UConn is finalizing a six-year deal with Toledo‘s Jason Candle to replace Jim Mora, who left to coach Colorado State, sources told ESPN’s Pete Thamel on Saturday.

Candle went 81-44 in 10 seasons at Toledo, with two MAC titles. He also coached the Rockets to a win in his debut as head coach, the Boca Raton Bowl in the 2015 season. Toledo was 8-4 this season and is awaiting a bowl assignment.

The 46-year-old Candle has been the top target of UConn’s search since the beginning, sources told Thamel. He visited campus Thursday, and the sides are expected to formalize the deal soon.

Mora is coming off back-to-back nine-win seasons at UConn, which hadn’t had one since 2007. Mora led UConn to three bowl seasons in his four years there; the school had been to only one bowl game in the previous 11 seasons.

UConn’s 2025 season (9-3) included a 2-1 mark against ACC schools, with wins over Duke and Boston College. UConn also had the distinction of not having any losses in regulation, as all three of its defeats came in overtime.

LSU defensive coordinator Blake Baker is remaining with the program, coach Lane Kiffin said Friday on X.

Baker, who has led LSU’s defense the past two seasons, interviewed for head coaching vacancies at Tulane and Memphis this week and was a strong candidate, sources said. But he instead will remain with Kiffin, who prioritized retaining Baker, one of the nation’s highest-paid assistants at $2.5 million.

Baker is expected to receive a revised contract and a raise.

Under Baker, the Tigers ranked 15th in scoring defense and 25th nationally in total defense this fall. His retention capped a strong day for LSU, which signed defensive tackle Lamar Brown, ESPN’s No. 1 overall recruit, and defensive tackle Deuce Geralds (No. 37).

Baker, 43, is in his second stint at LSU after coaching the team’s linebackers in 2021. A former Tulane linebacker, he also has held coordinator roles at Louisiana Tech, Miami and Missouri.

Mississippi State defensive coordinator Coleman Hutzler has been informed that he is not returning next season, with the Bulldogs expected to target former head coach Zach Arnett to be the next defensive coordinator, sources told ESPN’s Pete Thamel on Saturday.

The move would be the rare reunion of a former head coach returning to the staff of that team.

Arnett is a proven high-end defensive coordinator in the SEC. In three years as Mississippi State DC (2020-22), his defenses ranked in the top five in the conference in total defense, rushing defense and takeaways.

He took over as coach following the death of Mike Leach in December 2022, but Arnett was fired with two games to play in 2023 after leading the Bulldogs to a 4-6 record that season.

After leaving Mississippi State, Arnett has spent the past two seasons as an analyst at Ole Miss and Florida State.

Hutzler had been the Bulldogs’ defensive coordinator since 2024, but Mississippi State has ranked last and second to last in yards per game allowed and points per game allowed the past two seasons.