High school football: North Ridgeville coach Luke Durbin steps down after seven years on the job

North Ridgeville is looking for a football coach. Luke Durbin is stepping down after leading the program for the past seven seasons. The Rangers went 27-44 overall, 21-36 in conference play and reached the playoffs twice under his tenure. North Ridgeville went 2-8 overall and 0-6 in the Southwestern Conference this year, finishing the season with two wins in its final three games. Durbin said that he wanted to spend more time with his family. "Being a football coach, you've got to be all in," Durbin said. "If it gets to that point where you're conflicted on whether or not you can commit the time that it takes to be successful or if you want to spend some more time with family, then it's time to walk away. It's time that someone else gets the chance to lead the program. I'm very at peace with the decision." The Rangers went 12-9 during Durbin's first two seasons, opening at 5-5 and going 2-4 in the final year of the West Shore Conference. North Ridgeville had its most successful season under Durbin in 2015, when it went 7-4 with a 6-3 record in the Southwestern Conference. The Rangers lost 35-0 to Perrysburg in the Division II, Region 4 quarterfinals that year — the program's first playoff appearance since 2009 and second in program history. North Ridgeville's only other postseason appearance under Durbin came this year, a 38-0 loss to St. Francis de Sales in the Region 6 opening round. "That wasn't easy," Durbin said of the 2015 playoff year. "We played a great schedule and Demario (McCall) was injured for a lot of those games. Missing a special talent like that and still being able to win games and get into the playoffs is obviously something I'm proud of." Durban coached two All-Ohioans. McCall was a first-team honoree in 2014 and now plays for Ohio State. Defensive lineman Tyler Sycz was a second-team honoree in 2015. McCall ran for 2,302 yards and 25 touchdowns in 2014, finishing his career with 4,519 rushing yards and 69 touchdowns, including scores of 94 and 90 yards. Pittsburgh Panthers linebacker Cam Bright played his junior season under Durbin before moving to Alabama for his senior year in 2016. He rushed for 665 yards and 11 touchdowns with the Rangers. And Elon linebacker Jamir Malone set program records with 268 career tackles and 52 tackles for a loss with the Rangers from 2014-17. "I'm very proud of the young men that we graduated from our program," Durbin said. "I said from Day One that football teaches lessons of life. I'm proud of the kids that have gone on to play college football as well as the kids who have graduated from the program and are now majoring in engineering or became a doctor. Having a positive impact on their lives is something I'm very proud of." While Durbin won't be leading North Ridgeville going forward, he said he intends to coach again sometime in the future. He also teaches physics at the school and will remain in that position. "The toughest part is walking away from the kids who are currently in the program," Durbin said. "We've got some great kids and I hope that I can continue to be an influence on their lives even though I'm not their head coach in title anymore." Contact Chris Sweeney at 329-7135 or ctsports@chroniclet.com and follow him @CSweeneyCT on Twitter.