Mike Sirianni
Mike Sirianni has become one of college football's most successful head coaches during his 10 years at Washington & Jefferson College.
After being named the Presidents' Athletic Conference Coach of the Year for a fourth time in 2012, the 31st head coach in W&J history upped his career record to 93-21. Sirianni is second on the school’s all-time win list and his winning percentage (.816) is the best in the program's history. That winning percentage places him fifth among all active NCAA football coaches (FBS, FCS, DII, or DIII) with at least five years of experience.
He has also guided the Presidents to a postseason appearance in eight of his 10 seasons, including seven NCAA playoffs (2004-2009, 2012). In 2010, W&J captured the ECAC Division III Southwest Bowl with a 54-41 victory over Franklin & Marshall. Seven years earlier, the Presidents routed Wilkes 41-19 to win the same ECAC bowl game.
Sirianni's squads have won at least nine games in eight of his years, including three-straight, 10-plus win seasons from 2006-08.
The 2012 Washington & Jefferson College Presidents were Presidents' Athletic Conference Co-champions and earned the league's automatic bid to the NCAA playoffs. W&J finished with an 8-3 record (7-1 PAC). Following the year, Sirianni was honored as D3football.com's South Region Coach of the Year.
Since Sirianni’s arrival at Washington & Jefferson, the Presidents have shattered over 100 individual or team offensive records. Sirianni has a knack for developing great quarterbacks as Brian Dawson ’03, Chris Edwards ’06 and Bobby Swallow ’09 hold nearly every record in W&J history. The trio combined to throw for over 27,000 yards and 280 touchdowns.
W&J advanced to the NCAA quarterfinals in 2008 and finished with an 11-2 overall record. Following a 35-29 victory over Christopher Newport in the opening round of the NCAA playoffs, the Presidents traveled to Mississippi and knocked off the South Region’s top seed, third-ranked Millsaps, 35-20. Washington & Jefferson set school records for total offense (6,118 yards) and points (532) during the 2008 campaign. The 11 victories marked the fourth time in six years that W&J reached double-digit win totals.
In 2007, Sirianni earned his third Presidents’ Athletic Conference Coach of the Year award after leading W&J to its ninth undefeated regular season (2nd under Sirianni) in school history. Washington & Jefferson ranked second in the nation in total offense (518.7 ypg) and fourth in scoring (46.2 ppg).
The 2006 Presidents won the PAC title and won 10 consecutive games after dropping its season opener. Sirianni helped W&J reach the second round of the NCAA Division III playoffs and his offense committed the fewest turnovers in the nation with only 10 in 12 contests.
W&J finished the 2005 campaign with the sixth-best overall (501.8 ypg) and passing (327.3 ypg) offenses in NCAA Division III. W&J also finished fourth in the country with an average of 41.9 points per contest.
In 2004, Sirianni, a former Washington-Greene County College Men’s Coach of the Year, helped W&J set a new school record with 12 victories after the Presidents advanced to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Division III playoffs for the first time since 1995. W&J also strung together a school-record 12-game win streak.
As the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach from 1999-2002, Sirianni brought yearly national recognition to W&J’s offensive unit. He is credited with the development of former W&J quarterback Brian Dawson, who finished his career with 10,259 passing yards, the fifth-highest total in NCAA Division III history.
Washington & Jefferson ranked fifth in the country in total offense in 2000, averaging 500.8 yards per game. He helped Dawson lead all NCAA divisions (I, II or III) in passing efficiency with a rating of 201.5.
In 1998, he served as the offensive coordinator at Wilkes, where he helped the Colonels achieve national rankings in pass offense and passing efficiency.
Prior to coaching at Wilkes, Sirianni spent three years as the wide receivers coach at his alma mater, Mount Union. During his stint as a coach, the Purple Raiders won national championships in 1996 and 1997. Before his time at Mount Union, he also served one year on the staff at Ithaca as a graduate assistant coach, while earning his master’s degree in exercise and sports management.
As a player, Sirianni was a three-year starter and two-time All-Ohio Athletic Conference selection as a wide receiver and won a national championship in 1993. He also was a four-time conference triple jump champion on the Mount Union track team.
Sirianni, his wife, Jennifer, and his daughters, Jenna and Jordan, reside in Hopewell, Pa. His brother, Nick, is the quality-control coach for the San Diego Chargers. The previous four years, Nick was an assistant coach for the Kansas City Chiefs.