Sam Durley Named Full-Time Offensive Coordinator at Eureka College
EUREKA – After spending the last four years as Strength and Wellness Coordinator, Sam Durley is moving into a new role at Eureka College.
Durley, a 2015 Eureka College alum and a part-time assistant coach for the football team since 2013, has been named the Red Devils' first full-time Offensive Coordinator in program history, effective July 1. The change will allow Durley to focus on supporting the football program and the next Strength and Wellness Coordinator to provide full-time strength and conditioning training to all athletic programs within the department.
"Sam is a tremendous asset to our department, a fantastic mentor to our student-athletes, and we couldn't be more excited to have him in this new full-time role," Eureka College Director of Athletics Sara Shaw said. "We are fortunate to have the institutional support needed to make this significant move, which will enhance the student-athlete experience for the entire department."
In his new role, Durley will guide the Red Devils' offense, support 15th-year EC head coach Kurt Barth with the evaluation, recruitment and retention of players, and assist with daily planning, organization and supervision of practices and games.
"We are excited to have Sam as a full-time coach," Barth added. "This is a big step for our program. Sam brings a great deal of experience, and having more opportunities to work with our student-athletes will foster continued growth."
Before he was a coach, Durley was a record-breaking quarterback for the Red Devils from 2009 to 2013. A four-year letterwinner, he 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 made national headlines and remains the all-division NCAA record to this day.
At Eureka, Durley 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. In 2020, he was voted into the Eureka College athletic department's Hall of Fame.
"I am extremely grateful to be able to be in this position with Eureka College Football," Durley said. "I owe a huge thank you to our AD, Sara Shaw, as well as our administration, for allowing me this opportunity.
"I have been with Coach (Kurt) Barth for the last 18 years as a player and a part-time coach but taking the next step and being able to work full-time alongside the best in the business, is an amazing opportunity. In 2009, I chose to follow Coach Barth to Eureka College without a clue of what I would do in my future, and the college and the Red Devil football program has been my home ever since. When you get work at a place you call home, you are in the right spot."
Durley also played professional football in the Indoor Football League and the Arena Football League for two seasons. He was a finalist for IFL Rookie of the Year with the Wyoming Cavalry in 2014, before returning to Eureka to complete his bachelor's degree in physical education in 2015.
After three years as a physical education teacher in East Peoria, he joined Eureka College in a full-time capacity as Strength and Wellness Coordinator in 2019.
Durley and his wife, Whitney, live in Goodfield with their infant daughter, Leo.