![]() Duffy pictured in The Red and White 1923, Detroit yearbook | |
Biographical details | |
---|---|
Born | Pittsfield, Massachusetts, U.S. | June 3, 1892
Died | February 23, 1961 Detroit, Michigan, U.S. | (aged 68)
Playing career | |
c. 1915 | Colgate |
Position(s) | Quarterback |
Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
c. 1915 | Colgate (assistant) |
1916 | Eastern HS (MI) |
1917 | Detroit |
1919–1922 | Detroit |
1924 | Detroit |
Head coaching record | |
Overall | 43–12–1 (college) |
James Francis Duffy Jr. (June 3, 1892 – February 23, 1961) was an American football player and coach. A Massachusetts native, Duffy played college football as a quarterback at Colgate University. He was the head coach of the University of Detroit football team for six seasons between 1917 and 1924 and led the program to national prominence. His coaching career was interrupted by one year of military service during World War I and by his retirement after the 1922 season. In his first five years as the team's head coach, his teams compiled a 39–7–1 record. He returned to coaching in 1924 and sustained the only losing record of his career. After retiring from football, Duffy practiced law and served for a time as Michigan's boxing commissioner.