College football opened this past weekend with Week 0 and while there really were no “marquee” games, it did not matter for those of us that were just dying for some college football action.
We are now into OUR game week for the Clemson Tigers, as they travel up to Durham, North Carolina on Labor Day Monday to face a Duke Blue Devil team that is not your grandfather’s Duke squad.
Here is a look at everything you will need to know about the Tiger’s Week 1 Opponent:
Duke Blue Devils
2022 Record: 9-4 overall; 5-3 in the ACC
Head Coach: Mike Elko – 2nd Season (Prior: Texas A&M Defensive Coordinator)
Coach Elko came to Durham after leading a top 20 defense for Jimbo Fisher’s Texas A&M University Aggies. He made an immediate impact for the Blue Devils, leading them to their most wins since 2014 and only the fourth time since 1941 that the program has had 9 wins or more.
Offense
Offensive Coordinator: Kevin Johns – 2nd Season at Duke
Coach Kevin Johns is also in his second season running the offense for Duke after previously leading the offense at the University of Memphis. Johns has been known to run a lot of 11-personnel, meaning 1 running back and 1 tight end and the quarterback will be in the shotgun nearly the entirety of the game.
He does utilize the RPO as well as a lot of mis-directions. Johns is going to try to confuse defenses with his shifts, and utilizes the QB run as a true weapon, especially with QB Riley Leonard leading the offense.
The offense in Johns’ first year managed 32.85 points per game. They averaged 415.7 yards per game with 231.54 coming through the air and 184.2 coming on the ground. The Blue Devils averaged 4.95 yards per run and scored an eye opening 31 touchdowns on the ground.
Here is a look at the projected starters for the Duke Blue Devils as well as some 2022 statistics:
| Quarterback | Riley Leonard | Junior | #13 | 250-392 63.8%; 2967 Yds.; 20 TDs, 6 Ints | 124 att. 812 yards, 13 TDs |
| Running Back | Jordan Waters | Graduate | #7 | 6 catches; 106 yards | 123 att. 581 yards, 8 TDs |
| Running Back | Jaquez Moore | Junior | #9 | 7 catches; 81 yards | 79 att. 513 yards, 5 TDs |
| Wide Receiver | Jordan Moore | Junior | #8 | 60 catches; 656 yards, 5 TDs | 4 att. 33 yards |
| Wide Receiver | Eli Pancol | Graduate | #6 | 23 catches; 347 yards | |
| Wide Receiver | Jalon Calhoun | RS Senior | #5 | 62 catches; 873 yards, 4 TDs | |
| Tight End | Nicky Dalmolin | Senior | #81 | 21 catches; 170 yards, 4 TDs | |
| Left Tackle | Graham Barton | Senior | #62 | ||
| Left Guard | Maurice McIntyre | Graduate | #71 | ||
| Center | Jacob Monk | Graduate | #63 | ||
| Right Guard | Justin Pickett | RS Sophomore | #77 | ||
| Right Tackle | Jake Hornibrook | Grad/Transfer (Stanford) | #73 | ||
| OTHER NOTABLES | |||||
| Running Back | Jaylen Coleman | Graduate | #22 | 6 catches; 49 Yards, 1 TD | 102 att. 491 yards, 4 TDs. |
| Wide Receiver | Sahmir Hagans | RS Sophomore | #2 | 31 catches; 400 yards, 5 TDs | |
| Wide Receiver | Jontavis Robertson | Senior | #1 | 14 catches; 191 yards, 1 TD | |
| Tight End | Cole Finney | RS Junior | #82 | 4 catches; 47 yards |
Defense
Defensive Coordinator: Tyler Santucci – 1st Season at Duke
Coach Santucci comes to Duke after leading the defense and the linebackers as the Co-Coordinator at Texas A&M. Having worked with Coach Elko previously at A&M as well as Notre Dame, Sanutcci has been thrust into being the main man for the Duke defense.
Santucci inherits a defense that returns 8 starters on a defense that finished 2022 4th in total defense, 5th in scoring defense and sixth in the 14-team league in sacks. He will, however, have to replace the top-two tacklers from a year ago. But the cupboard is not at all bare.
Santucci, based on his previous stops, wants to be multiple in his scheme as well as sending pressure and disguising looks in hopes to frustrate and confuse opposing quarterbacks.
Although not led by Santucci, the 2022 Duke defense allowed 22.1 points per game. Opponents averaged 378 yards per game, and forced 26 turnovers a season ago, and +16 turnover margin.
Here is a look at the projected starters for the Blue Devils on defense along with some stats from the 2022 season:
| Defensive End | RJ Oben | RS Senior | #94 | 20 Tackles; 4.5 Sacks; 2 FFs |
| Nose Tackle | Ja’Mion Franklin | RS Senior | #5 | 26 Tackles; 3 Sacks |
| Defensive Tackle | DeWayne Carter | RS Senior | #90 | 36 Tackles; 5.5 Sacks; 3 FFs |
| Defensive End | Vincent Anthony, Jr. | Sophomore | #19 | 28 Tackles; 0.5 Sacks |
| WILL Linebacker | Cam Dillon | Graduate | #35 | 61 Tackles; 3 Sacks; 2 FF |
| MIKE Linebacker | Dorian Mausi | Senior | #8 | 44 Tackles |
| Cornerback | Joshua Pickett | Junior | #26 | 41 Tackles; 1 Sack |
| Cornerback | Chandler Rivers | Sophomore | #0 | 52 Tackles; 0.5 Sacks; Int |
| Nickleback | Brandon Johnson | Junior | #3 | 55 Tackles; 5.5 Sacks; 2 Int; 2 FF |
| Strong Safety | Jaylen Stinson | Senior | #2 | 74 Tackles; Sack; 2 Ints |
| Free Safety | Terry Moore | Sophomore | #23 | 2 Tackles |
Special Teams
Special Teams Coordinator: Patrick Dougherty – 2nd Season
Patrick Dougherty is the Assistant Coach, Tight Ends Coach and Special Teams Coordinator. He led the Blue Devils to 1st in the country in 2022 in punt returns and also ranked in the top 25 in kickoff returns. He also has some capable legs at kicker and punter to really make it difficult for the Tigers to exploit.
Here is a list of the specialists for the Blue Devils along with some notable 2022 statistics:
| Punter | Porter Wilson | Graduate | #98 | 43.1 yd avg |
| Kicker | Todd Pelino | Sophomore | #29 | 8-9; long of 48 yards |
| Punt Returner | Jalon Calhoun | RS Senior | #5 | 12.6 yd avg. long of 43 |
| Punt Returner | Sahmir Hagans | RS Sophomore | #2 | 36.5 yd avg. long of 81, TD |
| Kick Returner | Jaylen Stinson | Senior | #2 | 25.3 yd avg. |
Summary
This is a good Duke Football team, led by a hungry head coach and athletes all over the field. This will be a huge test at the start of the season for the Tigers. Duke brings an attacking style of both offense and defense relying on really talented players. Led offensively by QB Riley Leonard and defensively by SS Jaylen Stinson, this team is full of playmakers which will test the Tigers early and often.
Gone are the days that Duke was a walk-over victory. This team is primed to make a run at the ACC Championship and may just be the third best team in the conference top to bottom.
