Football
Sam Daniels
- Title:
- Assistant Coach, Defensive Ends
- Alma Mater:
- James Madison, '10 / Frostburg State, '16
- Year at UCLA:
- 1st in 2026
Sam Daniels enters his first season as defensive ends coach for the UCLA football program in 2026. He arrived in Westwood after spending the last two seasons as the defensive line coach at his alma mater, James Madison University, under head coach Bob Chesney.
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The 2026 season marks Daniels’s 15th year in coaching. He made multi-year stops at the USCAA (2012-13), Division III (2014-19), FCS (2021-23), and FBS (2024-present) levels.
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Daniels, alongside head coach Bob Chesney, helped James Madison reach new heights in their two years together in Harrisonburg, Va. In 2025, the Dukes recorded just the 10th unbeaten conference record in Sun Belt history, going 8-0, and captured the program’s first Sun Belt Championship. James Madison secured a spot in the College Football Playoff (CFP) for the first time in school history with the No. 12 seed and earned its highest AP ranking in program history at No. 19. The Dukes finished the season with a 12-2 record following their CFP First Round appearance.
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The JMU defense ranked fifth in FBS with 266.6 yards allowed per game and 13th with 18.4 points allowed per game. James Madison was also seventh in the country in third down defense (29.4%), 10th in defensive touchdowns (3), 28th in sacks per game (2.57) and 32nd in tackles for loss per game (6.2). Under Daniels’s tutelage, defensive linemen Immanuel Bush and Sahir West both earned All-Sun Belt honors. West ranked second among all freshmen in the nation with 7.0 sacks and third in the Sun Belt, regardless of class, with 14.0 tackles for loss, earning him Sun Belt Freshman of the Year.
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In his first season at James Madison, the Dukes ranked top-30 nationally in a over a dozen defensive statistics and led the country in turnover margin (1.54). JMU also ranked third nationally in takeaways (29), fifth in defensive touchdowns (four), and sixth in sacks per game (3.15). JMU linemen led the country in interceptions by that position group, with four different players in that unit snagging an INT. Eric O’Neill (18.5 tackles for loss, 13.0 sacks) earned All-America honors to highlight the group.
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Prior to his JMU homecoming, Daniels spent two seasons at the defensive line coach at FCS Delaware in 2022-23, helping the Blue Hens to a 17-9 combined record and a pair of FCS Playoff berths. In 2023, Delaware ranked 20th in the country with a 6.8 TFL per game ratio. In 2022, UD ranked second in the FCS with 24 sacks.
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His previous stop came at FCS Richmond as defensive tackles coach in 2020-1. In both of his seasons on staff, Richmond ranked top-25 nationally in total defense and rushing defense. He helped produce the league 2021 Co-Defensive Player of the Year in Kobie Turner, who became the first interior defensive linemen to earn that award in a decade.
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Prior to his time in Richmond, Daniels made early-career coaching stops at Bridgewater College (2019), Shepherd University (2016-18), Frostburg State (2014-15), and The Apprentice School (2012-13). At Shepherd, he mentored Myles Humphrey to All-America honors and the school sack record.
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A native of Portsmouth, Va., Daniels was a two-time All-American and four-year letterwinner at James Madison from 2005-09. Over 47 career games with the Dukes, Daniels totaled 159 tackles, 34.5 tackles for loss, and 17.0 sacks. He earned All-America honors in both 2008 and 2009, and was the team’s Defensive MVP as a senior. He earned his bachelor’s degree in kinesiology from JMU in 2010, and earned a master’s degree in education from Frostburg State in 2016.
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Daniels’s Coaching Experience
2012 – Defensive Line/Recruiting Coordinator, The Apprentice School (USCAA)
2013 – Defensive Coordinator/Defensive Line/Recruiting Coordinator, Apprentice School (USCAA)
2014, 2015 – Defensive Line, Frostburg State (NCAA DIII)
2016-18 – Defensive Line, Shepherd University (NCAA DII)
2019 – Defensive Line, Bridgewater College (NCAA DIII)
2020, 2021 – Defensive Tackles, Richmond (FCS)
2022, 2023 – Defensive Line, Delaware (FCS)
2024, 2025 – Defensive Line, James Madison
2026 – Defensive Ends, UCLA
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The 2026 season marks Daniels’s 15th year in coaching. He made multi-year stops at the USCAA (2012-13), Division III (2014-19), FCS (2021-23), and FBS (2024-present) levels.
