Mike Sanford
Encyclopedia
Mike Sanford is a college football coach, formerly the head coach at at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas
. He was recently released from his job as offensive assistant at the University of Louisville
. He is a graduate of the University of Southern California
, where he played quarterback for the Trojans from 1973–1976.
, the United States Military Academy
, Virginia Military Institute
, Long Beach State, Purdue
, USC, Notre Dame
, the San Diego Chargers
and Stanford
. In 2003 Urban Meyer
hired Sanford as his offensive coordinator at Utah
. That year, the Utes won the Mountain West Conference
Championship and won the Liberty Bowl
. The next year, the Utes repeated as conference champs and finished the season 12–0, including a win over Pittsburgh
in the Fiesta Bowl
. Sanford's offense averaged 45.3 points a game, and quarterback Alex Smith
was MWC Player of the Year as well as a finalist for the Heisman Trophy
. The following spring, Smith was the first overall pick in the 2005 NFL Draft
, selected by the San Francisco 49ers
.
who went 2–9 his final year. Sanford inherited a program in decline. Some had blamed the program's problems on an inability to keep local talent at home. It was hoped that Sanford would reverse the fortunes of the long-suffering program with this new policy. His first two years at the helm produced just four total wins, on par with John Robinson's final season total.
Sanford's Rebels achieved one of biggest victories in UNLV football history, a 23–20 overtime win at 15th-ranked Arizona State
on September 13, 2008. Sanford said it was the biggest win of his coaching career.
At the end of the 2009 season, UNLV announced fired Sanford. He left the Rebels after five seasons with an overall mark of 16–43.
.
After a lackluster offensive performance against Marshall
, Sanford did not travel with the Cardinals for their next game, against North Carolina
. He did not attend any of the practices in the week leading up to the game. Quarterbacks coach Shawn Watson served as offensive play-caller for that game. CBSSports.com
's Brett McMurphy reported that Sanford had been fired and replaced by Watson.However, The Courier-Journal
s Rick Bozich reported that Sanford was still with the team, but may be demoted to a position coach. Bozich later confirmed that Sanford was no longer offensive coordinator.
The following Monday, Strong announced that Watson would serve as offensive coordinator for the remainder of the season, but that Sanford would remain on the coaching staff in another capacity. He also denied rumors that there had been an altercation between them during the week.
University of Nevada, Las Vegas
University of Nevada-Las Vegas is a public, coeducational university located in the Las Vegas suburb of Paradise, Nevada, USA. The campus is located approximately east of the Las Vegas Strip. The institution includes a Shadow Lane Campus, located just east of the University Medical Center of...
. He was recently released from his job as offensive assistant at the University of Louisville
University of Louisville
The University of Louisville is a public university in Louisville, Kentucky. When founded in 1798, it was the first city-owned public university in the United States and one of the first universities chartered west of the Allegheny Mountains. The university is mandated by the Kentucky General...
. He is a graduate of the University of Southern California
University of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
, where he played quarterback for the Trojans from 1973–1976.
Assistant Coaching Career
Sanford began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at USC in 1977. Since then, he has served as an assistant coach for numerous teams in the collegiate and professional ranks, including San Diego City CollegeSan Diego City College
San Diego City College is a public, two-year community college located in San Diego, California. City College is part of the San Diego Community College District along with San Diego Mesa College, San Diego Miramar College and San Diego Continuing Education...
, the United States Military Academy
United States Military Academy
The United States Military Academy at West Point is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located at West Point, New York. The academy sits on scenic high ground overlooking the Hudson River, north of New York City...
, Virginia Military Institute
Virginia Military Institute
The Virginia Military Institute , located in Lexington, Virginia, is the oldest state-supported military college and one of six senior military colleges in the United States. Unlike any other military college in the United States—and in keeping with its founding principles—all VMI students are...
, Long Beach State, Purdue
Purdue University
Purdue University, located in West Lafayette, Indiana, U.S., is the flagship university of the six-campus Purdue University system. Purdue was founded on May 6, 1869, as a land-grant university when the Indiana General Assembly, taking advantage of the Morrill Act, accepted a donation of land and...
, USC, Notre Dame
University of Notre Dame
The University of Notre Dame du Lac is a Catholic research university located in Notre Dame, an unincorporated community north of the city of South Bend, in St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States...
, the San Diego Chargers
San Diego Chargers
The San Diego Chargers are a professional American football team based in San Diego, California. they were members of the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
and Stanford
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
. In 2003 Urban Meyer
Urban Meyer
Urban Frank Meyer, III is an American football coach and former player. He is head football coach at Ohio State University, having been hired for the position in November 2011...
hired Sanford as his offensive coordinator at Utah
University of Utah
The University of Utah, also known as the U or the U of U, is a public, coeducational research university in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. The university was established in 1850 as the University of Deseret by the General Assembly of the provisional State of Deseret, making it Utah's oldest...
. That year, the Utes won the Mountain West Conference
Mountain West Conference
The Mountain West Conference , popularly known as the Mountain West, is the youngest of the college athletic conferences affiliated with the NCAA’s Division I FBS . The MWC officially began operations in July 1999...
Championship and won the Liberty Bowl
Liberty Bowl
The Liberty Bowl is an annual U.S. American college football bowl game played in December of each year from 1959 to 2007 and in January in 2009 and 2010. The Liberty Bowl was sponsored by AXA Financial and was known as the AXA Liberty Bowl from 1997 to 2003...
