Dartmouth makes McCorkle permanent head football coach

Dartmouth Acting Head Coach Sammy McCorkle instructs players before a drill during the first spring football practice of the year at Memorial Field in Hanover, N.H., on Tuesday, April 4, 2023. (Valley News / Report For America - Alex Driehaus) Copyright Valley News. May not be reprinted or used online without permission. Send requests to permission@vnews.com.

Dartmouth Acting Head Coach Sammy McCorkle instructs players before a drill during the first spring football practice of the year at Memorial Field in Hanover, N.H., on Tuesday, April 4, 2023. (Valley News / Report For America - Alex Driehaus) Copyright Valley News. May not be reprinted or used online without permission. Send requests to permission@vnews.com. Alex Driehaus

Dartmouth Interim Head Coach Sammy McCorkle talks to his players in the first half of their game with Lehigh on Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023 in Hanover, N.H. Before the start of the game there was a moment of silence for head coach Buddy Teevens who died this week after March bicycle crash in Florida. Dartmouth won 34-17. (Valley News - Jennifer Hauck) Copyright Valley News. May not be reprinted or used online without permission. Send requests to permission@vnews.com.

Dartmouth Interim Head Coach Sammy McCorkle talks to his players in the first half of their game with Lehigh on Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023 in Hanover, N.H. Before the start of the game there was a moment of silence for head coach Buddy Teevens who died this week after March bicycle crash in Florida. Dartmouth won 34-17. (Valley News - Jennifer Hauck) Copyright Valley News. May not be reprinted or used online without permission. Send requests to permission@vnews.com. Jennifer Hauck

Published: 10-20-2023 8:09 PM

HANOVER — Dartmouth College has taken the interim tag off Big Green head football coach Sammy McCorkle.

On Thursday night, the college announced McCorkle had been promoted to the permanent role, officially know as the Robert L. Blackman Head Football Coach.

McCorkle has been overseeing the program since the spring, after longtime head coach Buddy Teevens was gravely injured when he was struck by a vehicle while riding a bicycle in Florida. Teevens died from his injuries on Sept. 19.

“Having been a part of this program and this Dartmouth community for close to 20 years, it is a true honor to be able to keep the program moving in the direction Buddy had it going,” McCorkle said in a news release from Dartmouth. “This place literally changed the course of my life and the lives of my entire family. None of this would be possible without the players ... I truly appreciate the trust they have placed in me.”

The team is 2-3 overall and 1-1 in Ivy League play. The Big Green host Columbia this Saturday for homecoming at Memorial Stadium.

McCorkle was initially made acting head coach on April 4, shortly after Teevens was injured. Following the conclusion of spring practice, McCorkle was named interim head coach for the 2023 fall season.

“Sammy has done a tremendous job of leading this program, on and off the field, during an extremely difficult time,” Harrity said. “He has a gift for connecting with young people and helping them grow as football players and as people.”

In his first 18 years coaching at Dartmouth, McCorkle worked with the defensive secondary as well as special teams and was promoted to associate head coach prior to the start of the 2014 season.

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Prior to Dartmouth, McCorkle spent two seasons as the head coach at Martin County High in Stuart, Fla., following a three-year stint as an assistant coach at UT-Martin. He began his college coaching career as a graduate assistant at his alma mater, the University of Florida, where he played as a defensive back.

As a player, McCorkle was part of four SEC championship teams and competed in a national title game. He twice was named the Gators’ special teams player of the year.

— Staff report