UConn football announces coaching staff additions

STORRS, Conn. (WFSB) - UConn head coach Jason Candle has continued to assemble his staff for the 2026 season, announcing a series of high-profile hires on both sides of the ball and across football operations.

The most notable additions are Nunzio Campanile as offensive coordinator and Ryan Manalac as defensive coordinator. The new hires include experienced position coaches, special teams and strength-and-conditioning leaders, and several members of Candle’s previous Toledo staffs.

Key hires

• Nunzio Campanile — Offensive coordinator. Arrives from Syracuse after three seasons with the Orange, including two as offensive associate head coach and quarterbacks coach. Campanile’s recent offenses posted numerous passing and total offense records at Syracuse and developed NFL-caliber talent.
• Ryan Manalac — Defensive coordinator. Joins from Pittsburgh, where he spent five seasons coaching linebackers. Manalac has worked previously with Pittsburgh head coach Pat Narduzzi at Cincinnati and Michigan State and has experience as a defensive coordinator at Bucknell.
• Pat Cashmore — Special teams coordinator. Comes to Storrs after the 2025 season at Washington State and previous success at South Dakota State, where his units ranked near the top nationally in several special-teams categories.
• Robert Weiner — Assistant head coach and special assistant. Reunites with Candle after six seasons together at Toledo, where Weiner served as co-offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach and was interim head coach for the 2025 Boca Raton Bowl.

Offensive staff additions

Candle also announced a number of offensive position coaches who will form the core of UConn’s offensive staff:

• Marquel Blackwell — Quarterbacks coach and co-offensive coordinator. Brings experience from South Carolina, Texas A&M, Ole Miss and Houston, and has worked on high-performing rushing offenses and quarterback development at multiple stops.
• John Morookian — Offensive line coach. Joins after a 2025 season at Michigan and previous stops at Charlotte, Akron, Kansas, Iowa State, Indiana and Toledo (his alma mater).
• Nate Cole — Running backs coach. Comes from Toledo with a decade of experience on Jason Candle’s staffs, credited with developing multiple All-MAC backs and strong recruiting classes.
• Kerry Dixon — Wide receivers coach. Joins after a 2025 season at Kent State and prior NFL experience with the Baltimore Ravens, plus 15 years of college coaching.
• Max Wray — Tight ends coach. Spent three seasons at Toledo after a collegiate playing career at Ohio State and Colorado.
• Jasper “Junior” Collins — Assistant wide receivers coach. Joins from Mount Union, where he served as offensive coordinator; also spent time with the Indianapolis Colts through the Tony Dungy Diversity Coaching Fellows program.

Defensive staff additions

UConn’s defensive staff will be led by Manalac and supplemented by several new assistants:

• LaTroy Lewis — Defensive line coach. Returns from Toledo after working at multiple programs, including Michigan, where he was part of two Big Ten titles and CFP appearances.
• Rod Chance — Cornerbacks coach and pass game coordinator. Joins from Oregon State, with prior stops at Colorado, Oregon, Minnesota, Southern Utah and Vanderbilt.
• Daryl Ely — Assistant defensive backs coach. Comes from a long and successful tenure at Mount Union, where his units were consistently among the national leaders in total defense.
• Brooks Jenkins — Assistant defensive line coach. Adds depth after roles at Toledo and Mount Union, plus a GA year at Eastern Michigan.

Strength & conditioning, operations and recruiting

• Brad Bichey — Director of football strength and conditioning. Reunites with Candle after 10 seasons together at Toledo.
• Christian Klinec — Associate director of football strength and conditioning.
• Jabari Taylor — Strength and conditioning intern.
• Andrew Terwilliger — Assistant athletic director for football administration and operations. Joins after 12 seasons at Toledo and will lead football administration and operations.
• Tayler Riddick — Director of football operations (retained).
• Daniel Mojica — Football operations assistant (retained).
• Stephon Mathie — Director of football video operations.
• Zach Potter — General manager.
• AJ Harrison — Director of recruiting / player development.
• Colin Leddy — Assistant director of player personnel.

What this means for UConn

Candle’s additions blend experience from the Power Five and Group of Five levels, NFL exposure, and continuity from his Toledo tenure. The staff features coordinators with experience running productive offenses and stingy defenses, plus position coaches with recruiting ties and player development track records. Several hires also bring special teams and defensive play-calling experience.

Next steps

Candle said additional coaches and staff will be announced in the coming days. All hires are expected to join UConn pending the successful completion of the university employee onboarding process.

Fans can expect the Huskies to officially begin integrating the new staff as offseason work ramps up toward the 2026 season.