. The next year, the Utes repeated as conference champs and finished the season 12–0, including a win over Pittsburgh
University of Pittsburgh
The University of Pittsburgh, commonly referred to as Pitt, is a state-related research university located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded as Pittsburgh Academy in 1787 on what was then the American frontier, Pitt is one of the oldest continuously chartered institutions of...
in the Fiesta Bowl
Fiesta Bowl
The Fiesta Bowl, now sponsored by Frito-Lay and named with their Tostitos brand, is a United States college football bowl game played annually at the University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. Between its origination in 1971 and 2006, the game was hosted in Tempe, Arizona at Sun Devil...
. Sanford's offense averaged 45.3 points a game, and quarterback Alex Smith
Alex Smith
Alexander Douglas Smith is a professional American football player and starting quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League. Smith was drafted with the 1st-overall pick in the 1st round of the 2005 NFL Draft by San Francisco from the University of Utah...
was MWC Player of the Year as well as a finalist for the Heisman Trophy
Heisman Trophy
The Heisman Memorial Trophy Award , is awarded annually to the player deemed the most outstanding player in collegiate football. It was created in 1935 as the Downtown Athletic Club trophy and renamed in 1936 following the death of the Club's athletic director, John Heisman The Heisman Memorial...
. The following spring, Smith was the first overall pick in the 2005 NFL Draft
2005 NFL Draft
The 2005 NFL Draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 23–24, 2005. The league also held an supplemental draft that year, which was held after...
, selected by the San Francisco 49ers
San Francisco 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers are a professional American football team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the West Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team was founded in 1946 as a charter member of the All-America Football Conference and...
.
UNLV
On December 6, 2004, UNLV hired Sanford as the school's ninth head coach, taking over for the legendary John RobinsonJohn Robinson (football coach)
John Alexander Robinson is a former American football player and coach best known for his two stints as head coach of the University of Southern California football team and for his tenure as head coach of the NFL's Los Angeles Rams...
who went 2–9 his final year. Sanford inherited a program in decline. Some had blamed the program's problems on an inability to keep local talent at home. It was hoped that Sanford would reverse the fortunes of the long-suffering program with this new policy. His first two years at the helm produced just four total wins, on par with John Robinson's final season total.
Sanford's Rebels achieved one of biggest victories in UNLV football history, a 23–20 overtime win at 15th-ranked Arizona State
2008 Arizona State Sun Devils football team
The 2008 Arizona State Sun Devils football team represents Arizona State University in the college football season of 2008-2009. It plays its home games at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Arizona....
on September 13, 2008. Sanford said it was the biggest win of his coaching career.
At the end of the 2009 season, UNLV announced fired Sanford. He left the Rebels after five seasons with an overall mark of 16–43.
Louisville
On December 22, 2009, Sanford was named offensive coordinator and assistant head coach at the University of LouisvilleUniversity of Louisville
The University of Louisville is a public university in Louisville, Kentucky. When founded in 1798, it was the first city-owned public university in the United States and one of the first universities chartered west of the Allegheny Mountains. The university is mandated by the Kentucky General...
.
After a lackluster offensive performance against Marshall
Marshall Thundering Herd football
The Marshall Thundering Herd football team is an intercollegiate varsity sports program of Marshall University. The team represents the university as a member of the Conference USA Eastern division of the National Collegiate Athletic Association, playing at the Division 1 Bowl Subdivision...
, Sanford did not travel with the Cardinals for their next game, against North Carolina
North Carolina Tar Heels football
The North Carolina Tar Heels football team represents the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in collegiate level football. In Carolina’s first 121 seasons of football competition, the Tar Heels have compiled a record of 646–488–54, a winning percentage of .566...
. He did not attend any of the practices in the week leading up to the game. Quarterbacks coach Shawn Watson served as offensive play-caller for that game. CBSSports.com
CBSSports.com
CBSSports.com was founded in 1994 as SportsLine USA, and today is a CBS-owned website that provides sports scores, news, statistics, live and on-demand video, mobile apps, e-commerce, fantasy sports products, services, and information..Headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, CBSSports.com it is...
's Brett McMurphy reported that Sanford had been fired and replaced by Watson.However, The Courier-Journal
The Courier-Journal
The Courier-Journal, locally called "The C-J", is the main newspaper for the city of Louisville, Kentucky, USA. According to the 1999 Editor & Publisher International Yearbook, the paper is the 48th largest daily paper in the United States and the single largest in Kentucky.- Origins :The...
s Rick Bozich reported that Sanford was still with the team, but may be demoted to a position coach. Bozich later confirmed that Sanford was no longer offensive coordinator.
The following Monday, Strong announced that Watson would serve as offensive coordinator for the remainder of the season, but that Sanford would remain on the coaching staff in another capacity. He also denied rumors that there had been an altercation between them during the week.
Head coaching record
| TEAM | YEAR | WINS | LOSSES | Bowl Game |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| UNLV | 2005 | 2 | 9 | |
| UNLV | 2006 | 2 | 10 | |
| UNLV | 2007 2007 NCAA Division I FBS football season The 2007 NCAA Division I FBS football season, or the college football season, began on August 30, 2007, progressed through the regular season and bowl season, and concluded with the Bowl Championship Series National Championship Game in New Orleans, Louisiana on January 7, 2008, where the top... |
2 | 10 | |
| UNLV | 2008 2008 NCAA Division I FBS football season The 2008 NCAA Division I FBS football season, or the college football season, began on August 28, 2008, progressing through the regular season and bowl season, and concluded with the Bowl Championship Series National Championship Game in Miami Gardens, Florida on January 8, 2009, where the #2... |
5 | 7 | |
| UNLV | 2009 2009 NCAA Division I FBS football season The 2009 NCAA Division I FBS football season, or the college football season, began on September 2, 2009, progressed through the regular season and bowl season, and concluded with the Bowl Championship Series National Championship Game in Pasadena, California on January 7, 2010, featuring the... |
5 | 7 | |
| CAREER TOTAL | 5 years | 16 | 43 |