When the Duke Blue Devils defeated N.C. State 49-28 this past Saturday they could be heard celebrating in the locker room as Coach David Cutcliffe answered questions for the media.  There is so much to talk about that I’ve decided to break it down in different areas -

Thaddeus Lewis – Lewis threw for 457 yards completing an amazing 40 of 50 of his attempts.  Add five touchdowns via the air and one rushing touchdown and Lewis had the game of his life.  That prompted Coach Cutcliffe to say, “I’m not sure if I have ever been around a better quarterback performance.  I’m pretty sure, I haven’t.”  Considering he mentored both Eli and Peyton Manning, those are big words, but Thad’s numbers cannot be denied.  His performance had already notched him the Walter Camp National Offensive Player of the Week and the ACC back of the week.  Lewis was not able to participate a lot in pre season drills due to injury and that caused him timing problems in his first three games, but it’s fair to say that he is back in rhythm.

Punch, counter punch, knockout - The Blue Devils and Wolfpack came out firing on all cylinders offensively.  Duke started the game by going 11 plays for 70 yards where Lewis hit Brett Huffman for a touch down pass.  NCSU answered with a drive of their own and Russell Wilson went in from ten yards out.

Duke followed that by going 79 yards and Lewis followed Wilson’s exploits with a rushing touchdown of his own.  Before you could blink Wilson tossed a 63 yard score to tie the game at 14 apiece.

Duke finished off another drive where Lewis threw his second touchdown of the day to Re’Quan Boyette but then the Pack answered with a drive of their own scoring via the rush to tie the game again at 21-21.  It seemed as if Russell Wilson could not be stopped, but then again, neither could Duke.  The Devils turned the ball over via a Boyettte fumble at the six yard line just before the half and one had to wonder if Duke could bounce back.

Defensive adjustments suddenly kept NCSU at bay-   Just before the first half had ended, Duke had stopped the Pack during it’s last two drives and that momentum carried over into the second half where they halted Wilson and company for a third consecutive time after the opening kick off.   The Pack had a text book punt which backed the Devils up to their three yard line, but who would have thought Duke would grind through the defense once again?

The 97 yard drive for a touchdown - Thaddeus Lewis led the Blue Devils on a 9 play 97 yard drive where he threw another touchdown to TE Danny Parker.  This is the kind of drive Duke fans have only dreamed of in the past several years and this seemed to be a back breaker statement drive …

… but T.J. Graham said not so fast! – Graham returned the kickoff 93 yard to even the game at 28-28 and one had to wonder if NCSU would somehow, some way find a way to win the game.

Thad wasn’t finished – In the past, Duke would have wilted but Lewis once again took the Devils on a long 72 yard drive hitting Austin Kelly for a score and giving Duke a 35-28 lead.

Back to the defense – Then the Devils tightened up on defense.  After allowing Wilson to start the game 8 for 8, the aforementioned adjustments held N.C. State to just over 70 yards of offense, but it was the …

… special teams helped seal the deal – Duke recovered a fumble after a Kevin Jones punt and Lewis threw his fifth touchdown pass of the day to freshman Conner Vernon and at 42-28 and eleven minuted left the writing was on the wall.  However, the special teams were not finished and another recovered fumble after a punt gave Duke a 49-28 edge and that would be the final score.

In short … Duke answered every blow with one of their own against N.C. State and that eventually led to a knockout thanks to defensive adjustments.  Quite simply, Duke was resilient and no matter what happened they reached deep and never lost sight of their goal and came out with a huge win for the fans and the program.

Devils rushed to celebrate with their fans – With the game in hand the Duke bench and staff were all smiles and the few Pack fans left were wearing some long faces.   Duke had a solid contingent make the trip and Cutcliffe allowed his players to run over and celebrate with them at games end.  He later said the fans were a big part of the win and that they could be heard throughout the game during his press conference.

