He didn’t have to look far for his latest hire.

On Tuesday, James Madison coach Curt Cignetti announced the addition of former Bridgewater College assistant Eddie Whitley Jr. to the Dukes’ staff.

Whitley Jr. will coach safeties for JMU after spending the last three seasons as the secondary coach and defensive passing game coordinator with BC.

“He proved himself as a young coach in his three years at Bridgewater,” Cignetti said in a statement, “and will do a great job mentoring our safeties and recruiting the state of Virginia.”

Whitley Jr. takes over for former JMU safeties coach Ryan Smith, who left last month to coach cornerbacks at Virginia Tech.

This past fall with Bridgewater, Whitley Jr. coached first-team All-Old Dominion Athletic Conference defensive back Matt Dang, second-team All-ODAC defensive back Chase Rosenthal and third-team All-ODAC defensive back Luke Barnum during the Eagles’ 10-1 campaign that resulted in an NCAA Division III tournament appearance.

“Good coaches are good coaches,” 26th-year Bridgewater coach Michael Clark said of Whitley Jr. transitioning from Division III to the FCS. “And I appreciate Coach Cignetti because it isn’t about the level you’re at. It’s about your ability. … And I’m glad he had the vision to see that. I hope it’s a great move for Eddie and JMU.”

Clark said Cignetti called him last week in regard to Whitley Jr. as a professional courtesy, and that on the phone call Clark told Cignetti, “[Whitley Jr.] is just a good football coach and good person.”

A Virginia Tech graduate, Whitley Jr., was an All-Atlantic Coast Conference second-team safety in 2011 when he racked up 78 tackles and two interceptions. Before his coaching career began, he had playing stints in the NFL from 2012 into 2015 with the Dallas Cowboys, San Francisco 49ers, Philadelphia Eagles, New Orleans Saints and Arizona Cardinals.

“I think he relates well to kids,” Clark said. “He had his cup of tea in the NFL, and I think he’s been around good coaches. And I think because of his personality and work ethic, he does a great job recruiting.

“A lot of times, people at the Division I level don’t appreciate how hard we have to recruit at this level.”

Cignetti said: “We are excited to have Eddie Whitley Jr. join our program. He was an excellent player at Virginia Tech and was exposed to various defensive schemes in his NFL stops.”

As for BC, which comes off an ODAC championship-winning season, Clark said it isn’t dissimilar from the Dukes, who won the Colonial Athletic Association and reached the FCS title game.

“We’re going to miss [Whitley Jr.] here,” Clark said. “But I have a good program because I have good players and good coaches, and much like Curt has to do at JMU, when you have a good program you’ve got to get used to replacing good players and good coaches.”