Elyria Catholic names Duffy athletic director

Elyria Catholic has hired Jack Duffy, an alumni of St. Ignatius and John Carroll and a former assistant football coach, as its new athletic director.

Elyria Catholic did not take long to find its new athletic director.

On June 20, Elyria Catholic Principal Suzanne Lester announced that Jack Duffy has been named the Panthers’ athletic director.

Duffy succeeds Tim Ertle, who announced he was stepping down for the same position at Beaumont on May 1.

Duffy, a 2009 St. Ignatius graduate who was a member of the school’s 2008 state championship football team, attended John Carroll and earned a degree in communications before obtaining a master’s degree in education from John Carroll.

He was an assistant coach on the 2011 St. Ignatius state football team during Duffy his five years as a student teacher, football coach and athletic department assistant at St. Ignatius.

Last year, Duffy was a social studies teacher at Holy Name Elementary School in Cleveland.

It was that time away from not only a high school environment, but also the athletic fields, that helped draw Duffy to Elyria Catholic. “I stepped away for a year from my comfort zone of athletics and high school,” Duffy said. “It was a great experience, but it also made me realize that I wanted to be involved in high school athletics. When I saw the Elyria Catholic position was open, I knew I needed to try and get it.”

Duffy added that working for a Catholic institution is something he also values.

“The idea of community at Elyria Catholic is something I deeply care about, going back to my days at Ignatius,” Duffy said. “Elyria Catholic has a deep tradition, not only in the Catholic Church, but also academically and athletically. It’s a tradition that I hope to continue building.”

Lester’s statement in an email echoed that of Duffy.

“We’re very excited to add Jack Duffy to our administrative team at Elyria Catholic High School,” Lester said. “When you meet Jack, it’s clear he has tremendous passion for high school athletics and developing student-athletes. He has a deep-rooted background in Catholic education and pairing that with his attention to detail and coaching experience, we’re confident he’ll do a tremendous job of guiding our athletic department.”

Duffy will begin his new role on July 5.