Duke Fires Football Coach; Seeks Experienced Coach for the Position

"This business is very results-oriented," Duke athletics director Joe Alleva said at a news conference. "When you win four games in four years, it makes you take a hard look at what you are doing.

"I felt we had to make a change because of that.”

Alleva said he will look for a coach with head coaching experience, which Duke's previous two coaches did not have. Carl Franks was fired after going 7-45 and Roof was 6-45.

"It's imperative for us to hire a coach that has head coaching experience, that’s a proven leader and can take Duke football in the direction we all want it to go, and that is winning championships," Alleva said.

Alleva’s choice of words was significant.

Duke has long been criticized for not pushing hard enough in football, and even basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski raised that point on Sunday when asked about Roof and his future.

“Whether you do or not, the attitude to win (championships) has to be there in everything that you do,” Krzyzewski said.

“That, to me, is the missing ingredient, not one person."

Oh.

But the letters D, U, K and E mean one thing in basketball and field hockey and another in football. The only Duke coach to have a winning overall record since 1965 is Steve Spurrier, who left for Florida with a 20-13-1 record in three seasons.

Still, Alleva insisted Duke can win, even though the Devils are currently mired in a 25-game ACC losing streak.

Alleva would not say whether he needed an offensive or defensive coach, but said a priority had to be scoring points. Duke finished last in the ACC in total offense (271.1 yards per game) and scoring offense (17.9).

Alleva said Duke will not make changes to its academic standards and that a strategic plan for football, which is expected to be presented to the Board of Trustees in February, is not expected to introduce changes in that regard.

Alleva said the current Duke assistants remain on the staff and will be in contact with the high school prospects who have commited to Duke.

Alleva said Duke will have to build the program by identifying players who can qualify to enroll at the school and win on the field.

“I believe the coach is the key," Alleva said. "The coach is the key, with the right budgets and the right facilities. The coach is the one who has to attract the student-athletes. Without good student-athletes, you’re not going to win.”

Duke also plans to improve Wallace Wade Stadium. The school is already overhauling the antiquated bathrooms and Alleva said he'd like to see suites and club seats on the visiting side, away from the press box.

"We have one of the largest recruiting budgets in the country, so that’s not an issue."

This season, Duke won one game – 20-14 over Northwestern. The Devils also suffered close defeats this season, including a 46-43 loss against Navy and a 20-14 overtime loss to rival North Carolina on Saturday.

Alleva insisted he made the decision Sunday and informed Roof on Sunday night.

Roof said he met with Alleva and school president Richard Brodhead on Sunday and Alleva told him of the decision Monday morning.

Roof knew he was in real trouble after WRAL aired a report Thursday night that sources had told reporter David Glenn that Roof would not be retained.

"I saw on the news Thursday that it might be headed this way," Roof said. "Joe and I talked Friday and he said that no decision had been made. But I've been around this business long enough to know (that) where there's smoke, there's fire."

Losing his position was emotional for Roof, who has sought to build a family atmosphere at Duke. He has cultivated cordial relationships with the media and spoke fondly of the school Monday. Many Duke employees were at both the Alleva and Roof news conferences.

Roof was careful when talking about how realistic it is for Duke to win in football, but did point out the poor records of the previous coaches.

"It's a pretty tough job," he said. ... When you look back to the expansion of the ACC, it was a tough job before that happened. But with expansion, it became tougher."

Roof made one pointed comment when asked what he might tell his successor.

"Make sure you get all the facts and ask the right questions before coming in the door," he said.

Roof refused to address how Duke's academic standards affected the football team. Told that Alleva said Duke did not plan to alter its standards, he said, "I don't work for Duke any more. That's what Joe said. He's the athletics director."

Roof served as Duke's interim head coach for the final five games of the 2003 season. Under his guidance, Duke posted a 41-17 victory over Georgia Tech on Nov. 8 that year, then closed out the season by defeating North Carolina, 30-22.

Roof, a former All-ACC linebacker at Georgia Tech, became the 20th head coach in Duke history on Dec. 6, 2003. When he was hired at Duke, he spoke about accepting the challenge of building the football program.

Before joining the Blue Devils as an assistant, Roof was defensive coordinator at Georgia Tech. During his tenure there, he was nominated in 2000 for the Broyles Award given to the nation's top assistant coach.