Colorado State is expected to make UConn coach Jim Mora the school’s next head coach.

[The Viking]

If I am AD DB, my first call is to Dan Orlovsky.

Not as head coach- but offensive coordinator? Hell yeah.
That being said he would have to have some type of connection to the incoming coach i would imagine

 

[superjohn]

Initially I was shocked it was CSU. But he was leaving, period. And one fact was the key driver - independence. He wanted to be in a conference. He always did. Our status makes zero sense. The players and staff gave it time. There’s a reason 3 dozen kids walked on “senior day”. He believes there was an implicit promise to get UCONN fb out of this self-inflicted desert we operate in. He tired of waiting. The fact that CSU is now a step up needs to resonate with everyone.

What he accomplished here was near impossible. I am thankful he made us relevant again. But we have to fix the conf problem soon - it’s a tough sell on coaches and players. And it ain’t great for the fans.

Thanks coach for injecting energy into a near lifeless program and reminding us of the good old days. Thanks for making me proud to be a fan, again.

He wanted to be in the P5!

 

[superjohn]

He said he couldn’t get a P5 job. He did.

The almighty P5!

 

[RedStickHusky]

But we have to fix the conf problem soon

This! How are you even engaged in a sport that systemically excludes you from the top prize?

 

[CL82]

If this is true he won’t stay for the bowl game.

Yeah, I haven't read through all 13 pages yet, but I think it's kind of sh.itty to announce this before our bowl game. Even more so before our bowl selection. Everyone gets to make their choices of where they want to work, but the timing of this sucks. At least Randy waited until after our bowl game.

I'm with those who are thinking "why Colorado State?" Unless they're backing up an absolute truckload of cash, I suspect it's a lifestyle issue and he enjoys being in Colorado more. Again, I can accept that, but the timing feels classless and surprises me.

 

[B1GEast]

I'm not upset, after the turnaround job it was expected, but Colorado State?

That's just weird.

I wish him nothing but the best. I think he put the program on a solid place and it's now up to Benedict to make the right choice to sustain momentum.

You cannot miss on this hire. There are a lot of guys that can take this program to the next level.

 

[Bongo Fury]

Did he not hire Randy Edsall for his 2nd term? That contract had some weird incentive clauses.

With RE, AD David Benedict didn’t want to make the Hathaway mistake and disappoint donors with names on buildings. JC hired Ollie and WM eventually hired him after he showed success. WM hired Diaco.

 

[alphasigko]

Fort Collins is pretty flat, more a Plains state kind of feel. The nearest ski resort is 1 1/2 hours away.

But it is a really nice city, bigger than Storrs. The relatively new stadium is on campus, which is also quite nice. The CSU football program has struggled over the last 20 years.

 

[RedStickHusky]

I think the timing is based on hiring and portal windows. Waiting til after a bowl would put us in a bind. I do hope he spoke to the team before this story broke.

 

[djct1999]

Love what Dan did when he played for UCONN.

Has he ever coached at any level?

He would be a great ambassador for the University to promote the program and possibly assist in recruiting. If available and has the time perhaps work with the quarterbacks when possible.

Head coach - NO

Tell the nfl that!

 

[djct1999]

But UConn - no way! Lmao.

 

[Bongo Fury]

Well, here we go back into the abyss another four years of rebuilding, hopefully the stadium doesn’t empty, I wonder who they could possibly get at this point, I was thinking, Chip Kelly only because he’s in New Hampshire guy and just got canned by the Raiders, but that’s probably a reach

Dan Mullen too, but hav heard he doesn’t like the NIL.

 

[BugsyCT]

The new Pac-12 is basically the old MWC. Next year it will have Oregon St, Washington St, Boise St, Colorado St, Fresno St, San Diego St, Utah St and Texas St (with Gonzaga for hoops). It's not P4 but it's a solid, stable conference and probably the right fit at this time for someone like Mora with western roots.

Plus, realistically, where UConn is right now, winning 9 games and getting a bowl bid is close to the ceiling, and he's done that in consecutive years. What more could he do and how long would it take to do it? We don't know if that elusive P4 invite will ever come - probably not in the near future. Mora (in his mid '60s) wasn't going to wait around forever.

 

[Kolumbo]

"Coach Mora, on line one you have call from Colorado..."
"I'll take it!!!"

Welp, very disappointing. Mora absolutely turned the program around, no question. But I thought the mission was much bigger than that. Yes, we beat UNC, we beat Duke. By objective measures UConn is a very mediocre program. In a better G5 conference, UConn does not go 9-3 never mind win the conference. Maybe without Fagnano we don't even go bowling. colorado state finished dead last in the MWC and no one even gives them a thought and suddenly it's this great G5 coaching gig. I wish Jim Mora luck and hope he continues to scratch out some random bowl invitations from the beautiful campus in fort collins.

Canvas Stadium built in 2017 for $220 million

 

[bendm]

Colorado State's athletic budget in 2024 was $73 million vs UConn at $106 million.

But how much of each went to football?

 

[UConn Dan]

But UConn - no way! Lmao.

folks, we need media training asap. This is a PARODY account.

 

[JwittersPAC]

And? Look, his son didn't go to CSU (you got that mixed up with Boulder) and it isn't a great place to love.

