The University of Connecticut Huskies have faced plenty of adversity over the past week and a half. On Oct. 17, Jasper Howard helped lead the Huskies to a homecoming victory over the University of Louisville Cardinals. A few hours later Howard would be stabbed while attending a university-sanctioned dance at the UCONN Student Union. Police received a call at 12:30 a.m. on Oct. 18 that Howard and another student had been stabbed during a fight at the dance.
Howard, 20, of Miami was an expectant father and a great teammate. Huskies coach Randy Edsall said the team was heartbroken and devastated over the loss of Howard, a junior and the team’s starting cornerback who came to the school to get away from the violence on the streets of his hometown. He became the first person in his family to go to college.
“I know this,” Edsall said at a press conference. “He loved UCONN, he loved his teammates, he loved everything about this.”
Joanglia Howard said she got news of her son’s death at approximately 4 a.m., and described him as a “good kid” who never got into trouble.
“All I wanted him to do was go to school and get an education, and he was doing what I asked him to do,” she told WSVN-TV in Miami.
One of the best scenes of the college football season so far this year was last Saturday when UCONN traveled to Morgantown, W.V. to take on the University of West Virginia Mountaineers. The Huskies were greeted by a standing ovation from their Big East Conference foes and their fans. There was also a moment of silence and an exchange of handshakes between the teams before kickoff. A banner signed by West Virginia fans that read “Today we are all Huskies” was displayed in the UCONN tunnel entrance to Mountaineer Field.
Huskies running back Andre Dixon and wide receiver Kashif Moore carried Howard’s helmet and No. 6 jersey from the locker room before kickoff. Players from both teams wore stickers on their helmets during the game in remembrance of Howard. The Mountaineers prevailed 28-24.
“The kids played their hearts out and did what we asked them to do,” Edsall said after the game. “They did a great job but came up a little short. I know Jazz’ is proud of their effort.”
Police just announced on Tuesday that a man had been charged with the murder, but his defense attorney said he was just trying to break up a fight. John William Lomax III, 21, is scheduled to appear in court on charges of murder and conspiracy to commit assault in the death of Howard, police said. His bond is set at $2 million.
Police also arrested two other people in connection with the fight that led to Howard’s death. Hakim Muhammad, 20, was charged with conspiracy to commit assault and Jamal Todd, 21, faces a felony charge of falsely reporting an incident and a misdemeanor charge of reckless endangerment for pulling a fire alarm that emptied the dance early that Sunday morning. None of those arrested are UCONN students. Lomax and Muhammad live in Bloomfield, about 30 miles from campus. Todd lives in Hartford.
