ATHENS, W.Va. – Concord University President Dr. Bethany Meighen announced
Luke Duffy will serve as Concord's full-time athletic director, effective with Monday's announcement from CU's 13
th President.
Duffy, who has served in a co-athletic director capacity since May 2024 with
Tesla Southcott, has resigned his post as Concord's women's soccer's head coach. Southcott will be the assistant athletic director for the department while continuing her role as the head coach of Concord women's basketball as well as serving as Concord's senior women's administrator.
With Concord transitioning back to one full-time athletic director, CU will align more closely with the rest of the schools in the Mountain East Conference. This will allow Duffy to concentrate on management of Concord's 18 varsity sports as well as fundraising efforts in Athens.
"Concord is grateful to both
Luke Duffy and
Tesla Southcott for coaching and serving as co-ADs when Kevin Garrett retired," said President Meighen. "Moving to one AD will streamline leadership responsibilities and allow athletics to move from a period of transition towards a focused future of growth."
After former Concord Athletic Director Kevin Garrett announced his retirement from collegiate athletics in the spring of 2024, Duffy and Southcott instantly assumed the role of co-ADs after serving as Garrett's assistants. .
Over the last 18 months, Duffy has helped lead efforts to create the Concord Athletics Club, the main fundraising arm of CU Athletics. Since the summer of 2024, the Concord Athletics Club has grown to 24 members. The Annual Concord Athletics Golf Tournament sponsored by Appalachian Eye Care saw its largest field of 22 teams during Homecoming Weekend 2024.
Coach Duffy was instrumental in the successful opening of the Kendrick Indoor Athletic Practice Facility this past fall, playing a key leadership role in bringing this important project from vision to reality.
This new indoor facility has been a game changer for Concord Athletics, providing expanded, year-round training opportunities and significantly enhancing how our student-athletes prepare, compete, and grow. The Kendrick Indoor Athletic Practice Facility stands as a powerful investment in our programs and a clear demonstration of our commitment to supporting the success, development, and well-being of our student-athletes
"I'm super grateful for the leadership of Dr. Bethany Meighen and the Concord University Board of Governors," Duffy began. "The chance to lead Concord Athletics is an opportunity that I have not taken lightly in my previous role with Tesla, and I am committed to helping Concord continue to grow and compete at the highest level within the Mountain East Conference.."
Along with continuing to grow the Concord brand through fundraising efforts, one of the biggest projects Duffy oversaw in the last 18 months was the addition of two new sports to the Campus Beautiful—women's triathlon and women's wrestling. Both are slated to begin competition in the fall of 2026.
Concord also added a dance team to help enhance the gameday atmosphere for football and men's and women's basketball at Callaghan Stadium and inside the Carter Center.
"Coach Duffy has built an outstanding coaching career at Concord, and his decision to step into the full-time athletic director role is a powerful example of leadership and service," President Meighen said. "We are grateful for the impact he has had as a coach and excited for the vision he brings to this next chapter."
The growth and ever-evolving landscape of collegiate athletics has kept Duffy and the Concord administration busy, but in addition CU has been tasked with hiring seven new coaches since the spring of 2024: Drew Bailey (baseball), Cody Edwards (football), Jonathan Kigel (men's and women's cross country & track & field), Carson Proffitt (men's and women's golf), Alisa Tasler (softball) and the two newest hires of triathlon and wrestling, which will be announced in the coming weeks.
"College athletics is always changing, especially at the Division II level," Duffy stated. "It is my duty to put Concord in the best place to succeed in competition, but also away from the wins and losses I look forward to working with our coaches as well as the near 600 student-athletes on our campus to make their time in Athens the best experience of their life."
Over the last 18 months, Duffy has continued to strengthen Concord's partnership with the Mercer County Special Olympics that included a signing day for each special Olympian's favorite program at Concord. The Carter Center and other facilities at CU hosts Special Olympic events throughout the year.
A staple in the Concord Athletic Department since the summer of 2016, Duffy was on the women's soccer sidelines for 10 seasons. As one of the most successful coaches at Concord during that time, Duffy led the program to two conference championships (2019, 2021). Overall, the Mountain Lions played in four consecutive MEC Championships from 2018-2021. Duffy led the program to three NCAA Tournament appearances in 2019, 2021 and 2023, with the 2021 squad advancing to the Division II National Quarterfinals. Prior to Concord, Duffy served as an assistant coach at Lenior-Rhyne in Hickory, N.C. and Queens University in Charlotte, N.C.
Duffy steps away from Concord's women's soccer as the winningest coach in program history at 118-52-21, a win percentage better than .650.
