Army West Point Athletics
Football
- Title:
- Offensive Line
Former Black Knight fullback Mike Viti, a 2008 West Point graduate, is in his 10th season as an assistant coach on the Army coaching staff and his 11th overall, having previously served as Director of High School and Alumni Relations in 2015.
In the winter of 2025, Viti was promoted to Associate Head Coach / Offensive Line.
In 2024, Viti mentored an offensive line that played together as the best collective unit in the entire country. His group paved the way for a dominant rushing attack led by quarterback Bryson Daily as the Black Knights won a program-record 12 games and won the American Athletic Conference Championship. His starting five of senior LT Connor Finucane, sophomore LG Paolo Gennarelli, sophomore C Brady Small, senior RG Bill Katsigiannis, and senior RT Lucas Scott were recipients of the Joe Moore Award, given to the most outstanding offensive line unit in college football. This historic achievement marked the first time a unit from a military academy or the Group of 5 has received this prestigious honor. Army managed to lead the nation in rushing yards/rushing yards per game despite facing the highest percentage of plays (80.2%) with eight or more defenders stacked against them in the box.
Army’s 4,207 total rushing yards, including 1,659 yards from senior quarterback Bryson Daily, rank fourth in program history and are one of only six times an Army team has rushed for 4,000 or more yards in a season.
The offensive line’s consistency and execution were unmatched, allowing the fewest percentage of rushes for zero or negative yards (11.0%) since 2020 by an FBS team.
Daily’s 1,659 rushing yards led the offensive rushing attack and were the second most by a player in an Army season, only bested by Ahmad Bradshaw (2017, 1,746). Army’s 48 rushing touchdowns as a team rank second in program history (2017, 50). Daily emerged as one of the top players in the nation, leading the NCAA with 32 rushing TDs, the most ever in a season by a quarterback.
Under his mentorship, Katsigiannis was named an AAC All-Conference first teamer, a Sports Illustrated first-team All-American, and a second-team All-American by ESPN. Finucane, Gennarelli, and Scott were named to the AAC All-Conference second team.
Gennarelli was also selected to the Associated Press third-team all-American, Army’s first sophomore all-American since RB Bob Anderson in 1957. Scott was named to the All-America Team by the Football Writers Association of America. Viti and Matt Drinkall were named the Football Scoop offensive line Coaches of the Year.
Following the 2024 season, Viti was elevated to the title of associate head coach for offense / offensive line
In 2023, Viti was instrumental in the development and success of freshman center Brady Small. Small started all 12 games, becoming the first freshman to start in the season opener in their first-ever game for Army since 2017, when WR Kevin Waites started in the season opener vs. Fordham. Team captain OL Connor Finucane and OL Jackson Filipowicz garnered First Team Phil Steele All-Independent selections as anchors on the offensive line. As a team, Army averaged 208.0 rushing yards per game, ranking seventh best in the country.
In 2022, his first season coaching the offensive line, Viti’s group helped Army finish second nationally with 38 rushing touchdowns and totaled four games of over 450+ rushing yards, the Army’s most since 2019. Starting offensive lineman Connor Bishop was named a First Team Phil Steele All-Independent selection, and Connor Finucane was selected to the second team.
In 2021, Viti’s running back group picked up where they left off a season before, aiding the offense to finish the season ranked No. 2 in the country in average rushing yards per game (286.4) and total rushing yards (3,648), as well as leading the nation in total rushing TDs (46). Viti’s running backs were led by Jakobi Buchanan, who had a team-high 12 rushing TDs, rushing for 504 yards on 136 carries (3.7 avg.).
With 2020 finding the Black Knights securing their second Commander-in-Chief Trophy in three seasons with a 9-3 overall record, the season’s success hinged on a NCAA Top 5 Army rushing attack. Averaging 273 yards per game on the ground, Viti’s position group saw RB Jakobi Buchanan rush for a team-most 111 rushes for 474 yards amongst all running backs. Ranked No.2 in the nation for most rushing touchdowns, the team’s 36 total rushing touchdowns were only one shy of matching Alabama for the top ranking for total rushing touchdowns (37). The Black Knights’ rushing attack finished second-best in the country, totaling 3,276 yards on the ground.
