After Connecticut’s second ugly loss in two weeks — this weekend’s to FCS Holy Cross — Randy Edsall announced that he will be retiring at the end of this season. The Huskies football program, which definitely had some strong moments under Edsall in his first run in Storrs, has been abysmal of late and further marginalized in conference realignment. Just how viable this football program is going forward is a tricky question.

I suspect there will be a few strong candidates who would make a lot of sense geographically but who probably wouldn’t sign on for this as their next move. But if you’re UConn, you have to be aggressive and swing. There’s been a few highly regarded coordinators who have UConn ties that might make a lot of sense — at least from the Huskies’ perspective.

Joe Moorhead: Oregon offensive coordinator Joe Moorhead was a UConn OC back when the Huskies were at their best. The Pittsburgh native, 47, had an excellent first season in Eugene, despite taking a group that was No. 4 in the Pac-12 in yards per play up to No. 2, and that was despite not having Justin Herbert or having to replace Penei Sewell and the entire O-line.

Moorhead did a terrific job as Penn State’s offensive coordinator after working some wonders as the head coach at his alma mater, Fordham. At Mississippi State, he was 14-12 and 2-0 in the Egg Bowl, but ended up getting squeezed out. I’m not sure Moorhead would jump for this job, but it’s a call UConn should make.

Rhett Lashlee: Another former UConn offensive coordinator that might make some sense for the Huskies is Miami OC Rhett Lashlee  The ‘Canes obviously got off to a rough start this season against mighty Alabama, but don’t underestimate the job he’s done at Miami: the Canes went from No. 98 to No. 32 in his debut season and he did really well at SMU. He’s another top assistant who I suspect might be looking for a bigger Group of 5 job as his next move.

Todd Orlando: USC defensive coordinator Todd Orlando spent a decade as a Huskies assistant and also could get serious consideration. The Pittsburgh native has been in the mix for a few head coaching jobs before and might be interested in a move back to the Northeast to run his own program.