What do we have returning for '26? | Page 4 | The Boneyard

What do we have returning for '26?

giddyup said:
No. It’s just an observation. I’m not sold on Candle or any guy until they start performing. Been through 8 HCs (perm and temp) since Holtz. We also have had the luxury of having some the greatest BB coaches in the history of college basketball. So, you observe a few things along the way. It concerns me greatly when you have an HC not engaging the core fan base, especially after the turd dropped at Fenway. Not impressed, sorry.
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I hear you mate, and in the beginning I wasn't over the top thrilled at the Coach Candle hire, but I say this, I am more than willing to give the guy time to build us up. You're a passionate UConn fan, as am I, and after the high we were riding after the FAU game, our once bright outlook came crashing down hard several days later, so I definitely get what you're feeling. We've now experienced massive loss of coaching staff and have 30+ players declare for the portal (both aspects that got us 18 wins the past 2 seasons) with the numbers climbing daily. I don't need Candle to come out and give me some speech. I want him to work, and that's what he's doing. Get the staff rebuilt, bring in guys that can recruit, guys that players on other teams have responded to. That's what he's doing.

I too wish for him to come out and say we've landed this 3-star and that 4-star, but more than that, I want somebody who WANTS to be at UConn and will work FOR UConn. Having Candle do his schtick behind the scenes during this critical period is him walking the walk. He can talk to us later. Anything he says now can possibly be misconstrued ("he's not serious enough", "he doesn't get UConn", "we're not the MAC/Toledo", what have you). My point is, any coach can step to the mic and say something. He's got a young family that he has to move to CT, get ready for the portal, hit the recruiting trail, and prepare for Spring training. I'm willing to cut him slack. I won't disrespect you and tell you the same, but again, as a loyal UConn fan, I know what you're feeling, and as crappy as the last month has been with defections, portal entries, and bowl loss, this is our current state. As someone wrote in one of the threads recently, hope is not a plan, but I think Candle has a plan, so let's see what he comes up with. I'll end by saying I want a coach that choses UConn, his Twitter profile shows me something our ex-coach's profile didn't:
1767373710258.png
 
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KryHavok said:
I hear you mate, and in the beginning I wasn't over the top thrilled at the Coach Candle hire, but I say this, I am more than willing to give the guy time to build us up. You're a passionate UConn fan, as am I, and after the high we were riding after the FAU game, our once bright outlook came crashing down hard several days later, so I definitely get what you're feeling. We've now experienced massive loss of coaching staff and have 30+ players declare for the portal (both aspects that got us 18 wins the past 2 seasons) with the numbers climbing daily. I don't need Candle to come out and give me some speech. I want him to work, and that's what he's doing. Get the staff rebuilt, bring in guys that can recruit, guys that players on other teams have responded to. That's what he's doing.

I too wish for him to come out and say we've landed this 3-star and that 4-star, but more than that, I want somebody who WANTS to be at UConn and will work FOR UConn. Having Candle do his schtick behind the scenes during this critical period is him walking the walk. He can talk to us later. Anything he says now can possibly be misconstrued ("he's not serious enough", "he doesn't get UConn", "we're not the MAC/Toledo", what have you). My point is, any coach can step to the mic and say something. He's got a young family that he has to move to CT, get ready for the portal, hit the recruiting trail, and prepare for Spring training. I'm willing to cut him slack. I won't disrespect you and tell you the same, but again, as a loyal UConn fan, I know what you're feeling, and as crappy as the last month has been with defections, portal entries, and bowl loss, this is our current state. As someone wrote in one of the threads recently, hope is not a plan, but I think Candle has a plan, so let's see what he comes up with. I'll end by saying I want a coach that choses UConn, his Twitter profile shows me something our ex-coach's profile didn't:
View attachment 115443
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With the impressive diversity of high-end assistants that Candle has been able to bring here, I would imagine we will end up with some pretty impactful players out of the portal when it's all said and done, I think we will end up being pretty pleased with what he is able to put together.

If you notice players in the portal from the schools and positions the new coaches came from, think it's a high probability we land some of these guys.

BTW, I know it sucked for a while, but if the recruiting haul rivals the staff he put together, I don't care if he doesn't talk till Spring practice.
 
