Next UConn Head Coach Odds: Who Replaces Mora For The Huskies?

By Christopher Boan Nov 26th, 2025 3:51 PM EST

Matt Patricia has led Ohio State's defense this past season (USATODAY)

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The latest cog in the NCAA football head coaching carousel unwound Wednesday, with UConn’s Jim Mora Jr. announcing his decision to take the same job at Colorado State after the Rams fired Jay Norvell earlier this season.

To get a sense of where Huskies AD David Benedict will go next, Bookies.com compiled some hypothetical college football odds on who Mora’s replacement will be in Storrs, with a handful of New England area coaches (and natives) atop our list.

Coach	Role	Odds	Implied Probability
Matt Patricia	Ohio State defensive coordinator	+280	26.3%
Joe Moorhead	Akron head coach	+400	20%
Chip Kelly	Former UCLA & Oregon head coach	+600	14.3%
Tony Reno	Yale head coach	+900	10%
Jeff Monken	Army head coach	+1100	8.3%
Ryan Carty	Delaware head coach	+1400	6.7%
K.C. Keeler	Temple head coach	+2250	4.3%
The Field	—	+900	10%

A Look At The Candidates

Matt Patricia (Ohio State defensive coordinator): +280

After spending much of the last two decades as an assistant under Bill Belichick in New England, Matt Patricia has forged his own path in the college ranks, leading the defending champion Ohio State Buckeyes to the nation’s best scoring defense in 2025 (allowing 7.6 points per game), as the team’s defensive coordinator.

Patricia’s first season in Columbus sees him earn $2.5 million, which is just ahead of Mora’s $2.1 million contract for the year in Storrs, though we’re sure UConn would open the coffers to land the former Detroit Lions head coach.

Joe Moorhead (Akron head coach): +400

While Joe Moorhead’s tenure at Akron has been anything but pretty, it’s hard to fault him much given the lack of institutional support from the MAC program. In six seasons as a college coach prior to arriving with the Zips in 2022, Moorhead went 52-25, including a 38-13 stint with Fordham from 2012-2015 that saw the Rams reach the FCS postseason three times.

While Moorhead’s time at Akron hasn’t yielded any bowl berths, he has raised the Zips standards from the depths of consecutive 2-10 seasons to this year’s 5-7 campaign, speaking to the veteran coach’s talents on the sidelines.

Money wouldn’t be an issue here, as Moorhead currently earns $620,000 a year with Akron, well below Mora’s figures during his time with the Huskies, potentially opening the door for the longtime college coach to come back to the Northeast in 2026.

Chip Kelly (former UCLA, Oregon head coach): +600

Kelly’s return to the NFL was brief, with the former UCLA and Oregon head coach lasting all of 11 games as the Las Vegas Raiders’ offensive coordinator before getting fired Monday.

That said, he has been a consistent winner with the Bruins and Ducks, going 81-41 in total across both programs in 10 seasons in Westwood and Eugene, potentially paving the way for his third NCAA head coaching stop next year.

The 62-year-old is a New Hampshire native that coached and played at UNH, with assistant coaching stops both there and at schools like Johns Hopkins and Columbia, potentially making Storrs an ideal destination for Kelly in the new year.

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Tony Reno (Yale head coach): +900

Few coaches have done more across the Ivy League ranks than Tony Reno has since arriving at Yale in 2012, with the 51-year-old winning five league titles, including this year’s 8-2 campaign in New Haven.

This weekend, Reno and the Bulldogs play in the Ivy’s first ever FCS playoffs, with Yale heading to Ohio to play 15th seeded Youngstown State, with a potential showdown against second seeded Montana State awaiting them.

Given Reno’s affordable contract that’s reported to be $732,500 annually, it seems like money wouldn’t be an issue here, though it comes down to whether the longtime Yale head coach wants to leave a smaller gig in Connecticut for one at the state’s flagship university.

Jeff Monken (Army head coach): +1100

Few college coaches have had their names bandied about over the years for head coaching openings like Jeff Monken has since arriving at West Point a dozen years ago.

Much of that is due to Monken’s ongoing success at Army, with an 87-62 (.584) record in 149 games with the Knights, including six bowl games (with a potential seventh if Army wins one of the team’s final two games).

Monken currently makes $2.350 million to coach at Army, per USA Today, which puts him along the same rank as Mora’s pay in 2025.

The question is whether Monken wants to leave West Point and the Knight’s American Conference connections to play as an independent at UConn, which will be something to keep an eye on as the Huskies’ search unfolds.

Ryan Carty (Delaware head coach): +1400

Of the two FBS newcomers in 2025, Ryan Carty’s Delaware Blue Hens have the lesser record (behind Missouri State’s 7-4 mark).

Still, Carty has opened doors for UD in the program’s first year as a FBS member, with a 3-4 mark in Conference USA play and a shot at a sixth victory when UTEP comes to Newark this weekend.

Prior to arriving at Delaware in 2022, Carty served as the offensive coordinator under head coach K.C. Keeler at Sam Houston State and in a variety of assistant roles with New Hampshire.

While Carty’s latest salary info from his contract extension through 2030 have not been revealed, we can assume he’s earning well below Mora’s $2.1 million amount, which means he’ll likely listen to Benedict if he calls.

Given Canty’s success at UD, it seems like such a call is warranted, with UConn looking to land another under-the-radar coach this offseason.

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K.C. Keeler (Temple head coach): +2250

Our final candidate for the UConn opening is Canty’s former boss at Sam Houston State, with CFB mainstay K.C. Keeler (now at Temple) finishing things off.

Keeler was at SHSU from 2014 to 2024, with stops at Delaware (from 2002 to 2012) and Rowan (from 1993 to 2001) before that.

In his coaching career, Keeler’s won two FCS titles (one at Delaware in 2003 and another at SHSU in 2021), while earning the Eddie Robinson Award in 2016.

While Keeler’s first year at Temple has been a bit of a bumpy road, he still has the Owls in position to potentially reach a bowl game for the first time since 2019, sitting at 5-6 with a game against North Texas in Denton this weekend.

For now, all we know is that Keeler’s current deal at Temple is not publicly available (as the Owls are a private school), though he did make $625,000 in his final year at Sam Houston State in 2024.

With all that in mind, we’re giving Keeler a puncher’s chance at landing the UConn job this offseason, with +2250 odds of replacing Mora in Storrs.