Welcome John Dunn: New OC

[Da_Aisijimo_Gou]

Hell, go for the divorced 45 year old "10", and she'll pay for dinner AND bring you back to her place.

Cougar chaser @huskyrob1

 

[TitleTown]

Love this hire!

 

[Da_Aisijimo_Gou]

I get that 700k is a lot but I’m not down for that.

Perhaps $300K will work out well ...

 

[huskymedic]

 

[Da_Aisijimo_Gou]

www.courant.com/sports/uconn-football/hc-sp-uconn-football-dunn-20180112-story.html

From the Courant Mike Anthony article:

"When Edsall was fired at Maryland during the 2015 season, offensive coordinator Mike Locksley (now co-offensive coordinator at Alabama) was promoted to interim coach, with Dunn as the offensive coordinator. Dunn and Edsall kept in touch in recent years, especially when Edsall was with the Detroit Lions as a special assistant for the 2016 season.

Of Dunn being a first-time coordinator, Edsall said, 'I was never a coordinator either and then George O’Leary gave me the opportunity to be a coordinator and we tied for the ACC championship and we scored seven defensive touchdowns that first year.' Some people think, ‘I have to go hire a guy who has been a coordinator before,’ but when you’re around people and you see people and you talk to other people that guys have worked with, that's the whole thing. There are a lot of guys who could be good coordinators but just have never had the opportunity.”

 

[UConnDan97]

Of course the same could be said about Red Pants, right?

REv1 had a good history picking young coaching talent. Let's hope he strikes gold again.

Actually, I was thinking the exact opposite.

Remember how much name brand recognition Diaco had, and how we all felt immediately after hiring a Broyles winner from Notre Dame? Wow! Big splash! Awesome hire!!!

Then remember how we felt after his first two press conferences and his energy vampire speeches and quarterback 1 vs 1a and his fish oil?

Yeah. Maybe making a big splash isn't all it's cracked up to be. Give me a guy who understands leadership and most importantly, football...

 

[UConnRock]

I hoping that there is a big difference between a 34 year old up and coming OC that has not called plays and the Vertucci/Cummings model of a 50+ year old with decades of coaching and never earning a coordinator job.

 

[Skiblets]

www.courant.com/sports/uconn-football/hc-sp-uconn-football-dunn-20180112-story.html

From the Courant Mike Anthony article:

"When Edsall was fired at Maryland during the 2015 season, offensive coordinator Mike Locksley (now co-offensive coordinator at Alabama) was promoted to interim coach, with Dunn as the offensive coordinator. Dunn and Edsall kept in touch in recent years, especially when Edsall was with the Detroit Lions as a special assistant for the 2016 season.

Of Dunn being a first-time coordinator, Edsall said, 'I was never a coordinator either and then George O’Leary gave me the opportunity to be a coordinator and we tied for the ACC championship and we scored seven defensive touchdowns that first year.' Some people think, ‘I have to go hire a guy who has been a coordinator before,’ but when you’re around people and you see people and you talk to other people that guys have worked with, that's the whole thing. There are a lot of guys who could be good coordinators but just have never had the opportunity.”

Get all that...but SEC coordinator versus QC coach...

 

[Hornet22]

It’s so interesting to me that people are saying this guy sucks and this was a bad hire and said people have no clue who this guy is, the breadth of his knowledge of football and his passion to win- And are ignoring the glaring fact that the person who hired him knows him, the breadth of his knowledge of football and actually was his boss prior.
It’s logical to be optimistic about this hire only because you trust the person who hired him.
Unless these same people that think he sucks also don’t believe in HCRE???
If you believe in Edsall not sure how you can not be optimistic.
When fans are jaded perhaps common sense goes out the window?

 

[Da_Aisijimo_Gou]

Get all that...but SEC coordinator versus QC coach...

Get that, but Lashlee was shown the door at Auburn. And, SEC-and-all, HCRE might have known a little bit about football, coaching talent, and potential when he hired Joe Moorhead, current SEC Head Coach, and Andrew Breiner, MS State Pass Game Coordinator/QB Coach. Or, Todd Orlando, current Texas DC. And, multiple other coaches who succeeded in later roles.

 

[Skiblets]

Get that, but Lashlee was shown the door at Auburn. And, SEC-and-all, HCRE might have known a little bit about football, coaching talent, and potential when he hired Joe Moorhead, current SEC Head Coach, and Andrew Breiner, MS State Pass Game Coordinator/QB Coach. Or, Todd Orlando, current Texas DC. And, multiple other coaches who succeeded in later roles.

What he lacks in the wow factor we all certainly hope he makes up in the substance factor. I’m actually neutral on the hire until we have some facts to work with. Until then will wish him all the best.