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I would imagine if someone came to any of us and said "Start this company, hire 50+ managers, 80+ rockstar contributors, put processes in place, make the organization functioning, in an area with extremely limited candidate pool, and everyone else in the industry attempting to do the same thing at the same time, a lot of them with more resources, in a few weeks", that most here who have experience even hiring a single individual for a skilled job would say that it was impossible to do. The work he has to do is insane and if he was out here schmoozing with the fans, then I would be seriously worried.
 
Dizzy21 said:
I would imagine if someone came to any of us and said "Start this company, hire 50+ managers, 80+ rockstar contributors, put processes in place, make the organization functioning, in an area with extremely limited candidate pool, and everyone else in the industry attempting to do the same thing at the same time, a lot of them with more resources, in a few weeks", that most here who have experience even hiring a single individual for a skilled job would say that it was impossible to do. The work he has to do is insane and if he was out here schmoozing with the fans, then I would be seriously worried.
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I don't want to hear from Coach until he can take a breath and feels like we have a foundation to talk about. And occasional quote on social media would be nice but he may not even know where he's headed from hour to hour.
 
KryHavok said:
I hear you mate, and in the beginning I wasn't over the top thrilled at the Coach Candle hire, but I say this, I am more than willing to give the guy time to build us up. You're a passionate UConn fan, as am I, and after the high we were riding after the FAU game, our once bright outlook came crashing down hard several days later, so I definitely get what you're feeling. We've now experienced massive loss of coaching staff and have 30+ players declare for the portal (both aspects that got us 18 wins the past 2 seasons) with the numbers climbing daily. I don't need Candle to come out and give me some speech. I want him to work, and that's what he's doing. Get the staff rebuilt, bring in guys that can recruit, guys that players on other teams have responded to. That's what he's doing.

I too wish for him to come out and say we've landed this 3-star and that 4-star, but more than that, I want somebody who WANTS to be at UConn and will work FOR UConn. Having Candle do his schtick behind the scenes during this critical period is him walking the walk. He can talk to us later. Anything he says now can possibly be misconstrued ("he's not serious enough", "he doesn't get UConn", "we're not the MAC/Toledo", what have you). My point is, any coach can step to the mic and say something. He's got a young family that he has to move to CT, get ready for the portal, hit the recruiting trail, and prepare for Spring training. I'm willing to cut him slack. I won't disrespect you and tell you the same, but again, as a loyal UConn fan, I know what you're feeling, and as crappy as the last month has been with defections, portal entries, and bowl loss, this is our current state. As someone wrote in one of the threads recently, hope is not a plan, but I think Candle has a plan, so let's see what he comes up with. I'll end by saying I want a coach that choses UConn, his Twitter profile shows me something our ex-coach's profile didn't:
View attachment 115443
Expand ...

You guys are crazy. This was a gainfully employed and successful FBS coach.

And he hit all of my criteria and more. You don’t have to go Full Randy Edsall Apologista but you can feel confidently positive.
 
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Dizzy21 said:
I would imagine if someone came to any of us and said "Start this company, hire 50+ managers, 80+ rockstar contributors, put processes in place, make the organization functioning, in an area with extremely limited candidate pool, and everyone else in the industry attempting to do the same thing at the same time, a lot of them with more resources, in a few weeks", that most here who have experience even hiring a single individual for a skilled job would say that it was impossible to do. The work he has to do is insane and if he was out here schmoozing with the fans, then I would be seriously worried.
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I like this, but 50+ managers????? That is not much span of control. How about 5?
 
If we starting signing up walk ons to replace scholarship players we will be worst team in FCS even though we are in FBS
 
giddyup said:
I wish Candle would step up and be more visible. I’d don’t like this incognito mode. One thing I’ll give Mora is he hit the ground running in terms of PR and sold us hard. The job is mighty complex these days and being out in front engaging stakeholders is one of the keys to garnering support which, in turn, helps enable success. Not digging the silence at all. Just sayin. I’d don’t have time for the patience BS anymore. We’ve been through enough circuses.
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I would think we will see Candle much more once the re-recruiting and portal recruiting are finished. His hard work is non-stop.
 
giddyup said:
No. It’s just an observation. I’m not sold on Candle or any guy until they start performing. Been through 8 HCs (perm and temp) since Holtz. We also have had the luxury of having some the greatest BB coaches in the history of college basketball. So, you observe a few things along the way. It concerns me greatly when you have an HC not engaging the core fan base, especially after the turd dropped at Fenway. Not impressed, sorry.
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I may be wrong but I think Coach candle has much more important things to do then interact with the fans. He just brought in a whole new staff and will probably bring in higher caliber players from the portal than we have gotten previously. Some of our portal players will be back. However they will be the players that Candle wants!
 