A signature win for Duke - During the post game press conference I asked Cutlciffe if this was a signature win and he conceded that it was.  Cutlciffe said a game ball would go in his office that would sit beside the James Madison and Virginia game balls.  The James Madison ball is important for it launched the Cutcliffe era with a victory.  The Virginia game ball is present for it was the Blue Devils first ACC win in, well, a long time.  The N.C. State ball represents an ACC road win, which snapped another woeful streak for Duke Football.  The last time Duke won in Raleigh, no current Duke Football player was born.

Ten players caught passes – Guess what?  The Duke receivers are atop the league in many statistical areas and they spread the wealth to many.  In fact, true freshman Conner Vernon is at the top of every receiving statistical category in the ACC.

Duke will now learn how to deal with success – During yesterdays media call in, Cutcliffe was clear in saying that the celebration would soon end for Duke would not and could not take any opponent lightly.  After playing Virginia Tech toe to toe and defeating the Pack, Duke (1-1 in the ACC and 3-3 overall) will have an off week to prepare for a home game with Maryland.

Duke is getting healthy - Duke expects to see starting linebacker Abraham Kromah return by the Maryland game and several other team injuries are expected to heal during the off week.

In State Recruiting - The win over an in state rival is already paying dividends in North Carolina.  The Duke staff has heard from several potential prospects, but with just three scholarships left, the focus is mainly on the class of 2011.

For interviews with Thad Lewis and David Cutcliffe – Please visit my web site – bluedevilnation.net for audio interviews from players and more Duke Football coverage.

In closing – Peyton Manning phoned Coach Cutcliffe after the game to congratulate him on the victory.  Manning watched the entire game on ESPNU and talks with the Cut on a regular basis.

The Duke Blue Devils stood toe to toe with the number five team in the country in a close 34-26 loss to Virginia Tech this past Saturday.  The Dukies rolled up 397 yards of offense on one of the ACC’s best defensive units, 359 of said yards were through the air.

After the game, Coach Cutcliffe was pleased with the effort where Duke was competitive for four quarters and he hopes to build on that this coming week in a nationally televised contest with N.C. State.  Despite the effort Cutcliffe made it clear that his team needed to turn the corner stating, “We don’t have moral victories.  I told our team that.  We are going to get better from this.  We have to get better from this.”

Duke got a boost from the return of defensive lineman Vince Oghobasse who had missed the two previous games.  Duke held the Hokies rushing game in check for three quarters, but in the fourth Tech got untracked and a 19 yard run up the gut sealed the win for the visitors.

This was a game where Thaddeus Lewis put an end to any perceived quarterback controversy as well.  Lewis threw for 359 yards and two scores.  The senior single caller has been hampered by pre season injuries and missed practices had him a bit rusty in the first three games.

Another bright spot was the emergence of Will Snyderwine who connected on 4 of 4 field goals and took over the extra point duties.  If he remains consistent, Duke will have solved an on going problem in the past five years.

During yesterdays media call in show, Cutcliffe told the Blue Devil Nation that he knew his team had to play consistently and that the tone of an earlier meeting that day conveyed that message to his team.

Cutcliffe also recognized the challenge in containing another top flight quarterback in NCSU’s Russel Wilson in his teams next contest.  After all, Tyrod Taylor has a career game against Duke where he connected on 17 of 22 passes for 327 yards.

If the Devils can find a way to slow Wilson, they have a chance for a victory, but that is easier said than done for Duke has not had consistent quarterback pressure this season.

It’ll be a while yet before Duke has the personnel in place to do what Cutcliffe hopes to do, but it is clear that they are moving in the right direction and that one day the young players forced into action will benefit from the experience.

Sidebar - For post game audio comments from Vince Oghobasse and Austin Kelly check out bluedevilnation.net.  Duke burned a redshirt on freshman running back Desmond Scott who saw action against Tech.  Scott was by far the most effective runner in the game averaging 4.9 yards per carry.  Scott is averaging 67 yards per game rushing, a team high.  It’s worth noting that another freshman Conner Vernon caught 4 passes for 128 yards.