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Daniels, alongside head coach Bob Chesney, helped James Madison reach new heights in their two years together in Harrisonburg, Va. In 2025, the Dukes recorded just the 10th unbeaten conference record in Sun Belt history, going 8-0, and captured the program’s first Sun Belt Championship. James Madison secured a spot in the College Football Playoff (CFP) for the first time in school history with the No. 12 seed and earned its highest AP ranking in program history at No. 19. The Dukes finished the season with a 12-2 record following their CFP First Round appearance.
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The JMU defense ranked fifth in FBS with 266.6 yards allowed per game and 13th with 18.4 points allowed per game. James Madison was also seventh in the country in third down defense (29.4%), 10th in defensive touchdowns (3), 28th in sacks per game (2.57) and 32nd in tackles for loss per game (6.2). Under Daniels’s tutelage, defensive linemen Immanuel Bush and Sahir West both earned All-Sun Belt honors. West ranked second among all freshmen in the nation with 7.0 sacks and third in the Sun Belt, regardless of class, with 14.0 tackles for loss, earning him Sun Belt Freshman of the Year.
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In his first season at James Madison, the Dukes ranked top-30 nationally in a over a dozen defensive statistics and led the country in turnover margin (1.54). JMU also ranked third nationally in takeaways (29), fifth in defensive touchdowns (four), and sixth in sacks per game (3.15). JMU linemen led the country in interceptions by that position group, with four different players in that unit snagging an INT. Eric O’Neill (18.5 tackles for loss, 13.0 sacks) earned All-America honors to highlight the group.
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Prior to his JMU homecoming, Daniels spent two seasons at the defensive line coach at FCS Delaware in 2022-23, helping the Blue Hens to a 17-9 combined record and a pair of FCS Playoff berths. In 2023, Delaware ranked 20th in the country with a 6.8 TFL per game ratio. In 2022, UD ranked second in the FCS with 24 sacks.
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His previous stop came at FCS Richmond as defensive tackles coach in 2020-1. In both of his seasons on staff, Richmond ranked top-25 nationally in total defense and rushing defense. He helped produce the league 2021 Co-Defensive Player of the Year in Kobie Turner, who became the first interior defensive linemen to earn that award in a decade.
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Prior to his time in Richmond, Daniels made early-career coaching stops at Bridgewater College (2019), Shepherd University (2016-18), Frostburg State (2014-15), and The Apprentice School (2012-13). At Shepherd, he mentored Myles Humphrey to All-America honors and the school sack record.
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A native of Portsmouth, Va., Daniels was a two-time All-American and four-year letterwinner at James Madison from 2005-09. Over 47 career games with the Dukes, Daniels totaled 159 tackles, 34.5 tackles for loss, and 17.0 sacks. He earned All-America honors in both 2008 and 2009, and was the team’s Defensive MVP as a senior. He earned his bachelor’s degree in kinesiology from JMU in 2010, and earned a master’s degree in education from Frostburg State in 2016.
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Daniels’s Coaching Experience
2012 – Defensive Line/Recruiting Coordinator, The Apprentice School (USCAA)
2013 – Defensive Coordinator/Defensive Line/Recruiting Coordinator, Apprentice School (USCAA)
2014, 2015 – Defensive Line, Frostburg State (NCAA DIII)
2016-18 – Defensive Line, Shepherd University (NCAA DII)
2019 – Defensive Line, Bridgewater College (NCAA DIII)
2020, 2021 – Defensive Tackles, Richmond (FCS)
2022, 2023 – Defensive Line, Delaware (FCS)
2024, 2025 – Defensive Line, James Madison
2026 – Defensive Ends, UCLA
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The First 48 Hours - Head Coach Bob Chesney Welcomed at UCLA
Friday, December 12
Bruin Insider Show - Bob Chesney (Dec. 10, 2025)
Wednesday, December 10
Cinematic Recap - UCLA Introduces Head Coach Bob Chesney (Dec. 9, 2025)
Tuesday, December 09
Bob Chesney Introductory Press Conference (Dec. 9, 2025)
Tuesday, December 09
