| Philadelphia Eagles | |
|---|---|
| Position: | Assistant special teams coach |
| Personal information | |
| Born: | (1959-07-04)July 4, 1959 (age 65) Pueblo, Colorado, U.S. |
| Career information | |
| College: | Southern Colorado |
| Career history | |
As a coach: | |
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As a staff member / executive: | |
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As an administrator: | |
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| Career highlights and awards | |
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| Head coaching record | |
| Career: | 30–37 (.448) (College) |
Joseph Thomas Pannunzio (born July 4, 1959) is anAmerican football coach for thePhiladelphia Eagles. He is a former player and executive. He served as head football coach atMurray State University (MSU) from 2000 to 2005, compiling an overall record of 30–37.[1] Pannunzio was the director of football operations at theUniversity of Alabama from 2011 to 2014. He was the special teams/tight ends coach in 2017, and running backs coach in 2018 for the University of Alabama. He is currently the assistant special teams coordinator for thePhiladelphia Eagles of theNational Football League (NFL).
In November 2002, Murray State won a share of theOhio Valley Conference championship with a 37–35 win over anEastern Illinois squad led by futureNFL quarterbackTony Romo. KickerShane Andrus made the 52-yard game-winning field goal as time expired. The Racers finished the season 7–4 and 5–1 in conference, and MSU received the OVC's automatic bid to the Division I-AA playoffs. In the first round of the NCAA Division I playoffs, the Racers faced off against the arch rivalWestern Kentucky on the road inBowling Green, Kentucky. The Hilltoppers won therivalry game 59–20 and went on to win the Division I-AA national championship.[2]
On April 29, 2005, Pannunzio was placed on paid administrative leave following the arrest of a Murray State football player and a former player on drug trafficking and weapons charges. Ron Lane, a junior running back, and Terrence Biggers, a former wide receiver, were charged with trafficking in a controlled substance within 1,000 yards of a school and possession of drug paraphernalia. Following the incident, athletic director Allen Ward stated, "charges of this severity and magnitude demand stepped-up review of our football program." Ron Lane was removed from the team and both students were banned from campus.[3][4]
Murray State finished the 2005 season with a winless conference record of 0–7 and an overall record of 2–9. In November 2005, Pannunzio was notified that his contract would not be renewed. According to an interview several years later with former Murray State presidentF. King Alexander, Alexander explained Pannunzio's departure by stating, "I fired our football coach, Joe Pannunzio, because of numerous incidents that occurred in our program under him that were quite bad." Murray State's overall record under Pannunzio was 30–37 (.448), which left him as one of five Racer football coaches with overall losing records.[5][6]
Since 2021, Pannunzio has been part of the Philadelphia Eagles' coaching staff as assistant special teams coach.[7] He was part of the staff that won Super Bowl LIX over the Kansas City Chiefs.[8]
| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Murray State Racers(Ohio Valley Conference)(2000–2005) | |||||||||
| 2000 | Murray State | 6–5 | 4–3 | 4th | |||||
| 2001 | Murray State | 4–6 | 2–4 | 5th | |||||
| 2002 | Murray State | 7–5 | 5–1 | T–1st | LNCAA Division I–AA First Round | ||||
| 2003 | Murray State | 4–8 | 3–5 | T–6th | |||||
| 2004 | Murray State | 7–4 | 6–2 | T–2nd | |||||
| 2005 | Murray State | 2–9 | 0–7 | 9th | |||||
| Murray State: | 30–37 | 20–22 | |||||||
| Total: | 30–37 | ||||||||
| National championship Conference title Conference division title or championship game berth | |||||||||