Duke hopes to take last weeks momentum into Saturday when they face the defending ACC Champions Virginia Tech.  As it turns out, N.C. Central was just what the football Gods ordered for Duke to get it’s ground game un-tracked.  Blue Devil fans got a look at the future at running back as two freshman, Desmond Scott and Patrick Kuruwune gained 100 and 94 yards respectively.  True, it was a lower division club they rolled through, but it was still good preparation for coming ACC play.  Youngsters are also starring at the wide out spots, where sophomore Donovan Varner has four touchdown catches on the young season.  Johnny Williams, another soph, leads the team in total yards and true freshman Conner Vernon is drawing rave reviews from Coach Cutcliffe and having an immediate impact.  So, the future for Duke at skilled positions looks very bright.  In fact, a quick look at the roster shows that the Blue Devils will return all their running backs save senior Re’quan Boyette and the entire group of receivers in 2010 and beyond.  Back to the Tech game, Duke faces a tall order on Saturday.  Many fans and media point to the Dukies playing Tech close last season where they were down 7-3 and driving before and interception for a touchdown made the final 14-3.  However, most seem to forget that the Devils installed a special offense especially for that game and a look back at the box score shows six first downs.  Duke will go head to head with the Hokies this time, but in this weeks press conference, Cutcliffe himself mentioned that they had better matchups last season which might be considered code for we do not match up as well this go round.  The main reason for this statement is inconsistent play along the offensive front where Duke is still looking for a couple of kids to step up and take the starting job.  That said, the Hokies blitz could cause Duke a ton of trouble.  However, Duke is excited about their ACC opener and this game should provide a good measuring stick to see where they stand going into October and November play.  For more on the game, check out the latest at bluedevilnation.net.

Sidebar- Basketball is about to begin and the Devils will open the season up with Countdown to Craziness on Friday October 16th at 7:30.  Duke named Jon Scheyer and Lance Thomas captains for the upcoming season.  Duke welcomes newcomers Andre Dawkins, Mason Plumlee and Ryan Kelly,  More to come on hoops happenings!

When Coach Cutcliffe sent in backup QB Sean Renfree, the world got a taste of what the Duke offense was capable of. The team was in need of a spark and Coach Cut, who had already promised  that Renfree would get action, sent him in where he connected on his first pass (ever) for a touchdown.

On a subsequent drive Renfree tossed a 31 yard touchdown to Donovan Varner to give Duke a 21-13 lead.

Although they were outgained in this game 385 yards to 236, Duke was able to pull out a touch win at Army.

Unfortunately for the Devils old habits have plagued this team, growing pains are a plenty. In the game against Richmond Duke did not establish a running game whatsoever, in fact Duke rushed for only 19 yards in the opener. That coupled with special teams miscues and mistakes (2 field goal misses, and a blocked punt). Duke is going to have to improve by leaps and bounds if they do not want to be embarrassed by Kansas (22).

Duke will need to improve in the area of third down conversions for sure if they are to stay in a game with the powerful Jayhawks. Going 2-10 against Army and 3-12 against Army will not get it done. Duke also needs to establish a serviceable running game or risk being predictable and allowing the Jayhawks to tee off on the quarterback position.

If you’ve read much of what the ACC media has said about Duke this past week, some would have you believe that a quarterback controversy is brewing at Duke.  I suppose you could spin it that way, but make no mistake Thaddeus Lewis is still the starter.

Lewis is still on track to set several Duke passing records and move up in the ACC record book.  Lewis, a four year starter in Durham, struggled in Duke’s 35-19 win over Army and was replaced by redshirt freshman Sean Renfree.  Lewis has been nursing injuries in the pre season which kept him from getting a lot of reps.  In short, he is working back into the timing and speed of a game.

Renfree on the other hand, had a story book debut against Army missing on a single pass and going 6 of 7 for the game.  In his first collegiate play, Renfree faked, rolled right and hit a wide open Brett Huffman who hauled in the pass and battled his way into the end zone.

