Storrs — His UConn football teammates call senior Matt Walsh a "Mini Diaco."

Bob Diaco, of course, is the energetic, enthusiastic, passionate, driven head coach of the Huskies.

"It's because I know the defense in and out," said Walsh, a linebacker, of how he earned the nickname. "And I like to keep improving my football IQ by watching film and understanding stuff from a deeper sense."

Walsh, a former Daniel Hand High School standout, also shares some of the same personality traits as his head coach. They're both Type A personalities.

When asked Wednesday during UConn football media day if Walsh reminded Diaco of himself during his college years, the head coach gave a revealing response: "Yeah, I'd say.

"We both went off to college and had a good time and worked hard," Diaco said. "But when you're energetic and passionate and intense and Type A and it's not directed you tend to get some of that in a lot of different areas. It splashes up over here and splashes up over there.

"So to focus that into one funnel, he's been able to do that. I feel like I'm still working on it."

Walsh has come a long way on his sometimes bumpy journey to his senior season.

It hasn't been easy for Walsh, who admittedly took awhile before making the right choices for his future and learning to fight off urges to take shortcuts.

"It's definitely been a wild ride," Walsh said. "Everybody has their ups and downs in their career. Kind of seeing where I was at one point in my college career until what I am now, it gives me more motivation to see if I did that, what else can I do?

"That's one reason I definitely will never set my limits and will always strive to be the best that I can, because I don't even know what the best I can be is."

There's no shortage of motivation for the 6-foot-1, 240-pound Walsh, who takes great joy in silencing doubters that say that he's not fast enough or big enough to play linebacker at the Division I level.

Walsh, who started his UConn career as a fullback before moving to defense last season, has become one of the most respected players on the team.

His fellow Huskies voted him, along with quarterback Bryant Shirreffs, defensive lineman Mikel Myers and offensive lineman Andreas Knappe, as captains for the 2016 season.

All four players bring different things to the leadership.

"This is a collection of smart, mentally tough, physically tough, high character, high integrity, caring men," Diaco said. "They're all high achievers and high achievers in the classroom and they also enjoy college, so they're good resources for younger players."

Before earning that distinction, Walsh already considered himself a team leader.

"It's not much different," Walsh said. "Now I have the 'C' on my chest. I just want to be able to help guide guys and be the coach on the field and just make sure everybody is making the right decisions, on and off the field. I want to just be one of the guys and enjoy the time I have with my brothers here."

Diaco is excited about what the future holds for Walsh.

It's already been a great story, according to Diaco.

"People have guided him and I'm sure when you ask him he'll mention the people in his life," Diaco said. "But he had to do it and he did. I'm so proud of him for that and he's not going to look back. It's in his DNA. He is who he was meant to be.

"He's a defender of our mission, specifically as it relates to football, but he's going to be a great defender of whatever mission that he's on."

g.keefe@theday.com