Duke’s David Cutcliffe is shaking up his staff after 2-9 season. Here are the changes.
After a season that produced the fewest wins of his head coaching career, Duke’s David Cutcliffe will no longer call plays for the Blue Devils’ offense.
Cutcliffe announced Thursday that Jeff Faris, a former Duke player and an offensive assistant for the Blue Devils since 2012, will take over in-game, play-calling duties as co-offensive coordinator.
Faris and another former Duke player turned assistant coach, Re’quan Boyette, will share the offensive coordinating duties as part of wholesale staff changes Cutcliffe is making after the Blue Devils went 2-9 last season.
“I think our organization functions better when I am overseeing the entire operation of it,” Cutcliffe said during a Zoom press conference with reporters on Thursday.
Cutcliffe, Duke’s head coach since 2008, took over play-calling duties last season after Duke went 5-7 in 2019 and averaged 25.3 points per game. But the Blue Devils offense continued to struggle in 2020, averaging 24.8 points per game. Duke’s 39 turnovers were 14 more than any other team in the country and that included a nation-high 19 interceptions thrown.
Cutcliffe said Thursday he didn’t think the actual plays he called for the problem, rather it was the time he couldn’t spend elsewhere on the team that lead to issues.
“It’s not necessarily the play calling in itself,” Cutcliffe said. “It’s the preparation that goes into getting an offense ready that you’re involved with every step. It’s all of the hours upon hours of staff meetings, a film study. I think the play calling itself, I mean, if we really honestly critique this, I don’t think that was really ever our problem, except probably trying to do too much pressing a little bit. And I think when you do that, you get yourself in trouble. And a veteran coach should know that. But it’s just the amount of time.”
With Duke having failed to play in a bowl game in consecutive seasons for the first time since the 2010 and 2011 seasons, the 30-year-old Faris will now call plays.
“What I wanted to do was energize, recharge,” Cutcliffe said Thursday. “There’s no demotion. Don’t ask me about lack of confidence or demote...None. Period. It’s realigning the staff to give us a new energy, a new approach, a new opportunity, and I could not be more excited.”
Boyette, a two-time team captain during his Blue Devils playing career from 2005-09, coached Duke’s running backs the last four seasons. He’ll now coach the team’s wide receivers as part of his work as co-offensive coordinator.
Lots of other coaching changes
Last year’s wide receivers coach, Trooper Taylor, is moving to the defense to coach cornerbacks. He replaces Chris Hampton in that role. Hampton left Duke to become Tulane’s defensive coordinator last month. Cutcliffe said he considers Taylor, who played defense in college at Baylor, one of the nation’s top cornerbacks coaches.
Duke hired Calvin Magee as the new running backs coach. Magee comes to Duke after coaching at Mississippi in 2019.
A former NFL tight end with Tampa Bay from 1985-88, Magee’s previous college coaching stops include South Florida (1996-2000), West Virginia (2001-07), Michigan (2008-10), Pittsburgh (2011), Arizona (2012-17) and New Mexico (2018). He was an offensive coordinator at West Virginia, Michigan, Pittsburgh, Arizona and New Mexico.
He was named the nation’s top assistant coach by the American Football Coaches Association in 2007 for his work on Rich Rodriguez’s staff at West Virginia.
“Calvin McGee is a veteran,” Cutcliffe said. “He’s going to bring a lot of poise and veteran ability to the staff. I cannot be more excited about that, excited about this adventure.”
Duke staff changes also include Zac Roper moving from coaching quarterbacks to tight ends. Faris had previously coached the tight ends but will now coach quarterbacks in addition to calling plays.
Offensive line coach Greg Frey and linebackers coach Lanier Goethie will also handle recruiting coordinator duties on their respective sides of the ball. Previously, Faris had been the recruiting coordinator for offense since 2018 while co-defensive coordinator Matt Guerrieri was the recruiting coordinator for the defense.
Blue Devils will also have new starting quarterback
So, the only coach on staff remaining in the same role and title as he had last year is co-defensive coordinator Ben Albert, who also coaches the defensive linemen.
Guerrieri remains coaching safeties and is Duke’s defensive play-caller on game days but is no longer the recruiting coordinator on defense.
Benedict remains coaching the special teams while helping with defense, but his title has changed from assistant coach to special teams coordinator.
The offense Faris and Boyette are now leading will include a new starting quarterback. Chase Brice, who started 11 games and threw 15 interceptions last season, has transferred to Appalachian State.
Duke returns former Wake Forest Heritage High School quarterback Gunnar Holmberg, as well was Luca Diamont, at the position. The Blue Devils also signed quarterbacks Riley Leonard from Fairhope, Alabama, and Jordan Moore from Towson, Maryland, as part of their 2021 recruiting class.
Moore enrolled at Duke this month and will be involved in spring practice, which Cutcliffe said will begin on Feb. 26.
“I really feel good about the people,” Cutcliffe said. “The athleticism in the room has taken a big jump up. And I think that can prove to be good for us.”
This story was originally published January 14, 2021 at 3:48 PM.