Ishmael Aristide is a great name.
Ok, to re-consolidate the list with the pending hires (just to help keep things straight, agree that nothing is certain until the announcement, and apparently even after the announcement for the recruiting staff):
Kevin Johns: OC/QB
Robb Smith: DC/LBs
Trooper Taylor: RBs
Ishmael Aristide: CBs
Harland Bower: DEs
Patrick Dougherty: Special Teams/TEs
Lyle Hemphill: Safeties
Sean Spencer: Co-DC/DTs (unconfirmed)
Adam Cushing: OL (unconfirmed)
Zohn Burden: WR/passing game coordinator (unconfirmed but reported as "finalized" by Thamel)
Ishmael Aristide is a great name.
Zohn may be unconfirmed, but he apparently is already recruiting and making offers.
Kevin White
@KevinWhite05
After a great talk with
@CoachZohn
I am blessed to receive an offer from Duke university
@RivalsFriedman
@BrianDohn247
@NCAAFNation247
"This is the best of all possible worlds."
Dr. Pangloss - Candide
Cushing is official.
https://goduke.com/news/2022/1/14/fo...ine-coach.aspx
"This is the best of all possible worlds."
Dr. Pangloss - Candide
He's a UChicago grad and was on the staff at Northwestern for a long time (14 years), so certainly is academically oriented. I was a bit surprised a Head Coach would make the move to be an OL coach, but he did compile a record of 3-26, including 1-10 in 2021 as the HC. So, he probably didn't see much promise sticking around...
I really like this staff! The coaches are younger. The coaches are from many different parts of the country. The composition reinforces Duke’s national university recognition. In my opinion, this points to a vision aligned and to scale. I felt in the last few years, Duke Football acted regionally- Southeastern Region.
Very impressive staff that checks all the boxes: a former HC (Cushing) as a sounding board for Elko, one Duke holdover for continuity/knowledge (Trooper), some NFL juice (Spencer), several ace recruiters from critical regions, and a critical mass of history/success at academically rigorous schools (particularly in the Big 10). Having two DCs with P5 success on his traditional side of the ball will presumably limit the extent to which Coach Elko has to stay in the weeds on defense, too.
From a glance at the new staffs at UVA and Va Tech, I couldn't find any coach on either that I'd prefer to our guys. Our offensive staff in particular stands out, with an established OC vs. guys stepping up in level/responsibility.
Despite the most challenging coaching market in history, Coach Elko did a fantastic job of setting expectations and delivering on his promise.
Most of them have reps as very good recruiters...hopeful that bears fruit soon. I expect more aggressive recruiting over a wider geographic area.
While out recruiting, Duke has made the Coach Burden announcement official
The offensive coaching side complete.
Coach Burden has an impressive resume, with knowledge of the ACC from his time at Va Tech.
Excited for the future, I am
https://twitter.com/pdduke85/status/...302177795?s=21
Welcome Coach Burden! Another excellent recruiter with a lot of ACC coaching experience.
https://goduke.com/news/2022/1/15/fo...ers-coach.aspx
"This is the best of all possible worlds."
Dr. Pangloss - Candide
Sean Spencer’s stay was very short. Moving on to coach DL at Florida.