Reports: UConn zeroing in on its next football coach

UConn is zeroing in on its next football coach.

The Huskies have been targeting Jason Candle, who has sustained success at Toledo, to replace Jim Mora. WFSB-TV’s Erin Connolly reported Friday night that Candle will be the next coach, citing an anonymous source. Other reports indicated Candle had interviewed and emerged as the leading candidate and UConn was waiting for his answer.

UConn officials could not be reached for comment on the reports.

Candle would bring a proven head coaching track record at a time when UConn, trying to get an invite to a power conference such as the Big 12 or the ACC, needs to keep its football momentum.

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The Huskies began a national search on Nov. 26, when Jim Mora left to take the job at Colorado State. Coaches have been changing schools all over the country for the last several weeks, creating new openings every day. Candle, 46, took over Toledo in December 2015 as interim coach when Matt Campbell left for Iowa State, and led the Rockets to a victory over Temple in the Boca Raton Bowl.

Candle has never had a losing season, going 81-44 overall, leading Toledo to bowl eligibility eight times. Toledo was 8-4 this season and, like UConn, is awaiting a bowl assignment to come Sunday.

In the NIL, transfer portal era, Candle has surmounted the challenges of getting and keeping players at a Group of Five conference program, and has had highly-rated recruiting classes among MAC schools several years in a row, including 2026. UConn, as an FBS independent program, plays a schedule heavy with Group of Five opponents.

Candle played at Geneva College in Pennsylvania, and spent his entire coaching career in his native Ohio, as an assistant at Mount Union and Toledo, where he arrived in 2009.

Mora arrived at UConn at the nadir of its football history, following a 1-11 season in 2021 and 50 losses in its previous 60 games. He had been out of football four years, and applied for the Colorado State  job in 2019 and was not considered. After going 27-23, leading the Huskies to three bowl appearances, Mora’s stock rose to the point where he was targeted by CSU, a testament to how much he had raised the desirability of the UConn job.

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Meanwhile, Candle was thought to be a candidate for other openings, including Tulane or Iowa State. But Tulane reported to be pursuing LSU defensive coordinator Blake Baker, and Iowa hired former Washington State coach Jimmy Rogers, UConn had also been connected with Terry Smith, interim coach at Penn State, but with Campbell headed there, Smith agreed to stay on staff.

That, apparently, opened the path for UConn and Candle to connect. Gordon Sammis, UConn’s offensive coordinator the past two seasons, is interim head coach as the Huskies begin preparation for their bowl game. Numerous players have entered the transfer portal since the end of the season, which is common at most schools, even those who have not changed coaches, and several of Mora’s recruits, notably quarterback Carter Emanuel, have flipped to Colorado State.

If Candle takes the job and does not stay at Toledo to coach its bowl game, he would be able to get started quickly on filling UConn’s roster for 2026. Mora, who had vast NFL experience, rebuilt UConn quickly, using the transfer portal to bring in experienced players, notably quarterback Joe Fagnano and receiver Skyler Bell. Presumably, Candle would approach the job with more of a mix of traditional high school recruiting and transfers.

This story is still developing, check back for updates.