STORRS – UConn men’s basketball coach Dan Hurley is confident about the future of the Huskies’ football program after it lost coach Jim Mora to Colorado State on Wednesday morning.
Speaking with local media ahead of his team’s first Madison Square Garden trip of the season, where the fifth-ranked Huskies will meet No. 14 Illinois on Friday afternoon, Hurley was asked to address the news and he was both thankful for the job Mora had done and optimistic about the program moving forward.
“I learned a lot from watching Coach coach,” Hurley said. “Coach is as good as it gets in terms of, like, a leader of an organization and the way he changed the culture and the hope that he brought back to the university and the state and the fanbase with football. Going into this hire, obviously it changes the level of optimism on what UConn football can be. What UConn football has been the last two years has been, like, how much fun you could have when you invest in football in the fall and the winter at UConn. He elevated everything and brought hope back to a program that was in a pretty dire situation.
“Can’t have anything but love for what the guy was able to do here. It’s incredible the job he did, so wish him well. He’s an awesome coach and he did a lot for UConn.”
UConn football coach Jim Mora leaving for Colorado State; coached Huskies for four seasons
Mora’s decision to bolt for Colorado State came just four days after UConn wrapped up a 9-3 regular season and reached the nine-win mark for the second year in a row – something that had never been done in the program’s history. He led the Huskies to bowl eligibility three times in his four years at the helm.
Before he arrived, it had been 11 years since the Huskies’ last bowl appearance.
“I know that Jim Mora loves UConn,” Hurley said. “He loves his players. There’s an emotional connection you could see on the sidelines, with the way they compete and the seasons they’ve had where there’s like a bond between him and the people that helped build the program with him, staff and the players. But then there’s other things. There’s family considerations and where you’re from and conference – I mean, there’s a lot of different things that are at play when you’ve got to make these choices.
“But UConn is the type of place where they provide you the resources where, there’s no like magic dust in Storrs, Connecticut, but if you get the right coach in here that will hire the right staff, that will attract the right players, you could be championship-level in anything here.”
Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont also posted a video to social media thanking Mora and wishing him luck on Wednesday.
“I want you to know how much you’ve meant to the players at UConn football, how much you’ve meant to the school, how much you’ve meant to the state,” Lamont said. “I remember when you first came here, you picked up a franchise that was losing confidence in itself. We were around the state and I remember you stepping up and saying, ‘I believe in UConn football and you should too.’ Here we are a few years later and look what you’ve accomplished.”
Dom Amore: Jim Mora leaves UConn football far better than he found it. Now, what’s next?
UConn Director of Athletics, David Benedict, put out a statement Wednesday morning naming offensive coordinator Gordon Sammis as the team’s interim head coach as it prepares for the bowl game. The national search for a new leader of the football program is underway.
“We’ve got the best AD in college sports,” Hurley said. “Look at what Dave has done, all of the different hires that he’s made in the various sports that compete at the championship level. Like soccer, NCAA Tournament and the incredible season that they’re having. … But I mean, Dave has hired some very successful coaches, so Dave’s gonna hit another home run like he’s done. He’s the best AD in the country.”
Benedict also hired Hurley, and to his credit, has kept Hurley from leaving on several occasions over the last few years.
But the Mora era is officially over. Colorado State made its official announcement Wednesday afternoon and Mora tastefully changed his profile picture on social media to a photoshopped version of himself wearing green, rather than blue. He will officially be introduced as the Rams’ next head coach on Monday.
