November 27, 2007

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4-AND-OUT:ROOF DONE AT DUKE Alieva losespatience waiting forDuke wins by

TedRoof firedafter 4 full seasons at helm

Matthew Iles

by

THE CHRONICLE

It may have come as no surprise to fans and media when Director ofAthletics Joe Alieva fired Ted Roofafter the head coach compiled a 645 record over four-plus seasons. But in reality, maybe it should not have been such a sure thing. Throughout Roofs tenure, the Blue Devils have let many close games slip away. This season alone, they lost five games after trailing by just one score iR the fourth quarter. If Hews Duke had won just a few of those contests, then perhaps Roof would have been given another chance. When he took over, Roof said it would take five years to turn around the pr citing improved recruiting tacticsand a firm redshirting policy as keys to long-term success. Even after another disappointing season, the players, assistant coaches and Roof himself kept pointing toward the future specifically next year, when he predicted the Blue Devils would be bowl-eligible. In a press conference Monday, Alieva said therewas no doubtthe program is better now than it was four years ago, but, in the end, he did not have the patience to waitany longer. “It boiled down to the fact that I just didn’t see enough improvement on the field this year to warrant having Ted come back for the next year,” Alieva said. Looking back, Roof said he could not turn down the top job at an institution he .

Will

Flaherty THE CHRONICLE

The Roof over Duke Football has col-

lapsed.

then what he knows now. “Maybe not,” Roof said. “We all wanted it to go faster and win more games.... But I thought that it would take at leastfive years. That’s what we’ve been shooting for.” Since 1979, seven different coaches,

Duke University fired head football coach Ted Roof Monday, relieving him of his duties after a heartbreaking 20-14 loss Saturday to rival UNC that dropped the Blue Devils to an 1-11 record for the year. At an afternoon press conference Monday announcing the move, Director of Athletics Joe Alieva cited the team’s lack of progress on the field during Roof s fouryear tenure as the key factor in his decision to cut ties with the program’s 20th coach. “This business is very result-oriented, and when you win four games in four years, it makes you take a hard look at what you’re doing,” Alieva said. “I felt that we had to make a change because of that.” “There’s nothing else in Ted’s character or integrity that would lead to a change here. He represented the University in a first-class manner and always did. It just comes down to a point where you need to win games.” Although Alieva said he decided to let Roof go Sunday night and informed the coach in a meeting Monday morning, the Director of Athletics said he “felt like the handwriting might be on the wall” after the Blue Devils floundered in a nationally-televised 28-7 loss at 2-9 Notre Dame Nov. 17. As media reports began to appear near Thanksgiving suggesting he was to be fired

SEE ANALYSIS ON PAGE 11

SEE ROOF ON PAGE 11

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Head coachTed Roof meets with the media Monday afternoon at theYoh Football Center to discuss his firing.

respected as much as Duke but paused when asked if he would have taken the job knowing

Freeman Center sponsors 2nd trip to Czech Republic by

Emmeline Zhao THE CHRONICLE

Twenty-three juniors boarded flights last Wednesday to spend Thanksgiving together—in Prague.

For the second year, Duke students at home and abroad gathered in the capital city of the Czech Republic for a trip organized by theFreeman Center for Jewish Life. The participating students ■Lm \l6 traveled from Durham, Italy, France and Spain to meet their fellow classmates in Prague for an educational yet fun-filled itinerary over the break, said Rebecca Levenson, interim director for Jewish life \

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SEE PRAGUE ON PAGE 6


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November 27, 2007 by Duke Chronicle Print Archives - Issuu