Renfrees first completion put the Devils up 14-10 giving them a shot in the arm for it was the first time they led a team this season.  Army would answer with a field goal, but Renfree didn’t look like this was his first rodeo on the next possession.

Unusually calm, cool and collected, Renfree remained in the pocket as it was collapsing throwing a perfect touch pass to Donovan Varner for another score giving Duke a 21-13 lead late in the game.

During this weeks media call in show and Tuesday’s media gathering at Duke, Coach David Cutliffe quickly put a QB controversy to rest saying Lewis would start against Kansas.  But he also said Renfree would play and that if he could play the Richmond game over again, he would have seen action there as well.

Starting Lewis is a no brainer in that why would you throw a blooming newcomer to the wolves of the Big 12 on the road?  Also, you can bet that Lewis will step it up now that he realizes Duke has a guy waiting in the wings who is prepared to play.

Look for Duke to play both QB’s all season long but make no mistake ACC and Duke fans saw the future in Sean Renfree this past Saturday.  Renfree is a true pro style, drop back, stay in the pocket as long as possible passer, the kind of kid Cutcliffe has had success with in the past, i.e. the Manning’s.

It simply makes more sense to bring Renfree off the bench instead of Lewis.  Having a veteran like Lewis in place also helps Renfree in that Duke can bring him along at a pace they deem fit.

Don’t lool now folks, but Duke may well have the best quarterback situation in the ACC with a perfect balance of young and old  manning the position.

For interviews with with Duke football players on a weekly basis and more on the program, visit my site, bluedevilnation.net

Mark Watson

Duke hopes to avenge an opening day loss to Richmond when they take the field against Army this Saturday.  In order to do that, Duke must establish a more consistent rushing game in that they rank 109th in the nation after a paltry 19 yard effort in their 24-16 opening day  loss to Richmond.

To do so, Duke will have to get more consistent play from a very young offensive front that lacks experience.  Only two of the starters have played significant minutes coming into the season and one freshman starts.

If the rushing game can improve, the Duke offense could be formidable, for senior quarterback Thaddeus Lewis threw for 350 yards and a pair of touchdowns.  The 350 yards was the fourth highest total in college football in week one.

One of Lewis’s key targets this past Saturday was Johnny Williams, a sophomore wideout that is sure to be a go-guy all season long.  Williams pulled in his first collegiate touchdown against Richmond on 7 catches for 115 yards.

There were other bright spots on offense, namely true freshman Conner Vernon who hauled in 4 passes for 48 total yards in his debut.  Another freshman, Tyree Watkins added 3 catches for 31 yards, meaning the newcomers averaged just over 11 yards per catch.

The Duke defense allowed just 282 yards to a veteran Richmond team now ranked number one in the country in the FCS poll.  While that looks good on the surface, the defense created no turnovers.

The real killer for Duke on opening day was their lack of execution in special teams play.  Richmond blocked a punt recovering it for a touch down just minutes into the game.  Add that to two Nick Maggio missed field goals and you have a 12 point swing.

Duke coach David Cutcliffe made it clear after the game on Saturday that he was disappointed in the effort and execution.  The second year coach knows that these are the kinds of games his team needs to win and had just a few plays gone right on Saturday Duke would head to Army 1-0.  You can hear Coach Cut’s audio comments at bluedevilnation.net.

This weekends opponent, the Army Cadets, opened their season with a win over a favored Eastern Michigan team on the road and they appear to be rejuvenated by new head coach Rick Ellerson.  The Blue Devils have been watching film of his former team, Cal-Poly, in an effort to be ready.

Coming into the season Duke figured to be the favorite in West Point, but Army is a 2.5 point choice mid week.  This will also be the Devils first game on artificial turf this season.   For the record, they play on turf at Kansas the following week, making it the only two times off grass this season.

I expect that the Blue Devils will bounce back this week and that they’ll go on the road and win at Army but only if they come more prepared to play.