I never said his son went to CSU. I was responding to someone else who said that and only replied it was a nice place to live. Never said it was a great place but better than Storrs.

 

[djct1999]

folks, we need media training asap. This is a PARODY account.

Hahaha. My bad. I still stand by Dan regardless. And he still is highly regarded in the nfl circle.

 

[Rich]

For those of you killing Mora for leaving before the bowl game, remember that there is one portal window and it's compressed to two weeks. Early signing period is coming up as well so it sort of requires him departing before the bowl game. If he stuck around until say late December he would have a little over two weeks to get started on recruiting (portal and his roster) and would miss the high school class altogether. For a first year HC that is no bueno.

Also-look at UCONN's next two years' schedules. If we come out of either with 8 wins it will be a minor miracle, program improvement notwithstanding.

He wanted to go back out West and took the best job he could land at the optimal time. That's how the game is played......and I think any one of us would do the same w/r/t our professional occupation. Plus, CSU is one of if not the best paying G5 jobs. So no it's not P4 but I'm sure he's getting a really nice raise. We're not paying our HC ~3MM per year.

 

[Bongo Fury]

Don’t think he’ll coast into retirement. Could make CSU the next Boise State. Use that high altitude advantage

 

[John]

Fort Collins is pretty flat, more a Plains state kind of feel. The nearest ski resort is 1 1/2 hours away.

Vail and Breckenridge are only two and a half hours away
Aspen is four and half hours away

That's great skiing within an easy drive.

 

[Nicklo28]

Look Mora has done a nice job here. He’s a good coach. He’s not a great coach. I wish he was here next year. But he’s not Calhoun , Geno, or Hurley.
He had a good year but of the 9 wins only one team with winning record. The 3 losses were to bad teams.
He never fixed the Defense this year. The Defense was awful. Move on.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

Dave has a good record of hiring coaches (he was forced to hire Ollie). I have faith he'll get the right guy.

Ollie won a National Title. Weird how people keep forgetting that.

 

[JwittersPAC]

Conclusions
-wanted to be closer to Idaho
-Play for conference championship and CFP
-Play games in a stadium on campus
Checks all three boxes

 

[bendm]

Based on? I've known several people who lived there and they reported the opposite. Cow town, flat, kind of hick-y. Non-descript.

So you’ve never been…it’s the quintessential college town. It’s town center was literally the inspiration for Disney’s Main Street USA and it’s an hour from Rocky Mtn national park.

 

[JwittersPAC]

Look Mora has done a nice job here. He’s a good coach. He’s not a great coach. I wish he was here next year. But he’s not Calhoun , Geno, or Hurley.
He had a good year but of the 9 wins only one team with winning record. The 3 losses were to bad teams.
He never fixed the Defense this year. The Defense was awful. Move on.

You are comparing UConn basketball to UConn football……

 

[maple]

Initially I was shocked it was CSU. But he was leaving, period. And one fact was the key driver - independence. He wanted to be in a conference. He always did. Our status makes zero sense. The players and staff gave it time. There’s a reason 3 dozen kids walked on “senior day”. He believes there was an implicit promise to get UCONN fb out of this self-inflicted desert we operate in. He tired of waiting. The fact that CSU is now a step up needs to resonate with everyone.

(Not picking on you.) What is the solution? It's not like conferences are just on hands and knees begging us to join and we're turning up our nose at offers. And anyone coming in here to coach football has GOT to understand that.

P4 aren't going to let us be basketball only. And any conference below that is going to want us to bring in the basketball program too. I understand football drives the bus, but you can't play it desperate when it comes to joining a conference.

Besides, even if we joined a conference, unless you're P4 you're extremely likely to get snubbed by the CFP no matter what. The big boys have their club and most aren't in it. It's P4 or bust and those doors aren't opening any time soon barring some miracle shift (or we find some oil reserves under the state and can start throwing around stupid money).

 

[RitzLuce1]

Ollie won a National Title. Weird how people keep forgetting that.

Yeah he cashed in and checked out right after.

Weird how you keep forgetting that.

 

[Makryspost]

Yeah, I haven't read through all 13 pages yet, but I think it's kind of sh.itty to announce this before our bowl game. Even more so before our bowl selection. Everyone gets to make their choices of where they want to work, but the timing of this sucks. At least Randy waited until after our bowl game.

I'm with those who are thinking "why Colorado State?" Unless they're backing up an absolute truckload of cash, I suspect it's a lifestyle issue and he enjoys being in Colorado more. Again, I can accept that, but the timing feels classless and surprises me.

Same camp, but he didnt wait until players were back on campus. Told them all to go home for a week and not think about football. Do it in person. And still no statement from him.

 

[Hoophound]

Perhaps my frustration here, our frustration possibly, is brought on by considering that Colorado State is a more appealing job than UConn. That's a gut punch. We sometimes fancy our independence as a badge of virtue, elevating us above the G5 in terms of prestige. But that is probably illusory.

I really don’t see it that way. With what we know about Jim Mora, taking a job in Colorado makes all the sense in the world. I won’t be surprised if he buys a home there in the mountains and sells his place in Idaho.