were with Jasper Howard when the Connecticut cornerback was fatally
stabbed Sunday are ready to play this weekend against West Virginia,
coach Randy Edsall said Thursday.
Edsall said on a weekly conference
call with reporters that he had been concerned about the mental state
of sophomore receivers Kashif Moore and Mike Smith.
Moore held Howard in his arms after
he was fatally stabbed outside a dance on campus early Sunday. Edsall
earlier said a player had put pressure on the wound and identified him
Thursday as Smith.
The two players and everyone else on
the team had a good energy level and focus in practices Wednesday and
Thursday, Edsall said.
“There’s nobody from an emotional standpoint who is not ready to go and play,” he said.
The Huskies plan to wear helmet
stickers with Howard’s initials on them and will take his jersey and
helmet to Morgantown for Saturday’s game.
Edsall said he doesn’t know how each
player will respond to the emotions of the day but isn’t worried about
them being too amped up.
“I want our guys to go out and
approach the game just like they did every other game,” he said.
“Everybody’s going to have different thoughts in their mind and all
that, but I just want us to go out and make sure we’re at that
emotional level of optimal performance when the ball is kicked off, and
then maintain that level of emotion throughout the football game.”
The funeral for Howard, who was 20,
will be at 11 a.m. Monday at New Birth Baptist Church in his hometown
of Miami. A viewing will be held Sunday at the city’s Richardson
Mortuary.
Howard was stabbed outside a
university-sanctioned dance early Sunday, hours after helping the
Huskies to a homecoming game win over Big East foe Louisville.
One person has been charged in
connection with the fight. Johnny Hood, 21, of Hartford, was arraigned
Monday on charges of interfering with an officer and breach of peace.
According to a police report, Hood
was pointed out to police on the scene by Brian Parker, a sophomore
wide receiver who also was stabbed but only slightly hurt. Hood has not
been charged with Howard’s death, and police haven’t identified him as
a suspect.
Police say they have made
“significant progress” in the investigation but are still seeking
photos and videos of the crime scene from the public.