JMU2K_DukeDawg
April 5th, 2007, 03:23 PM
New JMU Assistant Has Area Ties Posted 2007-04-05
By Mike Barber
HARRISONBURG – James Madison has found its new defensive backs coach, and his name might be familiar to area football fans.
Former Georgia Southern assistant Joe Danna will officially assume his new duties on Friday. Danna’s late father, Tom, was the second football coach at Spotswood High School, taking over for Donnie Dofflemyer before the 1982 season.
Joe Danna was a wide receiver at Central Michigan, graduating in 2000. He worked one year as a graduate assistant at Georgia, then spent four seasons at Central Michigan before being hired last year to join Brian VanGorder’s staff at Georgia Southern, a tradition I-AA power. VanGorder left to become an assistant with the Atlanta Falcons in the NFL and none of his assistants were retained at Georgia Southern.
The influence Danna’s father is well planted in the Valley. Wednesday, two of Tom Danna’s former assistants credited him with changing the way the Trailblazers played defense.
"He brought in a whole lot of knowledge," said Joe Scalise, who worked with Danna and then took over at SHS when Danna left to become an assistant at JMU in 1984. "He brought in the 4-3 defense that we ran all the way through Joe Taylor’s years out there. It was a great defense. And he brought in a lot of discipline."
Joe Showker, another Tom Danna assistant, said Danna showed the SHS staff ways to coach the game that were revolutionary at the time.
"He brought the modern defensive schemes to Spotswood football," Showker said. "He brought the schemes where defensive players read the first steps of offensive players. We had never seen that as coaches. He was an innovative coach."
After Spotswood, Tom Danna worked for one season as an assistant at JMU under Challace McMillin in 1984. The Dukes went 6-5 and McMillin and his staff were let go after the year.
After his year at JMU, Tom Danna left the area. He went to coach Michigan Tech from 1985-86.
Joe Danna was a young child then and hadn’t been back to Rockingham County until last weekend, when the now-30 year old interviewed for a job on JMU coach Mickey Matthews’ staff.
"When I was up for the interview, it was the first time I’d been back in 20 years," Joe Danna said Wednesday. "Obviously, a lot has changed."
Danna attended practice at JMU on Friday and Saturday as part of the interview process and said he was impressed with the players he saw working out and felt good leaving the interview – though he wasn’t sure he’d get the job.
"I can only imagine the type of candidates they had in," Danna said. "I felt fortuante I was able to get an interviews."
Matthews said McMillin was among those who recommended Danna for the vacancy, created when Chip West left to become the assistant head coach for Old Dominion’s new program.
Matthews said he interviewed five candidates for the job. Among those was Stonewall Jackson-Manassas football coach Loren Johnson, a former Virginia Tech defensive back who played collegiately with JMU assistant coaches J.C. Price and Chris Malone. He attended practice the day before Danna arrived in Harrisonburg.
"It was really close," Matthews said Wednesday by phone from Augusta, Ga., where he was taking a brief vacation. "I felt like he was a little more experienced and had a little more enthusiasm. I could have hired any one of the five guys and been satisfied."
Danna said he did not know yet what area he’d be responsible for recruiting. West had assumed Curt Newsome’s role as the Dukes’ Tidewater recruiting guru. Newsome left before last season to become an assistant at Virginia Tech.
Danna said the chance to work with Matthews and the opportunity to recruit in Virginia were among the things that drew him to the JMU opening.
"Being at Georgia Southern this past year and really becoming familiar with I-AA football, I know for sure James Madison is probably one of the top five or 10 jobs in the country," Danna said. "They’ve proven they can win ball games and win at a high level."
JMU went 9-3 last season but lost in the first round of the I-AA playoffs to Youngstown State.
By Mike Barber
HARRISONBURG – James Madison has found its new defensive backs coach, and his name might be familiar to area football fans.
Former Georgia Southern assistant Joe Danna will officially assume his new duties on Friday. Danna’s late father, Tom, was the second football coach at Spotswood High School, taking over for Donnie Dofflemyer before the 1982 season.
Joe Danna was a wide receiver at Central Michigan, graduating in 2000. He worked one year as a graduate assistant at Georgia, then spent four seasons at Central Michigan before being hired last year to join Brian VanGorder’s staff at Georgia Southern, a tradition I-AA power. VanGorder left to become an assistant with the Atlanta Falcons in the NFL and none of his assistants were retained at Georgia Southern.
The influence Danna’s father is well planted in the Valley. Wednesday, two of Tom Danna’s former assistants credited him with changing the way the Trailblazers played defense.
"He brought in a whole lot of knowledge," said Joe Scalise, who worked with Danna and then took over at SHS when Danna left to become an assistant at JMU in 1984. "He brought in the 4-3 defense that we ran all the way through Joe Taylor’s years out there. It was a great defense. And he brought in a lot of discipline."
Joe Showker, another Tom Danna assistant, said Danna showed the SHS staff ways to coach the game that were revolutionary at the time.
"He brought the modern defensive schemes to Spotswood football," Showker said. "He brought the schemes where defensive players read the first steps of offensive players. We had never seen that as coaches. He was an innovative coach."
After Spotswood, Tom Danna worked for one season as an assistant at JMU under Challace McMillin in 1984. The Dukes went 6-5 and McMillin and his staff were let go after the year.
After his year at JMU, Tom Danna left the area. He went to coach Michigan Tech from 1985-86.
Joe Danna was a young child then and hadn’t been back to Rockingham County until last weekend, when the now-30 year old interviewed for a job on JMU coach Mickey Matthews’ staff.
"When I was up for the interview, it was the first time I’d been back in 20 years," Joe Danna said Wednesday. "Obviously, a lot has changed."
Danna attended practice at JMU on Friday and Saturday as part of the interview process and said he was impressed with the players he saw working out and felt good leaving the interview – though he wasn’t sure he’d get the job.
"I can only imagine the type of candidates they had in," Danna said. "I felt fortuante I was able to get an interviews."
Matthews said McMillin was among those who recommended Danna for the vacancy, created when Chip West left to become the assistant head coach for Old Dominion’s new program.
Matthews said he interviewed five candidates for the job. Among those was Stonewall Jackson-Manassas football coach Loren Johnson, a former Virginia Tech defensive back who played collegiately with JMU assistant coaches J.C. Price and Chris Malone. He attended practice the day before Danna arrived in Harrisonburg.
"It was really close," Matthews said Wednesday by phone from Augusta, Ga., where he was taking a brief vacation. "I felt like he was a little more experienced and had a little more enthusiasm. I could have hired any one of the five guys and been satisfied."
Danna said he did not know yet what area he’d be responsible for recruiting. West had assumed Curt Newsome’s role as the Dukes’ Tidewater recruiting guru. Newsome left before last season to become an assistant at Virginia Tech.
Danna said the chance to work with Matthews and the opportunity to recruit in Virginia were among the things that drew him to the JMU opening.
"Being at Georgia Southern this past year and really becoming familiar with I-AA football, I know for sure James Madison is probably one of the top five or 10 jobs in the country," Danna said. "They’ve proven they can win ball games and win at a high level."
JMU went 9-3 last season but lost in the first round of the I-AA playoffs to Youngstown State.