David Corley, the former running backs coach for the UConn football team, has been promoted to offensive coordinator, head coach Bob Diaco announced at his press conference Tuesday afternoon.
“His suggestions this year have really been spot on. They’ve been some of the better moments in games, some of the better plays in games. The suggestions in game that I get a chance to listen to have been on point and spot on. He has a real good feel for that,” Diaco said. “It’s an incredibly challenging circumstance that he’s going to be taking over.”
The move comes after the Huskies’ 41-3 loss to East Carolina last Saturday, their largest loss of the season and the only game in which they did not score a touchdown. UConn ranks 106th out of 128 teams in FBS for total offense, which includes number of plays, yards, yards per play and touchdowns.
Verducci will continue to serve the staff, but his role will be much more specified, only serving certain offensive units rather than the offense as a whole.
“[Verducci’s] expertise is with the offensive line, so he’ll have an expanded role there. He’ll continue to coach the tight ends but will also add the tackles to his daily routine,” Diaco said. “He’s a good man and he’s got a strong football mind.”
Corley, a former quarterback for William & Mary from 1999-2002, will take over as offensive coordinator after serving three years on UConn’s coaching staff. At his alma mater, Corley was a four-year starter and multiple-time all-conference quarterback. He finished his career as the all-time leader in passing yards (9,805), total offense (10,948) and touchdown passes (73). He was inducted into William & Mary’s Hall of Fame in 2014.
At UConn, Corley served as the Director of Player Engagement, as well as working specifically with running backs and wide receivers. In his six years prior, he served on the William & Mary football staff, working with running backs and quarterbacks.
“I’m excited. It’s something that I’ve always wanted to do,” Corley said. “The way I do things I have a lot of energy just in general. I just try to make sure that I bring that to work every day so that it can roll off on our players.”
Even though the Huskies are on a three-game losing streak and rest at 3-6 on the season, they are still in contention for a bowl game bid if they win their last three games against Temple, Boston College and Tulane. In order for UConn to counteract their losing streak with a winning streak, it is essential that each player be put in the best possible position to succeed, Corley said.
“We feel like we’ve got some talented players on our team offensively, and we’ve got guys who are good enough to help us win ballgames,” Corley said. “We’ve definitely got to improve our ability to run the ball, as well as do a good job protecting the passer.”
Corley will still work closely with the running backs, and does not anticipate making any major change at the quarterback position, which has struggled as of late.
As the Huskies prepare to take on a good Temple team under the lights of Rentschler Field on Friday night, all eyes will be on the offense as they will fight to score against a Temple team on a three-game winning streak. While the promotion of Corley will certainly be under the microscope, Diaco said that he doesn’t anticipate any major changes to happen yet.
“I don’t. I don’t think there will [be a significant change in the offense],” Diaco said. “We can do what we can do at this point with our offensive players. They’re good at particular things and not good at particular things. David is really, really talented, and he’s going to be a real icon in our profession, but he’s not a magician.”
Stephanie Sheehan is the associate managing editor for The Daily Campus. She can be reached via email at stephanie.sheehan@uconn.edu. She tweets @steph_sheehan