improve to 8-3 as the Huskies face Air Force in their final home game of the season on Saturday.
