John Perry enters his second year as the fourth head coach in
Merrimack College football history.
In his first season, Perry guided the Warriors to a 6-4 record,
4-3 in the Northeast-10, finishing in third place in the
conference. The 2008 Warriors, who were 4-0 on the road against
Division II competition, allowed the fewest sacks in the
conference, while ranking second in the nation with 4.10 sacks per
game. Perry’s offensive-minded style resulted in school
records for most rushing yards in a game (358), total offensive
yards in a game (647), and first downs in a game (34) against Saint
Anselm. Andrew Jackson became the first first-team All-American in
school history, while 12 players were named to the Northeast-10
All-Conference team.
Perry, who has over 15 years of college football coaching
experience, started at Merrimack on December 28, 2007 after
spending last season as the associate head coach at the University
of New Hampshire, his alma mater. The Wildcats finished 2007 with a
7-5 record, reaching the Football Championship Subdivision
quarterfinals.
“My family and I are very excited about the opportunity that
has presented itself,” said Perry. “We are thrilled to
be the newest members of the Merrimack community. My experience
assisting head Coach Sean McDonnell and Athletic Director Marty
Scarano at the University of New Hampshire was something I really
appreciated.”
Perry replaced Jim Murphy, who resigned after five seasons as
Merrimack’s head coach.
A 1992 graduate of the University of New Hampshire, Perry spent
the 2006 season as the offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach at
Hofstra University. Prior to spending the 2005 campaign as the
associate head coach for Georgetown University, he served as the
offensive coordinator at Dartmouth College from 2000 through
2004.
At Dartmouth, Perry immediately transformed the offense when he
joined the team in 2000 and helped the Big Green rank eighth in
passing and 10th in total offense nationally at the end of the 2002
campaign. Two Dartmouth quarterbacks under Perry’s tutelage,
Brian Mann and Greg Smith, ended their careers ranked among the Big
Green’s all-time passing and total offense leaders.
From 1997-99, Perry coached receivers and was the recruiting
coordinator at UNH. He spent three seasons coaching receivers at
Brown, including Sean Morey, the Ivy League’s outstanding
rookie in 1995 and the Ivy’s outstanding player in 1997.
Perry’s coaching career began at Northeastern, where he
worked with the running backs in 1992-93.
Perry, who graduated with a double major in communications and
history at UNH, earned conference All-Academic team recognition. As
a Wildcat, he was a two-sport athlete also lettering in basketball.
Perry was a record-setting receiver in football (he caught passes
in 42 straight games), a two-time all-conference selection and was
a four-year letter winner. A captain in 1992, he helped lead the
Wildcats to the Division 1-AA playoffs in 1991.
He and his wife, Jen, a Merrimack graduate, have three children,
Cailtin, John and Elizabeth and reside in North Andover, Mass.
