UConn Copes With Senseless Murder

University of Connecticut coach Randy Edsall said there really wasn't much consideration given to postponing Saturday's game at West Virginia following the murder of defensive back Jasper Howard.

"I know Jasper wouldn't want us to do that," Edsall said on Monday's Big East conference call. "That's the real reason [we're playing]."

Howard, 20, who had led the Huskies to a 38-25 victory against Louisville on Saturday, died early Sunday after an on-campus stabbing. Howard, who was soon to become a father, was stabbed near the school's Student Union.

Edsall said his team and coaching staff are attempting to deal with the loss of Howard, particularly two players who were with Howard when he died.

"One had Jasper in his arms, the other was pressuring where the wound went in and had blood on his hands," Edsall said. "Those two men are pretty deeply affected. I've talked to both each day. We'll see where they are.

"If they are mentally not ready to play, I'll honor whatever decision they make. I know that would be respected by the team."

Edsall declined to identify the two players.

Edsall said the team's captains have decided to honor Howard by displaying "JH" decals on the back of UConn's helmets. Also, the team will take either his jersey or helmet to all of the Huskies' games the rest of the year.

Edsall, who said he has heard from every coach in the league, said he would pick up Howard's family at the airport Monday afternoon "doing some things with the family that's not a very easy moment for any of us."

USF coach Jim Leavitt experienced a similar tragedy in 2007 when freshman running back Keeley Dorsey collapsed and died while lifting weights. The Bulls also recently had former player Will Bleakley die in a fishing accident in the Gulf of Mexico and, in 2001, freshman Patrick Payton died in a motorcycle accident.

"When I heard about it on Sunday, I broke," Leavitt said. "It brought back all the memories of what I had to go through with our football team. There's no way you can describe the pain that you go through.

"We just reached out -- our team, our staff to Randy. The only thing you can do is rely on the Lord and each other. I haven't had to go through it in the season. We had a couple of weeks [in the offseason after Dorsey's death].

"That will be an incredible challenge. There's nothing worse."

Edsall said Leavitt told him, "You have to be yourself. As the focal point and the leader, I have to be strong and be the pillar of strength for coaches, players and even for player's families and that's what I'm trying to do," Edsall said.

West Virginia coach Bill Stewart said he would announce Tuesday how Howard will be honored at Saturday's game.



"The way Jasper Howard played is the way he lived his life: full speed with a lot of energy," Stewart said. "Every time we punted the ball [to Howard], I had my fingers crossed. He led the Big East [in punt returns] because he was good, not because he was lucky."

Stewart addressed his team about Howard's death in a team meeting Sunday. Several of West Virginia's players were from Miami, Howard's hometown.

"Our kids from Miami took it very, very hard," Stewart said. "Our guys were shaken and they really like that young man immensely."

Rutgers coach Greg Schiano opened the conference call by extending his sympathy to Howard's family and UConn.

"We express our deepest sympathy to Jasper Howard's family and the UConn family," Schiano said. "It's a terrible tragedy. At times like these, a close conference like the Big East needs to come together."

Louisville coach Steve Kragthorpe also offered his condolences.

"He played a great football game against us," Kragthorpe said. "I had a lot of respect for him before the game and even more after it."

Known as "Jazz" to his teammates, Howard often talked about the difficulties of growing up in Miami. His mother, Joangila, worked many jobs to support him and his sisters, Keyondra and Jasmine, who is afflicted with meningitis, the Hartford Courant reported

Howard was the first in his family to go to college. He also spoke often about his dream of making it professionally so he could support his family, his former high school coaches said.

Corey Bell, the University of Miami's director of football operations, coached Howard at Miami Edison High School. He learned of the news Sunday at 6 AM when he awoke to an avalanche of phone calls and text messages from Edison alumni.

"I'm real close to all my guys, but Jazz and I were real close," Bell told the Miami Herald. "We spoke at least once every week. He's a great kid, coachable, dependable, real tough mentally and talented. He's like most of the kids from that area in Little Haiti. He had dreams of getting to the next level and making it and taking care of his mom and his sister."

Daryle Heidelburg, who was Howard's coach his senior year at Edison, was stunned by the news.

"Jasper was never a kid in any kind of trouble," Heidelburg told the Herald. "Whenever there were any problems on the team, he was the peacemaker. He would try to squash things before they got worse. He was never confrontational."

In his final game Saturday against Louisville, Howard had 11 tackles and forced and recovered a fumble in UConn's victory. He also led the Big East in punt returns last season, averaging 11.8 yards a return.

"I remember the last day I was at Edison before I came to UM," Bell told the Herald. "All the kids were sad and upset with me. Jazz stood up and said, 'We should be happy for coach. He always pushes for us to get the next level. We should be happy for him, too.'

"I'll never forget that. That's the type of kid Jazz was."

Police said a second stabbing victim, an unidentified male who was with Howard, was treated and released from the hospital. Howard died of a stab wound to the abdomen, according to the medical examiner's office, the Courant reported.

"There's nothing written in the manual in how to deal with these situations," Edsall said Sunday. "But I know this -- this is a strong team, with strong leadership, and we'll get through it."

The state police major crimes unit and UConn police said the stabbing happened just after 12:30 AM on Hillside Road near the center of campus. It occurred after a party in the Student Union that was attended by more than 300 people, said Maj. Ron Blicher of the UConn Police Department.

Police are searching for a killer they believe is not a UConn student, but he has not been identified, according to Blicher.

Howard's pregnant girlfriend, who lives in Miami and does not attend UConn, was on campus over the weekend. It is believed she was not at the party, the Courant reported.

"Many of you know Jasper -- a devoted son, friend, and promising student-athlete," UConn President Michael Hogan wrote in a statement Sunday. "I know that our community is grieving this loss and are distressed by the violence that it involved. We extend our deepest condolences to Jasper's family, friends, and teammates at this time of incredible sorrow."