Sam Durley Named Eureka College Strength and Wellness Coordinator

EUREKA — One of Eureka College's most accomplished athletes of the past decade will soon be joining the EC athletic department in a full-time capacity.

Sam Durley has been named the Red Devils' Strength and Wellness Coordinator, EC announced Thursday.

In this new role, he will design year-round sport-specific conditioning programs for all athletic teams, work with the athletic training staff to implement injury prevention and rehabilitation programs and coordinate use of the weight room and Bonati Fitness Center in the Reagan Athletic Complex.

As an EC student from 2009 to 2013, Durley left his mark as the Red Devils' record-breaking quarterback. A four-year letterwinner, Durley set the NCAA record for passing yards in a single game (736) in 2012, and still owns many school records, including career passing yards (8,162), completions (572), pass attempts (1,141) and passing touchdowns (61).

Durley's record-setting, 736-yard game against Knox in the Lincoln Bowl on Sept. 1, 2012, thrust the quarterback into the national spotlight. In the span of a few days, he was featured on SportsCenter, appeared in USA Today and Sports Illustrated and was interviewed by former NFL star running back Eddie George on Sirius XM College Football Today.  

Durley spent two seasons playing professional football in the Indoor Football League and the Arena Football League, before returning to Eureka to complete his bachelor's degree in physical education in 2015.

"Sam has been a huge contributor to our football program as a student-athlete and a coach from the moment he stepped on campus 10 years ago as one of Kurt Barth's first recruits at Eureka College," EC Athletic Director Bryan Moore said. "Sam's new role will give him a valuable platform to mentor and positively influence not only our football program, but all of our student-athletes as they work to improve in the weight room and in competition."

A physical education teacher for East Peoria Elementary School District 86 since 2016, Durley has been an EC assistant football coach under Barth since 2013, playing a pivotal role in shaping the Red Devils' high-powered offense during the program's recent resurgence. He will begin his new position on a part-time basis, and will join the staff full-time in July.

"I've known for a while that coaching college football and working with college athletes is what I want to do for the rest of my life, so what better place to start than the place I've called home for the last 10 years," Durley said. "Designing workouts, pushing athletes of all sports, and being around football all day is a huge step in the right direction for my career, and I could not be more excited to continue doing it here as a Red Devil."

At Eureka, Durley received a slew of accolades. He was a three-time All-UMAC honoree, the Allstate Sugar Bowl Manning Award Star of the Week in 2012, the Offensive MVP of the 2012 National Bowl and the 2013 Greater Peoria Sports Hall of Fame Male Athlete of the Year.

He was also a 2014 finalist for IFL Rookie of the Year for the Wyoming Cavalry.

Durley and his wife, Whitney, live in Goodfield.