Slick said:
I may be wrong but I think Coach candle has much more important things to do then interact with the fans. He just brought in a whole new staff and will probably bring in higher caliber players from the portal than we have gotten previously. Some of our portal players will be back. However they will be the players that Candle wants!
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Is he serious with this? How can you even type that?
 
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I didn't read the whole thread but it's been hard to keep up with Medics "to the portal list" ( anyone know the date it closes ?) I truly believe that without Joe F.'s extra year ( who was Brady like at the end of some games) and Skyler turning down Michigan ....Mora would've been no better than a .500 coach this year and he knew it. So this exodus could be a rude awakening for alot of these players and many of them will be lucky to get offers as good as Uconn's (unless Mora scoops them up as he deletes his COL St. roster)...and Candle may not want them back. In any event here's what I have for the opposite list ( aka underclassmen not on Medic's list, but wait a minute 😉)....Call me when the games start, because this has been an effort in futility, LOL!

1767532641279.png
 
kemba said:
Not when he first took the job, he was very visible and making the rounds everywhere then.

That said, different time different circumstances. Program was in a state that it needed more outreach, and the portal wasn’t as big of a deal quite yet.

Right now the only priority should be the roster and coaching staff. Once that’s complete I do hope he starts being more visible
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When was Mora hired? They had all season to find Mora vs 1 and a half weeks to find Candle so Candle is focused on putting a team on the field next year I would imagine.
 
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AllHusky said:
Just saw Vince Carroll Jackson visiting Arkansas. Anybody else feel he was a major disappointment for us? How does a guy fall up? Or is he about to get shtupped?(never actually tried to write that word, sp?)
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I thought he was from a performance standpoint. Felt he was down grade from Stafford and Gourdine but he's like 6'5" 305lbs and moves really well. Only so many of those guys around. Truthfully he looked out of shape and would wear down is what looked like. Still has a world of upside.
 
AllHusky said:
Just saw Vince Carroll Jackson visiting Arkansas. Anybody else feel he was a major disappointment for us? How does a guy fall up? Or is he about to get shtupped?(never actually tried to write that word, sp?)
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Agreed, FWIW they could be offering him a chance at a rotational role, vs we likely told him he could start (and he did)
 
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DawgEnjoyer said:
Agreed, FWIW they could be offering him a chance at a rotational role, vs we likely told him he could start (and he did)
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Might be a choice between money and playing more. Some kids have to go for the money.
 
It did matter, if you could’ve skimmed the upper crust off the top, would have made a difference. Looks like it’s going to be burn it down and rebuild. Hard to imagine Cam wants to be the face of a brand new program.
 
noeynox said:
When was Mora hired? They had all season to find Mora vs 1 and a half weeks to find Candle so Candle is focused on putting a team on the field next year I would imagine.
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Well, the succession plan had been in place since Mora's first arrival and likely modified and updated several times in the interim. Additionally there are ways of cultivating people to keep the ground prepared for seed. Keeping in touch, using a pretense, etc. The search started long long ago and probably heated up a bit as HCJM's departure started to look more imminent. AD David Benedict is a pro at this kind of thing. Which is why we got an orderly transition and the new team which hit the ground running. At some point they will focus on the UConn football base, but not now. Their focus is elsewhere.
 
AllHusky said:
It did matter, if you could’ve skimmed the upper crust off the top, would have made a difference. Looks like it’s going to be burn it down and rebuild. Hard to imagine Cam wants to be the face of a brand new program.
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Interesting metaphor - the guys leaving are as responsible for the burning down as anyone. It doesn’t have to be brand new; they could stay and continue growth trajectory
 
AllHusky said:
It did matter, if you could’ve skimmed the upper crust off the top, would have made a difference. Looks like it’s going to be burn it down and rebuild. Hard to imagine Cam wants to be the face of a brand new program.
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Nah. Wrong.

It's silly to think that Cam would consider coming back unless we are offering more than $500k.
 
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