STORRS – Just over seven weeks after he was officially introduced, new UConn football coach Jason Candle looked comfortable in the Burton Family Football Complex with the Huskies’ logo on his chest Wednesday.
That first day at Rentschler Field, in all of its pomp and circumstance, began a time frame of more than a month where he had to put together his staff and recruit 71 new players, around 30 returnees, to come along as he crosses into his second decade as a head coach.
The facility, the roster, the staff, the operations – all of it is in his hands now.
“I think we’ve got a really good group of guys in here, guys that are about the right things and made up the right way and really going to support our mission,” he said. “But everybody’s been really, really good here in the onboarding process from administration to other coaches in the department to everybody on the external that could help make the transition a smooth one as best they can and they’ve been fantastic.”
UConn signed its last group of incoming freshmen on Wednesday morning. They will join the program in the summer, but a good percentage of the roster is already on campus, working with the strength staff headed by Brad Bichey, who spent the last nine years with Candle at Toledo.
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Candle hasn’t had the opportunity to look ahead at the Huskies’ schedule, which is close to being finalized. It includes seven home games with three power conference opponents – Maryland, Syracuse and North Carolina – set to come to The Rent, along with regular Group of Five power James Madison. The full schedule – which will be a much taller challenge than the 2025 slate – is close to being finalized. A trip to Southern Miss. in September will likely be the last addition.
“To be honest, I’m trying to get through February and March and get to spring football and find out who we have on our team and what that’s gonna look like before I even really worry about who else we play,” Candle said.
He will be bringing back the spring game so fans can see the team and the team can see the fans, maybe experience some pressure situations, ahead of fall camp.
From now until September, Candle and his staff will turn a collection of players from all over the country into a team that can continue to build on the program’s recent success under former head coach Jim Mora.
“There are a few guys that came from Toledo, so we do have that part of it. We do have a good background and a good base so we have some guys at each position that would be understanding of what the culture looks like,” Candle said.
“At the end of the day, your strength coach has got to be a rock star. And I think we’ve got as good as anybody in the country at developing relationships and going through that process in the month of January when coaches are on the road recruiting. And ultimately in February, this is a big month coming ahead for us here and that’s right in front of us. So we’ve got a lot of work to be done, a good foundation, but ultimately at the end of the day here, we’re far from a finished product.”
The six high school players announced by UConn on Wednesday’s national signing day: Grant Blascak, DB, Stow, Ohio; Tyrique Harris, LB, Clearwater, Fla.; Jackson Mangham, TE, Lewis Center, Ohio; Martece Smith, DB, Hammond, Ind.; Rodarion Tellez, edge, Fort Lauderdale, Fla.; Owen Winder, OL, Dexter, Mich.