UConn football unveils an entire new staff under new head coach Jason Candle
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With the transfer portal officially opening, significant turnover has already happened in Storrs with the UConn football program officially announcing new head coach Jason Candle’s staff on Tuesday.
There will be an entirely new regime leading the Huskies in 2026 after several staffers moved on to join former head coach Jim Mora at Colorado State, including UConn alumni Kashif Moore (wide receivers coach), Jackson Mitchell (assistant linebackers coach) and Rante Jones (director of scouting).
Mora brought over former QBs coach Pryce Tracy as his offensive coordinator, Kenny McClendon as his defensive line coach and assistant head coach, Dalton Hilliard as defensive backs coach and Siriki Diabate as linebackers coach, among several others.
Aside from three returning members of the support staff – Tayler Riddick (director of football operations), Daniel Mojica (football operations assistant) and Collin Leddy (assistant director of player personnel) – Candle brought in an entirely new group while bringing over several coaches with ties to Toledo, where he coached for 10 seasons and never had a losing record.
A look at the Huskies’ 2026 staff under Candle:
Assistant Athletic Director for Football Administration and Operations: Andrew Terwilliger. A familiar face, Terwilliger spent the last 12 seasons at Toledo and served as Candle’s assistant athletic director for football operations for the last seven years, coordinating most non-coaching aspects of the football program, including budget, team travel and team meals, according to the Toledo website.
General manager: Zach Potter. Former GM at Sacramento State, Potter joined the Hornets last fall after serving as GM for the USFL’s Birmingham Stallions, where he helped build championship teams in 2022, 2023 and 2024 working closely with head coach Skip Holtz.
Director of Recruiting/Player Development: AJ Harrison. A former tight end for Candle at Toledo from 2019-21, Harrison joined the staff as a recruiting assistant before being promoted to director of recruiting last fall. He helped bring in the No. 1 recruiting class in the MAC in 2024 and 2025.
Assistant head coach: Robert Weiner. Former co-offensive coordinator and QBs coach at Toledo, Weiner served as the Rockets interim head coach for the Boca Raton Bowl after Candle took the Huskies’ job. He has been coaching with Candle since 2020.
Offensive coordinator: Nunzio Campanile. Former quarterbacks coach at Syracuse where he coached Kyle McCord and Steve Angeli over the last two seasons, Campanile has New Jersey roots and began his career at the high school level before coaching several different positions at Rutgers.
Defensive coordinator: Ryan Manalac. Former linebackers coach at Pittsburgh, Manalac played linebacker at Cincinnati before joining the Buffalo Bills. He has served as DC at Division II Ohio Dominican and at the FCS level at Bucknell.
Special Teams coordinator: Pat Cashmore. Former special teams coordinator at Washington State, Cashmore spent two seasons at South Dakota State, winning the 2023 FCS national championship, and was previously with Candle at Toledo as a special teams quality control coach from 2016-17.
Co-Offensive coordinator/quarterbacks: Marquel Blackwell. Former running backs coach at South Carolina, Blackwell has been coaching since his playing career (QB) ended in 2006. He was running backs coach at Toledo from 2016-17 before coaching the position at West Virginia, Houston (where he was also QBs coach), Ole Miss and Texas A&M.
Offensive line: John Morookian. Former offensive line coach at Charlotte, Morookian has had previous stops at Michigan, Akron, Kansas and Iowa State. He was a graduate assistant at Toledo in 2014.
Tight ends: Max Wray. A former offensive lineman at Ohio State and Colorado, Wray spent the last three seasons at Toledo, where he was promoted to offensive line coach last fall.
Wide receivers: Kerry Dixon. Former wide receivers coach at Kent State, Dixon spent two seasons with the Baltimore Ravens developing quarterbacks. Prior to his NFL stint, Dixon spent 15 years coaching in college at Georgia Tech, Florida, Toledo, FIU, and more. He will be assisted by Junior Collins, the former offensive coordinator at D-III powerhouse Mount Union, Candle’s alma mater.
Running backs: Nate Cole. Former running backs coach at Toledo, Cole spent the last 10 years on Candle’s staff with the Rockets and the last seven coaching running backs.
Defensive line: LaTroy Lewis. Former defensive line coach at Toledo, Lewis joined the Rockets in 2025 after spending two years at Michigan, where he was assistant defensive line coach during the Wolverines’ 2023 national title run. He will be assisted by Brooks Jenkins, who is also coming from Toledo.
Pass game coordinator/cornerbacks: Rod Chance. Former secondary coach at Oregon State, Chance has coached at the college level since 2013 with previous stints at Oregon, Colorado and Minnesota, among others. He will be assisted by former Mount Union defensive coordinator Daryl Ely.
Strength and conditioning: Brad Bichey. Former director of strength and conditioning at Toledo, Bichey spent the last 10 seasons helping develop Candle’s teams. He will be assisted by Christian Klinec, who spent the last nine years at Toledo.
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