Paul Pasqualoni has returned home.
Pasqualoni, a Cheshire, Conn. native, agreed to become UConn’s new head football coach Thursday, less than two weeks after Randy Edsall left to accept the same position at Maryland. Pasqualoni was most recently the interim defensive coordinator with the Dallas Cowboys.
“We are very proud to welcome Paul Pasqualoni to the UConn family and also bring him back home to his native Connecticut,” UConn athletic director Jeff Hathaway said in a statement. “Paul brings an outstanding coaching background to UConn on the collegiate, professional and high school level. He also is a man of strong character and integrity and we look forward to him developing our football student-athletes in the classroom, on the field and as part of the community.”
The 61-year-old boasts Big East experience, coaching Syracuse from 1991-2004, leading the Orangemen to six bowl wins in nine appearances and four Big East championships. Pasqualoni was an assistant at Syracuse for three years prior to becoming the head coach. After being dismissed from Syracuse, Pasqualoni was an assistant for Dallas from 2005-07. He was the Miami Dolphins defensive coordinator in 2008 and 2009 before returning to the Cowboys last year. Pasqualoni’s first head coaching job was at Western Connecticut State from 1982-86.
“I don’t know too much about him, but reading about him I see that he has a lot of experience and success everywhere he’s been,” said wide receiver Kashif Moore, who will be a redshirt senior next fall. “Everyone wants to just keep the ball rolling and continue to work towards another BCS berth.”
It is unclear as to what type of offense and defense Pasqualoni will implement at UConn.
“Well as of right now, I have no idea what his intentions are for the program, but I don’t feel like we need too much rebuilding,” Moore said. “We’ve had a lot of success my time at UConn and I would hope that he can help elevate that. So I’m just going to put my trust in him and believe that that is why he came and just only control what I can which is to continue to lead the team and work hard.”
Since Edsall’s abrupt departure, there has not been any announcement of players transferring. Edsall coached the Huskies for 12 seasons, leading them to a share of the Big East championship, a BCS bowl berth and an 8-5 record in 2010. He left for the Terrapins a day after UConn’s 48-20 to Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl on Jan. 1.
“The team is ready to get this thing rolling and build off of our momentum we’ve had since last season,” Moore said. “I spoke to Coach Edsall on the phone a week ago and just told him thanks for everything he’s done for us and the program and good luck. The team also wants the fans to continue their support and we want to say thanks to the Husky Nation.”
Pasqualoni beat out Mark Whipple, who for the past two days had been widely regarded as the leading candidate, for the job. Whipple was the offensive coordinator at Miami, Fla.
Moore said the team reports back to campus Sunday for a team meeting at 6 p.m.