Randy Edsall will make the move from Connecticut to Maryland. (AP Photo/Matt York)

Just days after Ralph Friedgen coached his final game in the Military Bowl at nearby RFK Stadium, University of Maryland athletic director Kevin Anderson announced yesterday that former University of Connecticut head coach Randy Edsall will be named Friedgen’s successor.

“I’m extremely proud to follow Ralph Friedgen,” said Edsall during a press conference in College Park this afternoon. “I look forward to taking the program from what Ralph built to another level.”

The hiring of Edsall comes as a surprise to many, given that former Texas Tech coach Mike Leach was the supposed front-runner to fill the coaching vacancy. According to The Washington Post, the University “got cold feet, and wanted to make the conservative, safe, non-confrontational hire.”

Anderson disagreed with that sentiment during the presser. “I would say we got a damn good head football coach here,” he said of Edsall.

Edsall ended the 2010 season as Big East Coach of the Year, as his Huskies clinched the conference championship and made the school’s first-ever BCS bowl appearance. UConn fell to Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl this past Saturday, 48-20. Shortly after the game, Edsall did not board the Connecticut-bound plane with his team, instead traveling to College Park to accept the Maryland job. Edsall alerted his former players of the news via speakerphone.

Edsall led UConn to a 74-70 record during his 12-year tenure. He evolved the program from Division I-AA into to a two-time Big East champion and finished the season with at least an 8 wins in each of his last four years. He’ll inherit a talented Maryland team that finished 9-4 and tied for third in the Atlantic Coast Conference. ACC Rookie of the Year quarterback Danny O’Brien will have three more years of eligibility when Edsall arrives in College Park.