UConn will open the fall with two new faces on its roster, and both already have their names on the radar for one of college football’s showcase events.
Running back Kenji Christian and linebacker K’Von Sherman were both placed on the 2027 Shriners Children’s East-West Bowl 1000 watch list, the announcement coming Thursday. The pair are set to make their UConn debuts this season after transferring to Storrs from Toledo.
Christian arrives after a productive season with the Rockets. In 2025, he ran for 546 yards and four touchdowns, while also catching 17 passes for 193 yards and a receiving score. His road to UConn has been a winding one: two seasons at North Carolina A&T, where he posted 718 rushing yards and six touchdowns in 2023 and then added 256 yards in just three games during an injury-shortened 2024, followed by the start of his college career at Viriginia Tech, where he did not appear in a game over two seasons.
Sherman brings a different kind of resume. Over his two years at Toledo, he became a force on defense, and in 2025 he earned first-team All-MAC honors after pacing the team with 94 tackles and 14.5 TFLs.
He also logged 4.5 sacks and six QB hurries. The year before, he appeared in 13 games and finished with 11 total tackles.
Sherman originally came to Toledo from Hutchinson CC.
The 102nd Shriners Children’s East-West Bowl is scheduled for February 4, 2027, at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
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