A look at Randy Edsall's contract as losses mount for UConn football

Two games, two double-digit losses for Randy Edsall and UConn Huskies football.

Last week was a 45-0 bludgeoning at Fresno State. Today, however, was an altogether different animal.

The Huskies trailed Football Championship Subdivision program Holy Cross at the half, trailed by 10 points in the third quarter and lost by 10, 38-28.

Fair or not, it brings to light Edsall's failed second tour atop the Huskies' program, beginning with his return to UConn football before the 2017 season. He's now 6-32 in his return to UConn, and his team sat out the COVID-19 altered 2020

And it also raises questions about Edsall's contract status.

While Edsall received a contract extension last March, when the school likewise extended the pact of basketball coach Dan Hurley, it isn't a long-term deal and also would not appear to contain massive buyout-monies.

Edsall was extended only through the 2023 season, and Edsall – by college football standards, especially at the FBS level – has garnered only a modest salary from UConn.

He's scheduled to make approximately $1.25 million for the 2021 season.

Even with modest escalators and potential increases due to a bizarre bonus structure in his original pact from three years ago, Edsall's buyout – IF UConn elected to take its program in a different direction – likely would at most be in the $2.5-3 million range, based off Edsall's salary this season.

UConn did not disclose buyout figures in the contracts of Edsall and Hurley when it announced the extensions in March.

“When we made this hire, and we made the change,” Huskies' athletics director David Benedict told the Hartford Courant last March, “we knew it was going to require patience. I’m really happy that Randy is going into a season next year with a handful of redshirt-seniors.

“We’ll be less reliant on true freshmen. It’s a sign of the maturity of the program, and I’m excited to see how things progress here over the next several years.”

It's hard to point to any single facet of UConn football – let alone multiple components – and label it as a mature football team that has displayed veteran poise. The Huskies mustered just nine first downs in their 45-0 season-opening loss last week at Fresno State.

Saturday in the loss to Holy Cross, which was 3-1 in the FCS' spring season and lost in the first round of the playoffs, the Huskies committed four turnovers – three interceptions and a lost fumble.

In fact, UConn's offensive output through two games – 369 yards' total offense – is 3 yards less than Holy Cross' total in Saturday's win.

Looking forward, the schedule doesn't get easier.