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Dom Amore: Jason Candle’s UConn quarterback room getting crowded with talent
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- Dom Amore: Jason Candle’s UConn quarterback room getting crowded with talent
Each day has been bringing a fresh round of transfers into UConn’s football program, the number of incoming now pushing 40 players.
Many have followed new coach Jason Candle from Toledo to Connecticut , and many have come from the usual circumstances, from power conference schools where they did not get much playing time, or from mid-majors, now looking to prove themselves in what is becoming a high-profile situation.
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At this point, they are just names, photos in your iPhone, but some of them are bound to get one’s attention. Jake Merklinger, a former four-star recruit who was Tennessee’s backup last season, committed to UConn late last week.
“He’s an excellent leader, he’s a great athlete, he’s tough,” said Mark Stroud, who coached Merklinger at Calvary Day School in Savannah, Ga . “He’s a ferocious competitor. If given the opportunity, he’s just going to flourish, he’s got so many great qualities.”
The Huskies, plagued by opt-outs, had trouble identifying a quarterback to line up against Army at the Fenway Bowl before finally settling on thrusting true freshman Ksaan Farrar into the fire . Farrar has since moved on to rejoin Jim Mora at Colorado State. Meanwhile, Candle and his staff, including offensive coordinator Nunzio Campanile, assistant head coach Robert Weiner, who worked with quarterbacks for Candle at Toledo, and Marquel Blackwell, co-offensive coordinator and QB coach, have been filling up the QB room.
Bo Polston , the headliner among Candle’s 2026 recruiting haul for Toledo, moved with him to UConn. Kalieb Osborne, a freshman who completed 17 of 28 for 167 yards and a TD in the Rockets’ 27-22 loss to Louisville in the Boca Raton Bowl, his first collegiate start, transferred to UConn, bringing with him year’s experience in Toledo’s system. Tucker McDonald, after testing the portal, returned to UConn for his fourth season in the program.
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Now add Merklinger, and the Huskies should have a fierce quarterback competition with contenders in various stages of their college development.
Stroud, one of the winningest coaches in Georgia high school history, retired after Merklinger’s senior season. Merklinger had started all four years for Calvary, winning 42 of 52 starts, leading his team to three straight region championships. When Tennessee was recruiting him, they came to watch him play basketball, too, and were taken with the athletic ability he showed on the court. He played baseball his first two years, to spend more time with his friends. “Then he played lacrosse,” Stroud said, “and he was one of our best lacrosse players, even though he’d never played lacrosse before.”
So it’s no surprise Merklinger, 6 feet 3 and 215 pounds, has the natural versatility and instincts to make plays with his arm or his legs.
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“We watched him in games, big games, where he just will not quit,” Stroud said. “He’s not going to back down, not going to quit. He’s emotional, passionate. He’s just driven, thinks he can do it. Plays with a lot of confidence. He just rose to the occasion.”
As long has college football has been played, top players have gravitated toward places like Tennessee, only to find a slew of top recruits at the same position. Merklinger played late in a couple of blowouts as a true freshman, retaining his redshirt status. In 2025, he was Joey Aguilar’s backup, and played in four games, completing 13 of 24 passes for 173 yards.
No one enters college football to sit on the bench. The portal offers freedom of movement, but it also forces coaches under pressure to win every season to look for experience players, especially at quarterback. Tennessee could retain Aguilar, who led the Vols to an 8-4 record, if he prevails in his bid to get another year of eligibility, and has also added Ryan Staub, who played at Colorado, through the portal.
“A player can get stuck,” Stroud said. “Everyone feels like it’s got to happen right now, especially in the SEC, because those (coaches) are one bad season away from being done, so they feel like they’ve got to go get somebody who is proven, played tons and tons of snaps. The portal is just a mystery for everybody, there are coaches who were just recruiting the heck out of these kids in high school. We know they’re great players; somebody’s just got to have it in them to take a chance on ’em.”
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So Merklinger, who will be a redshirt sophomore, entered the portal looking for his chance. UConn’s previous coaching staff had a major success with Joe Fagnano, who transferred after four seasons at Maine and ended up playing three for UConn. Nick Evers, who transferred from Wisconsin looking for playing time, played very little and has now transferred to Missouri. Ta’Quan Roberson, who transferred from Penn State to UConn in 2022, has since played for Kansas State and Buffalo.
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For a program in UConn’s unique position, an independent program considered Group of Six conference caliber, but aspiring higher, nothing could be more important than gaining the reputation for developing quarterbacks. Candle, with the offensive coaches he has hired, is wise to lean into that. Right now, they’re just names with small sample sizes to evaluate, but their backgrounds indicate UConn’s quarterback room with be crowded with viable talent to face opponents like Maryland, Syracuse, North Carolina and James Madison.
“(Jake) had a great visit, and he felt like things are really looking up with UConn football,” Stroud said. “He just wants to go somewhere where he feels like he has a good chance to compete for the job. I think it’s just a natural fit for him and he’s going to have good opportunity to compete, they play a great schedule. He has all the things you’re looking for in a great leader, all the things you’re looking for in a great quarterback.”
