UConn Football expected to tab Jason Candle as program's new head coach

by: Jarrett Guerrera12/06/25JarrettGuerrera

It looks like the UConn Football coaching search will end today, as the Huskies are set to hire Toledo Head Coach Jason Candle to fill their vacancy, according to Chris Low and Pete Nakos of On3.

Former head coach Jim Mora accepted the Colorado State vacancy a few weeks ago in mid-November, which led to the extensive search and now the Huskies have their new leader of the program.

Candle is a 46-year old from Salem, Ohio and spent just about his entire life in the state, dating back to his playing days and throughout his entire coaching career. Candle is a former wide receiver that attended West Branch High School in Ohio before enrolling at Geneva College in Pennsylvania, spent two seasons there before transferring back to Ohio to play for Mount Union.

After his playing days, he jumped right into coaching, where he got an assistant coach job at Mount Union for six season before joining the Toledo staff in 2009, where he served in various roles. After seven seasons as an assistant coach, Candle was promoted to head coach in 2016 after coaching the 2015 Boca Raton Bowl in an interim role. Since accepting the promotion, Candle has gone 81-44 while leading the Rockets’ offense to three bowl wins during his tenure.

Candle will now take over a Huskies program that has lost key names already this offseason to the Transfer Portal such as starting offensive linemen Ben Murawski and Carsten Casady, along with starting linebacker Oumar Diomande, starting cornerback Cam Chadwick and many others.

Candle will have plenty of work ahead of himself with the roster in mind. Before doing so, however, decisions regarding staff retention and potential hiring opportunities will likely be made.

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Who is the New UConn Football Coach?

UConn had been tied to multiple a few different coaching candidates this offseason. However, Candle was ultimately the man who earned the job. By hiring Candle, it gives the Huskies both someone with coaching experience and a winning track record that could help continue the upward trend of the program.

As a coach, Candle has won eight or more games on six different occasions in his tenure as Toledo’s head coach, including two 11-win seasons. Most recently, the Rockets have won eight or more games the last four seasons in a row (including bowl appearances). Toledo finished 8-5 last season with thrilling wins over Mississippi State and later another P4 win over Pittsburgh in the GameAbove Sports Bowl.

On top of that, he is also a former offensive coordinator and his teams has averaged 30 or more points per game in five of the last eight seasons. The Rockets also are know for talent development on offense, specifically playing a role in MAC quarterbacks Dequann Finn and Tucker Gleason careers.

In 2018, the Rockets averaged a wild 40.4 points per game while scoring 69 total touchdowns. The offense had 2963 passing yards and 2807 rushing yards. Candle had two quarterbacks break 1000 passing yards and three running backs with over 500 rushing yards that season.

Candle has won the MAC Championship twice with Toledo in 2017 and 2022. The Rockets failed to make the Championship this season.

What Could the Jason Candle Team Look Like on the Field?

Toledo has obviously won a great deal of games during the tenure of Candle. Winning takes more than one person or coach, however, and Candle has been a proponent of that fact.

During his tenure with Toledo, the Rockets consistently managed to retain a great deal of talent each season. Players like RJ Delancy and Dequann Finn became difficult to keep financially. Core developmental players and team veterans stayed. Candle moved on from each departure and filled the void with another capable player.

The Rockets have only become better on the recruiting front during the NIL era. Candle understands how to make connections and get the most out of players on the field while distributing the wealth. Additionally, Toledo has had the top recruiting class in the MAC the last three years in a row.

For UConn Football, adding Candle could be a great move considering how the coach has only continued to improve as of late.