Gordon Sammis Named Huskies Offensive Coordinator

STORRS, Conn. – UConn football head coach Jim Mora announced that Gordon Sammis has been named the team's new offensive coordinator.  Sammis has been the Huskies offensive line coach for the past two seasons under Coach Mora.

Sammis takes over offensive coordinator duties from Nick Charlton who has departed the program.  Sammis joined Mora's staff as offensive line coach in 2022 and last season added run game coordinator to his duties.

During his two seasons, he has coached offensive guard Christian Haynes who earned Associated Press and Sporting News All-American team honors in back-to-back seasons.  He became just the third Husky in the FBS era to garner All-American honors and the first to do it in consecutive seasons.  Haynes is one of the top-rated guards and projected as a NFL Draft pick in April. 

During Sammis's first season at UConn in 2022 he coached an offensive line unit that helped the Huskies rank 33rd in the nation in rushing offense, averaging 191.0 yards per game.  In the passing game, the UConn offensive line was 29th in the NCAA in sacks allowed, allowing just 1.38 per game. 

The UConn front-five improved on their sacks allowed stat in 2023, ranking ninth in the country allowing just 12 sacks (1.00 pg) on the season.

Sammis came to UConn after spending the previous three seasons in the same role at William & Mary, where he was also the team's run game coordinator during the last two years. During the 2021 season William & Mary led the CAA in rushing yards with 203.7 yards per game, nearly 30 yards per game more than Stony Brook, which finished second in rushing yards per contest.  

Under Sammis' direction, the Tribe's offensive line was a catalyst for W&M's tremendous improvement in 2019. In addition to nearly doubling its scoring output compared to 2018, W&M averaged nearly 100 more total yards per game than it did in the season prior to his arrival. The offensive line's play boosted the Tribe's rushing attack, which increased its production on the ground by more than 130 yards per game and scored 21 more rushing touchdowns than the squad's 2018 figures. Additionally, the Tribe's 26 rushing touchdowns was just one shy of breaking into the program's single-season top-10 list.

Sammis completed a successful two-year stint as the offensive line coach at Lafayette College prior to joining W&M's staff. Under his direction, the Leopards ranked first in the Patriot League in fewest sacks allowed and fewest tackles for a loss allowed. Additionally, he mentored a pair of all-conference selections, including first-team honoree Jake Marotti.

Prior to his tenure at Lafayette, Sammis spent the 2015 and 2016 seasons as the offensive line coach at Virginia Military Institute (VMI) where he was responsible for the running game and pass protection plans for a tempo run-pass option offense. Sammis spent time as the tight ends coach and offensive line coach at Columbia University from 2012-14. He served as the program's recruiting coordinator all three seasons.

A 2007 University of Virginia graduate, Sammis earned a degree in government after a playing career as an offensive guard that spanned from 2003-07.

Sammis returned to his alma mater as a graduate assistant coach from 2010-12, earning a master's degree in education in 2012. He worked as an offensive line assistant during his first season and with the tight ends the following year.