Selected as the AFCA Assistant Coach of the Year, 2019 saw Viti help develop a No. 3-ranked rushing attack in the nation, with the Black Knights averaging 297 yards per game on the ground. Army’s 45 total rushing touchdowns matched with the Clemson Tigers to account for the second-most in the NCAA. RB Connor Slomka and RB Sandon McCoy combined for 283 rushes for the Army rushing attack that posted 3,875 yards on a schedule with Power Five opponents, including the Michigan Wolverines.
2019 also saw Viti selected as the eighth recipient of the Armed Forces Merit Award, presented by the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA). The Merit Award is presented annually to honor an individual and/or group with a military background that has an impact within the realm of college football.
In 2018, Viti helped Army capture the Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy titles for the second consecutive year and earn a Bowl victory for the third year in a row in a 70-14 win over Houston. The Black Knights also finished the year with nine consecutive victories, went undefeated at home for the second year in a row and finished the year ranked No. 19 in the nation.
Viti tutored a fullback group that saw three rush for 300 or more yards on the year, with RB Darnell Woolfolk leading the way with a career-best 958 yards. He also averaged 73.5 yards per game, including a season-high 117 yards against rival Air Force. The fullbacks combined for 24 rushing touchdowns with Woolfolk leading the position group with 14. Woolfolk concluded his career tied for third in program history with 37 touchdowns and ended his tenure ninth all-time in Academy lore with 2,368 yards and a selection to the 2018 East-West Shrine Game.
The 2017 season saw the Black Knights bring home the Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy for the first time since 1996, winning 10 games for only the second time in Academy history. Viti developed four different fullbacks that made a significant impact on the field in 2017. Woolfolk ran for 812 yards in 10 games and tied for the team lead in touchdowns with 14. In his third season, RB Andy Davidson ran for 627 yards. RB Calen Holt and RB Connor Slomka logged 214 yards and a touchdown, while Slomka finished with four touchdowns and 216 yards.
In 2016, Viti tutored Andy Davidson to over 900 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns. The 12 scores were the most by an Army Black Knight since QB Trent Steelman posted 12 in the 2011 season. Davidson finished the year with five 100-yard rushing games, including 121 yards and two scores in the season-opening win over Temple. Woolfolk also rushed for 600 yards on 109 carries and nine touchdowns under Viti in 2016. 119 yards and two of those touchdowns were spotlighted against North Texas in the Heart of Dallas Bowl. Before developing fullbacks at West Point on the field, Viti spent the 2015 season as the Director of High School and Alumni Relations.
As a player at West Point, Viti, a team captain, earned four varsity letters and served as a Regimental Commander during his senior year. A powerful blocker, Viti paved the way as part of the talented rushing attack from 2004-07. Part of a rushing attack that averaged 306 yards per game, Viti carried the ball 91 times in 31 games played for 321 yards and three touchdowns. He also hauled 30 passes for 198 yards, which records as the most for a Black Knight fullback since 2000.
Following graduation, Viti served a deployment as a platoon leader in Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom, earning a Bronze Star and a Combat Action Badge.
After retiring from the military as a Captain, Viti embarked on Mike’s Hike for Heroes, a cross-country trek where he walked one kilometer for every service member killed in action in the global war on terror. As documented by a breadth of national media, Viti concluded the walk covering 7,100 kilometers (4,400 miles) beginning in Washington with the final steps made entering the 2014 Army-Navy Game, presented by USAA, in Baltimore, Md.
Viti is also a co-founder of the Legacies Alive Foundation, which is a non-profit organization whose mission is to strengthen and support the Gold Star families of our nation’s fallen heroes and bring national awareness to the life and character of all service members who paid the ultimate sacrifice.
Viti resides at West Point with his wife, Laura.
