Coming off their first postseason bowl victory in 54 years, expectations are as high as ever for the Blue Devils.
But that does not mean their offseason has been without numerous adjustments.
Duke has had to adapt to a slew of coaching changes on both sides of the ball since defeating Indiana in the New Era Pinstripe Bowl Dec. 26. And although it initially appeared as if quarterback would not be a concern for the Blue Devils this summer, an Achilles injury to starter Thomas Sirk has left Duke unsure who will start under center in its season opener against N.C. Central Sept. 3.
“Things change and roles have changed,” Duke head coach David Cutcliffe said. “We try to prepare for those types of changes. Just like anything else, you better have a plan in place.”
After offensive coordinator Scottie Montgomery was hired as the head coach at East Carolina, Cutcliffe promoted Zac Roper to offensive coordinator and hired Jim Bridge from Purdue as special teams coordinator and tight ends coach—which was Roper’s post from 2013 to 2015. Although Roper has also mentored running backs, he has no previous experience calling offensive plays.
Roper’s offense will be without John Latina, who retired after serving as an assistant head coach and run-game coordinator since 2013. Latina coached seven All-ACC offensive linemen—including first-round draft pick Laken Tomlinson—and was instrumental in the development of Duke’s rushing attack, which averaged 181.9 yards per game in 2014 and 192.9 yards per game in 2015 and brings back its leading rusher in Sirk as well as veteran running backs Jela Duncan and Shaun Wilson. The duo combined for 212 yards in the bowl win against the Hoosiers on 22 carries, highlighted by an 85-yard Wilson touchdown run.
Marcus Johnson—who was an offensive lineman at Mississippi while Cutcliffe coached the Rebels—will fill Latina’s position. A former NFL offensive lineman, Johnson served as an offensive quality control specialist the past three seasons, though he has never directly coached offensive linemen and running backs and will be tasked with replacing the production of All-ACC center Matt Skura, starting guard Lucas Patrick and guard Cody Robinson. Guard Tanner Stone started all 13 games in 2015, but had back surgery in the spring, making him a question mark up front moving forward.
Despite Roper and Johnson’s limited experience in their new roles, Cutcliffe said he was impressed with what he has seen from the duo so far.
“I thought spring just went on without a glitch,” Cutcliffe said. “With our offense, the structure and work were incredible.”
Another coaching change involved the hiring of Ben Albert as defensive line coach.
As Boston College’s coach for the same position from 2013-2015, Albert helped guide one of the country’s best defensive units last year—the Eagles led the nation in total defense and had a top-five rushing defense.
“Ben Albert was someone that I didn’t know other than that I was blown away by the quality of play of the defensive line of Boston College,” Cutcliffe said. “And the more I researched Ben and [defensive coordinator] Jim Knowles researched Ben, the more I spoke to him about this potential opportunity, I knew he fit.”
Albert has taken over a Blue Devil defensive line that struggled to generate pressure on opposing quarterbacks last season.
Duke’s defensive front slowed down run-oriented teams such as Georgia Tech and Northwestern at the start of the 2015 campaign, but the Blue Devils finished with just 17 sacks and often surrendered explosive pass plays, allowing more than 300 yards through the air in their final three games.
Although Duke brings backs four of its five starting defensive backs and will have cornerback Bryon Fields back after he missed last season due to a torn ACL, the Blue Devils will be without three-time All-American strike safety Jeremy Cash and linebacker Dwayne Norman, who led the team with 114 tackles, in 2016.
Cutcliffe said sophomore linebacker Ben Humphreys has attempted to replace Cash’s vocal leadership defensively so far in the offseason. After making 20 tackles during the regular season last year, Humphreys had 11 in Duke’s bowl win.
But regardless of the other storylines surrounding his team in the summer, Cutcliffe knows Sirk’s health will be a heavy focus as the season approaches.
Sirk’s Achilles injury followed an up-and-down season during which he showcased his playmaking skills, gaining 3,428 total yards, but often missed targets downfield. After nursing a lower-body injury throughout much of the second half of the year, the Glen St. Mary, Fla., native accounted for 317 yards and three touchdowns against Indiana.
Cutcliffe said he was encouraged by Sirk’s progress to this point, but if the redshirt senior is not ready for the team’s season opener, Duke will likely turn to Parker Boehme—who started two games last year and threw for 579 yards—and reevaluate its depth at the position and offensive strategy.
“Boehme is a veteran player and he knows what we’re doing,” Cutcliffe said. “If Thomas doesn’t get back, God forbid, we’ll be a little light. We’ll only have three scholarship quarterbacks. The problematic part of that is, what are their strengths? How much are you going to run a quarterback?”
In order to compete for an ACC Coastal Division title, the Blue Devils will also have to overcome an arduous schedule that features three pairs of back-to-back road games.
After opening ACC play against Wake Forest in week 2, Duke will travel to Notre Dame and Northwestern—both of which finished 2015 with 10 wins—for its next two games. The Blue Devils will then have consecutive away meetings against Louisville and Georgia Tech in October before concluding their season at Pittsburgh and Miami.
Cutcliffe said that the Pinstripe Bowl victory has raised the bar for his team—how the Blue Devils answer the offseason questions and handle such expectations remains to be seen.
“We can win,” Cutcliffe said. “I asked Thomas Sirk, ‘Thomas can we win?’ He said, ‘Yes, sir.’ And I said, ‘There’s no question.’ But right now what can’t be answered yet is, ‘Will we win?’”
Amrith Ramkumar contributed reporting.
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