UConn adds staff, will not keep current members
UConn head football coach Jim Mora has finalized the addition of four members to his staff, the university announced Sunday.
John Allen, E.J. Barthel, Siriki Diabate and former Greenwich coach John Marinelli have joined the UConn football program, pending the successful completion of the university employee onboarding process.
Allen will join the coaching staff as the wide receivers coach/passing game coordinator, Barthel as the running backs coach, Diabate as the linebackers coach, and Marinelli will be the tight ends coach.
Mora also announced that members of the 2021 coaching staff will not be retained, including interim
head coach Lou Spanos.
Marinelli, the son of legendary New Canaan football coach Lou Marinelli, spent the 2021 season as a senior analyst at the University of Illinois, where he worked with head coach Bret Bielema on special projects, including analytics and situational strategy development.
“I’m excited to welcome John Marinelli to the UConn football family,” Mora said. “John has deep ties to the state of Connecticut, and it is imperative that we keep the best talent in our backyard right here in the Nutmeg State. He’s an excellent coach and I know the young men in our program will benefit from his presence.”
Before his time with the Illini, Marinelli served as an analyst at the University of Arizona for two seasons.
“I’m excited to join the UConn football family under Coach Mora’s leadership,” Marinelli said. “Coach Mora is a proven head coach with great experience in both the NFL and college football, and I’m excited to be able to learn from him every day and help build this program back to where it belongs.”
Marinelli started his coaching career in the high school ranks, where he won multiple state titles in Connecticut. He was a two-time state champion player, then assistant coach, under his father at New Canaan before taking over as head coach at Greenwich. Marinelli’s Greenwich teams went 36-10 in four seasons, including a 13-0 season in 2018 that ended in a 34-0 state title victory over New Canaan for the Class LL championship. Following the season, he was named the 2018 USA Today Connecticut Coach of the Year.
Allen spent 2020 and ’21 coaching the outside receivers at Louisiana Tech with former UConn coach Skip Holtz.
“To find a coach with more experience than John Allen would be a difficult task, and I’m thrilled that he will be joining the UConn football family,” Mora said in a release. “John is an excellent recruiter who knows the commitment it takes to be successful at this level. John’s knowledge of the game and coaching acumen will make an immediate impact on the young men in
our program and I know he is going to hit the ground running.”
In 2021 Louisiana Tech outside wide receivers have accounted for more than 1,500 yards and 10 touchdowns. During the 2020 season, Louisiana Tech generated 2,166 total receiving yards in 10 games.
Before his time in Ruston, Allen spent two seasons as the wide receivers coach at Old Dominion. In 2018, ODU wide receivers Jonathan Duhart and Travis Fulgham became the first two receivers to record 1,000 receiving yards in the same season in program history.
Allen spent three seasons as the offensive coordinator at Delaware State and his 2016 squad registered its best league ranking on offense in eight years. Allen was also the head coach at Division II Lock Haven (Pa.) for four seasons. He helped the Bald Eagles snap a 52-game losing streak, the longest in Division II, and in 2013 led the team to its most wins in 10 years.
Allen spent four years as the player development coordinator at nearby Penn State, and was in NFL Europe for four years, three as the offensive coordinator of the Amsterdam Admirals, and one as the head coach of the Berlin Thunder.
E.J. Barthel, who played for Rutgers and UMass, spent the previous two seasons as a coaching assistant for the Carolina Panthers. He joins Mora’s staff as the running backs coach.
“E.J. fought through a lot of injuries during his time as a student-athlete, and the success he has achieved over the last seven years in coaching is evidence of his high character,” Mora said. “E.J. will be a great role model and teacher for our student-athletes and is an unrelenting recruiter. I’m excited to welcome E.J. to the UConn football family.”
Barthel assisted with coaching the running backs and offensive line at Carolina, while spending time in the pro personnel department.
Before his time with the Panthers, Barthel served as the recruiting coordinator/ running backs coach for William & Mary during the 2019 season and coached the running backs at Howard in 2018, and at Albany in 2017. Barthel made an immediate impact on the running game during his time at William & Mary as the team’s rushing yards increased from 827 in 2018 to 1,950 in 2019. Yards per carry improved from 3.03 to 4.65, and William & Mary ran for 18 TDs in 2019 after rushing for only three in 2018.
In 2016, Barthel was on staff at Penn State as the recruiting coordinator and came to State College from Temple, where he was the director of player personnel during the 2015 season. Barthel comes to the Huskies as a proven recruiter, as he helped PSU sign the nation’s fifth-highest rated recruiting class.
Diabate comes to Storrs after spending the last five seasons as the linebackers coach at Middle Tennessee. Since joining Middle Tennessee in 2017, Diabate has coached in a pair of bowl games and has helped linebacker DQ Thomas develop into a player who ranks fourth in school history in sacks and second in tackles for loss. Diabate also coached All-CUSA second team performer Khalil Brooks and Camellia Bowl MVP Darius Harris.
“Siriki is an outstanding coach who has a tremendous track record of developing student-athletes into excellent college players,” Mora said. “He is a tireless recruiter who understands firsthand the challenges that student-athletes face, and I know our young men will benefit greatly from his mentorship.”
Before his time at Middle Tennessee State, Diabate spent the 2017 season as a defensive analyst, focusing on the secondary, and coached the safeties at Colgate from 2015-16.
Diabate served as a graduate assistant for Syracuse from 2013-15.
He played for Syracuse, where he earned his bachelor’s degree in economics in 2013 and his master’s degree in 2015.