Report: Duke Line Coach Jim Bridge Leaving For Memphis
Duke’s offense struggled for much of the past season, leading to speculation that the Blue Devils might shuffle their coaching staff during the offseason.
There will be at least one change, but the first move wasn’t because of Duke’s decision to shake things up. Offensive line coach Jim Bridge is reportedly about to be hired by the University of Memphis for the same position.
New Memphis head coach Ryan Silverfield has been assembling his staff with the Tigers.
Bridge had previously coached at Boston College, Purdue and NC State, among other schools, before coming to Duke in 2016. He spent two seasons as special teams coordinator and tight ends coach for the Blue Devils before switching to the offensive line prior to the 2018 season.
Duke’s special teams were third in the ACC on kick returns and kick return defense under Bridge, led by Devon Edwards and Shaun Wilson. Tight ends under Bridge included Davis Koppenhaver, Erich Schneider and Daniel Helm, who combined for seven touchdowns in 2016, five in 2017.
The Duke line has struggled under Bridge. The Blue Devils went from 171.4 rushing yards per game the year before Bridge took over to 159.6 in 2018 and 150.3 this past year, with two freshmen starting on the offensive line. Duke’s rushing average fell from 4.3 yards to 3.6.
Duke’s line has also seen its sack rate steadily increase, from 6.2 percent before Bridge took over to 6.3 percent in 2018 and 7.4 percent this past season.
The Raleigh News & Observer reported that Bridge has already resigned from Duke, although he’s still listed on the team’s website, and his Twitter account still identifies him as a Blue Devils coach.
