Is this the best it can do as a backup plan in case Brian Kelly falls through?

That was our reaction when we read that UConn's Randy Edsall has emerged as a candidate for the Notre Dame football job.

Edsall is a defensive-minded coach - something that certainly couldn't be said about Charlie Weis - and he has done a decent job as the caretaker of the UConn program after it made the jump to Division I-A (now the Football Bowl Subdivision).

But there is nothing about him that knocks your socks off. He has enjoyed moderate - but hardly great - success in his 11 seasons at UConn.

Certainly, the early years should be thrown out, as it would take any coach time to build a program from scratch (the Huskies made the job from Division I-AA in 2000).

Edsall guided the Huskies to a 9-3 record in 2003, when Dan Orlovsky was the team's quarterback. Edsall had another nine-win season in 2007, but the Huskies have been mediocre the last two seasons - 8-5 in 2008 and 7-5 this year.

Of course, one of the wins this year was a double overtime victory at Notre Dame that essentially signalled the end for Irish coach Charlie Weis.

One could argue that Edsall has done a commendable job just making the Huskies competitive in the Big East since the program is still relatively young. He'd certainly have more to work with in South Bend.

Another concern about Edsall, however, is that he tends to be standoffish with the media, and that makes one wonder if he could handle that pressure cooker environment that the Notre Dame job entails.

In any event, Notre Dame needs to get this deal done. It will start to look bad - indecisive - if the search drags into a third week.