Blue Devils enter ACC play on a roll
Duke has a home assignment with a big-game feel with Virginia Tech arriving for Saturday night’s showdown.
It’s Duke holding a national ranking at No. 22 following Virginia Tech’s stunning loss at Old Dominion. The Blue Devils can’t afford to pay much attention to that outcome because they know they’ll have their hands full this time.
“You have to play a complete game in the ACC,” linebacker Joe Giles-Harris said. “I think we’re up to the challenge.”
Duke is 4-0 for the second year in a row, but last season’s strong start was followed with six consecutive losses.
That’s enough to keep the Blue Devils grounded and motivated. They said they’ll maintain the approach that has served this well the past few weeks.
“We have to get our job done,” running back Brittain Brown said. “It isn’t anything different. We come in with the same mentality every game.”
Duke coach David Cutcliffe said that by entering ACC competition that it’s clear the stakes have risen. He said he likes that, but he also knows that makes for some large tasks ahead.
With Virginia Tech, there will be upgrades on the other side of the field.
“Their team speed challenges us in different ways than we’ve been challenged so far,” Cutcliffe said.
Duke was able to rest some players in last week’s home romp past North Carolina Central, so that worked out well. Plus, there’s a bit of a mystery about the availability of some players.
Receiver Aaron Young hasn’t played since a huge opening game against Army, but he has been back on the practice field. Quarterback Daniel Jones underwent surgery after suffering a broken collarbone in the Northwestern game.
Jones has been at practice, but it’s unclear if he’ll be given the go-ahead to play this week. With an open date on the first weekend of October, the Blue Devils might be inclined to hold him out anyway to ensure he’s fully healthy for the final portion of the season.
Quentin Harris has been a solid replacement at quarterback in his first two career starts. The redshirt junior has thrown six touchdown passes and ran for a touchdown.
Duke is aiming for its first 5-0 record since the 1994 season. The Blue Devils have won seven games in a row dating to the end of last season — that’s the third-longest winning streak among Power 5 teams behind Ohio State and Penn State.