Salem CC board approves Accorsi as head football coach, first assistant coach, authorizes purchase of property for practice facility
By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News
CARNEYS POINT — The football program at Salem Community College took a huge step forward tonight when the school’s board of trustees approved two major personnel appointments and authorized the purchase of a piece of property that will become the team’s practice facility.
On the personnel side, the board approved Jay Accorsi as the head football coach and veteran college coach Joe Dougherty as an assistant. On the facilities side, the board authorized the purchase of a piece of property known as the Twins’ field adjacent to the Carneys Point Rec Complex, just beyond the right fence where the baseball team plays its home games.
“Now we can really start making some rapid progress with these folks in place,” Salem CC president Mike Gorman said after the board meeting. “It sets us up to take more big steps.”
The college plans to formally launch the program Jan. 28.
Salem had been exploring the possibility of bringing football to the campus since Accorsi brought the idea to Gorman in the spring. He was formally hired as a consultant in August, presented his findings through a presentation by athletics director Bob Hughes in October and the board green-lighted the program in November. Thursday night, the board installed him as the program’s first head football coach.
Hughes received more than 80 applications from what he described as some highly qualified candidates from across the college football spectrum and after reviewing his thoughts on process, Gorman said, “at the end it was very obvious Jay had the name recognition and just what he had done in serving as our consultant really demonstrated to us that this is the man we need to get the program started.”
He added, “bringing a guy like Jay on board who has the respect of the South Jersey football community gives us a leg up on everybody else. Just having somebody of his caliber to start the program, that’s putting us out on the right track.”
Accorsi announced his retirement from Rowan University on the final day of spring practice 2024 after 30 years in the program, the last 22 as head coach, the longest tenured head coach in the program’s history. He posted a record of 143-78 with seven conference titles and seven trips to the NCAA Division III playoffs. Two of his teams reached the national semifinals.
But the thought of junior college football in the state of New Jersey had long intrigued him. His months in retirement gave him a chance to look at it further. The urge to get back in the game returned, but this time with a different approach to the calling.
“First I want to say I am grateful for the opportunity provided to me by the Salem Community College board of trustees, president Michael Gorman and athletic director Bob Hughes,” Accorsi said. “When I walked away at Rowan obviously I was happy and had a great career and was ready to go onto the next chapter of my life and didn’t think it would be football, to be honest with you. This idea kind of popped around. I think it’s more this time for me more about helping other people and helping young men, but I really didn’t think I’d be doing something like this.
“I only imagined it would be possible and only thought it would be a stretch, but it’s kind of becoming a reality now. It’s something I just never thought this would happen. I didn’t think I’d really coach again. I didn’t think I’d be involved with football again. I thought I would be done and headed in a different path or a different career, just be done forever. In my wildest dreams I never really thought this would occur.”
The hiring of his first assistant is full circle moment. Dougherty most recently the defensive backs and special teams coach at Widener, but he’s been the defensive coordinator and national recruiting coordinator at Juniata, offensive coordinator at Catholic University, DC at Hamilton College and coached at Lafayette and Fordham. He was a graduate assistant for KC Keeler and later Accorsi at Rowan in 2001 and 2002..
His position responsible in Salem’s program is currently undetermined.
“We haven’t really gone down that path yet,” Accorsi said. “He obviously has had variety of experiences coaching … Those are things we’re going to piece together and figure out what to do.
“I’m happy the board was able to get me some help right away because it’s, as I thought it would be, been a little overwhelming even for somebody with my experience, so I think it’s a good start in a good direction to have somebody help me a little bit as we start to move this thing forward.”
One of the biggest hurdles to getting the program off the ground was finding a suitable everyday practice facility. The board authorized the purchase of the property adjacent to the Rec not to exceed $125,000. Settlement is expected to be next month.
In addition to the property, the board also approved entry into an agreement for the design and construction oversight of an athletic facility at the field at a fee of $69,500.
“It’s a perfect kind of environment for us to do this,” Gorman said. “Our baseball team is already at an adjacent field to this and we’ll be looking in the future to hopefully bring our softball team back into that complex.”
Top photo: New Salem CC head football coach Jay Accorsi (C) stands between president Mike Gorman (L) and athletics director Bob Hughes during a recent board of trustees meeting.
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