Oh boy...Matt Luke will be leaving...

[The Football Fan]

Here's the link from the original source.

http://duke.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1306174

On the one hand, this is tough from a continuity standpoint. It's also tough because some of our best recruits have been on the offensive line and he's been the primary recruiter for many of those top targets. We just hosted a 3 star offensive tackle over the weekend, so that's a blow...and we need an OT. We have plenty of guards, but not sure about the OT position going forward. There's also a track record of protecting the QB and as the article points out, we have had more TDs from the running backs...

but on the other hand...

Cutcliffe made a great hire in Rick Petri. As stated before, I think it was an upgrade over Hobby and that's not slighting Hobby. I thought he (Hobby) was a great asset to the program with a professional/NFL pedigree. So, Cutcliffe has a chance to improve the coaching position on the O-line and there is definitely room for improvement. Our rushing attack has been abysmal, yet we have some good tools/people for a new coach. He'll have a couple of 4 star backs (and host of other good ones) to work with and a young, but athletic set of big men. The redshirt class from this past year looks great and should provide the quality depth that we've lacked. Again, like last year, almost everyone is back...aside from one major contributor (Bryan Morgan 2010/Kyle Hill 2011). Hill seemed to continually get hit with false starts at the worst time this year, but when he left the game, our QBs started getting hit like a ping-pong ball. That'll have to be improved for next year, but again, the raw material is there to mold.

In my mind, the final call on whether this hurts the program will be all on who Coach Cutcliffe brings to the program to replace a coach Luke. I have one other thought on this, but I'll reserve it for a future review.

I'd love to hear other people's opinions though....

[devildeac]

Here's the link from the original source.

http://duke.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1306174

On the one hand, this is tough from a continuity standpoint. It's also tough because some of our best recruits have been on the offensive line and he's been the primary recruiter for many of those top targets. We just hosted a 3 star offensive tackle over the weekend, so that's a blow...and we need an OT. We have plenty of guards, but not sure about the OT position going forward. There's also a track record of protecting the QB and as the article points out, we have had more TDs from the running backs...

but on the other hand...

Cutcliffe made a great hire in Rick Petri. As stated before, I think it was an upgrade over Hobby and that's not slighting Hobby. I thought he (Hobby) was a great asset to the program with a professional/NFL pedigree. So, Cutcliffe has a chance to improve the coaching position on the O-line and there is definitely room for improvement. Our rushing attack has been abysmal, yet we have some good tools/people for a new coach. He'll have a couple of 4 star backs (and host of other good ones) to work with and a young, but athletic set of big men. The redshirt class from this past year looks great and should provide the quality depth that we've lacked. Again, like last year, almost everyone is back...aside from one major contributor (Bryan Morgan 2010/Kyle Hill 2011). Hill seemed to continually get hit with false starts at the worst time this year, but when he left the game, our QBs started getting hit like a ping-pong ball. That'll have to be improved for next year, but again, the raw material is there to mold.

In my mind, the final call on whether this hurts the program will be all on who Coach Cutcliffe brings to the program to replace a coach Luke. I have one other thought on this, but I'll reserve it for a future review.

I'd love to hear other people's opinions though....

Shoot, why wait? I'd love to hear your thoughts now about who Cut hires to replace Luke.

[The Football Fan]

I'm really not all that familiar with great candidates and Cutcliffe has generally gone with people he's had experience with in the past. I just don't know Cutcliffe's network well enough to really say who's on the list, but with that said, here's a few I think would be of interest...

Ralph Friedgen - Former Maryland Coach
Why he'd be a good fit... He has a pedigree in the ACC and has won in the ACC as a head coach and assistant. As an Offensive Coordinator with Georgia Tech he was the O-Coordinator when they shared the National Championship (1990). He's also coached in the NFL and has ties all over the Maryland area for recruiting. Bottom line is he'd be a great addition.

Why it won't work... really, I don't see him going back to being an O-line coach or even O-Coordinator. He had a handsome buy out from Maryland. He'll likely pick up a head coaching post at a smaller school. Finally, he's a Maryland grad. Even if he's still sore about being fired, it's hard to imagine a Maryland grad coming to Duke.

Houston Nutt - Former Mississippi Coach
Why he'd be a good fit... He was an assistant under Jimmie Johnson and a grad assistant under Lou Holtz. Worked with Barry Sanders and Thurman Thomas. If you watched any NFL in the 90s you know those guys. He's been coaching in the SEC and won. More recently coached Peyton Hillis, Darren McFadden, and Felix Jones.

Why it won't work... Same as above. Why would a guy with that background go to Duke as an O-line/O-Coordinator. Only possibility would be some connection with Cutcliffe.

So, again, I don't really have much. I am however hoping for someone with some experience and a solid background.

[CameronBornAndBred]

How about Vince Oghobaase? He did some work with Cut during the lockout, and as far as I know is not on any roster.

[The Football Fan]

So, as many of you have seen, we have a new O-line coach in John Latina. As expected it's someone Coach Cutcliffe has worked with before.

Why I like this pick up...
1. He does know Coach Cutt's system and really should be a seamless transition. Additionally, if he helped train Matt Luke then the apple only gets so far from the tree.
2. He's a veteran coach...more on that in a bit.
3. He's been with some successful programs (Clemson, Ole Miss, Notre Dame)
4. Has some track record of landing 4 star recruits and apparently putting some players in the NFL

Why I'm not thrilled...
1. Let's face it, the O-line and the rushing attack at Akron after 2 years wasn't great. Great coaching usually gets to shine in those environments.
2. He left Notre Dame to "pursue other interest", but it was pretty clear to most observers there was some discontent. Many felt the o-line with 4 star recruits wasn't protecting the QB or able to run effectively.
3. At this point, I'd kinda like to see some new ideas to improve the rushing attack. I was hoping for someone who could assist in the play calling. Honestly, someone not from the same coaching philosophy. A fresh look from a respected source could've really helped.

Final Analysis from my perspective...
This is solid good hire. We're no worse than we were before, but I don't feel this was a home run; I don't think we're much better either. Matt Luke was younger and I would guess had a bit more energy to put into the program. His reputation was on the line and that drives a fellow particularly when they're getting started. In John Latina, most of his success seems to have occurred toward the middle of his career. He had some early success with Notre Dame, but how much of that is really attributed to a Charlie Weiss offense with 4 star recruits playing against mostly 2-3 star recruits. I think he'll bring more experience and that could be huge.

On some level, I wonder how much time Coach Cutcliffe spends developing his coaches vs. working up schemes, game plans, and preparing the program. The more experienced staff Coach Cutcliffe has then presumably, the more time he can spend on game preparations. This is part of why I wouldn't have wanted Oghobasse to have gotten the position. He may have a huge upside in that position, but it would require time to develop and that's something I don't think we can afford now. We need wins and a bowl next year in big way or we may be looking for another head coach sooner than we'd like.

I was ecstatic with the Rick Petri hire because regardless of where he went his unit performed well even if the team didn't. Additionally, he put multiple players in the NFL even when he was coaching at lesser known schools. The last 3 years, John's O-lines haven't done as well and that worries me. Still, that could also be related to things beyond his control.

Time will tell the tale as it always does...the more immediate impact may be recruiting. If we can pull in a 3-4 star offensive tackle, I'll consider the first job a pass, but again, we'll see.