 

[uconnbill]

Terrible hire and setback for the program. Clearly, RE was looking for a loyal yes man and not an independent offensive thinker. I can't believe AD Dave allowed RE to go down this path. So disappointed.

I understand the disappointment but none of us can say this is a bad hire before what we see come next season. This is just your opinion.

I like that he is young, has some high praise from a number of coaches both pro and college.

 

[Hornet22]

What he lacks in the wow factor we all certainly hope he makes up in the substance factor. I’m actually neutral on the hire until we have some facts to work with. Until then will wish him all the best.

The neutral or wait and see stance is totally valid. Nothing wrong with evaluating a person’s performance then making a determination.

 

[Exit 4]

I think many of us were expecting someone young with a few years of experience as an OC and QB coach that uses the same uptempo offense as Lashlee and that did not exactly happen today.

After a few hours to digest, i’m good with it. This guy will be here for a while and you could not say that about many other candidates. He apparently likes to recruit and Edsall has several years experience with him, so he knows what this kid is really about. This could work out well.

First step, get acquintated with our QBs. I don’t want any qb leaving before they see some snaps. Our QBs need to be confident this guy is their coach and has the plan to win.

 

[uconnfan68]

This is a sad hire

Be serious. Give him a chance. Support the team and the school.

 

[uconnfan68]

Hate to say it, but this is a disappointment.

And who was your choice? And who said no to you?

 

[uconnfan68]

As others had said, I think this hired boiled down to two fundamentals:

• Randy wanted loyalty. No more 1 year wonders which is hurting all the players with new systems every year. This guy will need at least 2, but maybe as many as 4 years here. No way this guy given this opportunity and his history with Randy can walk after year 1 or even year 2.
• Budget - its is very limited. Probably couldnt afford many others like Brian Wright. Sure, we are a pay raise for Wright, but he is pretty darn close to a much bigger pay raise. Regardless, he would be another one year guy if successful.

Silver lining; looks like a plus on recruiting.

Major concerns:

• Never called plays &
• Doesn't sound like a QB coach.

Was a QB himself. That should count a little.

 

[huskyrob1]

Get that, but Lashlee was shown the door at Auburn. And, SEC-and-all, HCRE might have known a little bit about football, coaching talent, and potential when he hired Joe Moorhead, current SEC Head Coach, and Andrew Breiner, MS State Pass Game Coordinator/QB Coach. Or, Todd Orlando, current Texas DC. And, multiple other coaches who succeeded in later roles.

Locksley at Alabama is another one, Rob Ambrose also.

 

[Da_Aisijimo_Gou]

Locksley at Alabama is another one, Rob Ambrose also.

Ambrose yes, but Maryland's then AD and/or Under Armour imposed Locksley upon HCRE.

 

[gtcam]

Guys like BlueDogs drive me crazy
Knows absolutely zero about the guy but is quick to say terrible hire
Like a little kid who takes his bat and goes home when he can't have his way
To me, Lashlee wasn't all he was built up to be and now we have a guy with broader experience than Lashlee and is a proven recruiter - something Lashlee was not .
None of us knows if Lashlee or Dunn is going to be the next coming of God but if RE likes it, AD David Benedict puts his approval stamp on it then lets give it a test drive.
Everything I have read about this guy is very positive - both on the collegiate and pro levels - better perspective than a guy who followed the same coach and was most likely shown the door at Auburn and then runs "home" to the ole South.
WELCOME COACH
best of luck and gets us some studs

 

[Jimdish255]

No OC experience. Suddenly called upon to develop our young QB's. No playcalling. Time and game management? If this guy isn't a natural we're going to take some frustrating steps backward. Do we have time for another Coach to be on the job training? I don't get it but hoping he has a productive Spring Ball and grows into the job quickly.

 

[nomar]

Hell, go for the divorced 45 year old "10", and she'll pay for dinner AND bring you back to her place.

There's like five 45 year old "10s" on the entire planet. Good luck finding one.

 

[Chief00]

Yeah not going to pan the hire. It’s a wait and see.

Love his recruiting experience. Like others I am concerned he has not called plays before. But that in no way means he can’t be successful.

My main concern is keeping an up tempo offense. HCRE addressed it in his statement, I just hope he sticks with the philosophy.

Like Whaler, I like that he is not a castoff. This is his shot to run with a coordinator spot.

Recruiting well raises all boats.

 

[SubbaBub]

Young > old retread.

+ recruiter, which we could use.

I hope he is some kind of football savant.

NFL is always a selling point.

If staid old Randy bypassed a host of conventional choices for this outside the box choice, then I am willing to buy in.

 

[Rocktheworld]

There's like five 45 year old "10s" on the entire planet. Good luck finding one.

And Sofia Vargera is off the market

Sooo down to 4