John Dunn Named UConn Football Team's Offensive Coordinator

UConn coach Randy Edsall keeps a list, sorted by position, of coaches he has crossed paths with or gotten to know over his long career, people he would consider making part of his staff should a vacancy create the need.

There are many reasons John Dunn, announced as UConn's new offensive coordinator Friday morning, was included on that list. Dunn has coached at some of the top Division I programs. He has coached in the NFL. He even has experience working under Edsall (at Maryland) and, at 34, possesses the energetic voice Edsall was seeking for the sidelines and meeting rooms.

UConn football coach Randy Edsall named John Dunn as the Huskies' new offensive coordinator Friday. Dunn has prior experience with the Chicago Bears and at Maryland under Edsall. Photo: John Woike / Hartford Courant

So Dunn is officially on board, a first-time full-time coordinator set to call plays for the Huskies in the 2018 season. "He's very versed in offense," Edsall said of the 34-year-old first-time coordinator. "He's been in tempo offenses. We're going to be a multiple, no-huddle offense that is going to use tempo, formations and other things to create advantages. The good thing is, he'll take the system that we had and enhance it."

Dunn’s contract is for two years and he will be paid $300,000 per year. Dunn, who spent the past two seasons as an offensive assistant with the Chicago Bears, takes over for Rhett Lashlee, who was the UConn offensive coordinator for one season and left last week to take the same job at SMU. “I’m so grateful to coach Edsall for the chance to join this team,”

Maryland coach Randy Edsall experiences 'bittersweet' moment at Syracuse. Photo: The Diamondback

Dunn said in a statement. “I’m thrilled for this opportunity and my family and I look forward to being a part of UConn football.” UConn also ran a no-huddle offense under Lashlee, who was the coordinator at Auburn prior to joining Edsall at UConn. Dunn's offense will be similar in some ways, but the Huskies will work toward developing a more functional drop-back passing game. Edsall believes Dunn's NFL experience will help the Huskies achieve that.


Dunn was a walk-on quarterback at North Carolina in 2001-03 and a student/graduate assistant there until 2007. He was then an assistant under Les Miles at LSU, and left to join Edsall's staff at Maryland in 2011, following Gary Crowton, the LSU offensive coordinator who left LSU to be Edsall's coordinator.

At Maryland, Dunn was Edsall's tight ends coach and eventually recruiting coordinator. He will also serve as UConn's quarterbacks coach, and Edsall expects to have Dunn’s primary recruiting area be Georgia and the northern part of Florida (where Lashlee operated). 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.