DURHAM, N.C. – The Duke Blue Devils will take to the field at Wallace Wade Stadium for Homecoming against the Virginia Cavaliers on Saturday, following a key road win over the then-No. 22 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets last week.
The Blue Devils (5-1, 1-1) earned their first win over the Yellow Jackets since 1994, exiting Bobby Dodd Stadium with a 31-12 decision, while the Cavaliers (4-2, 2-0) are coming off an open week following a 24-19 win over Pittsburgh on Oct. 4.
When the two teams meet for the 66th time dating back to 1890, the Blue Devils will try to even the series riding on recent positive results against the Cavaliers that include two straight wins and victories in five out of their last six meetings.
Duke quarterback Anthony Boone continues to effectively lead the offense connecting in the air with wide receiver Jamison Crowder who is now in fourth place on the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) career reception list with 230 catches, while on the ground, running back Josh Snead is coming off a big game against the Yellow Jackets, rushing for 102 yards and scoring a touchdown.
Defensively, the Blue Devils will once again look to linebacker David Helton and safety Jeremy Cash to lead a hard-working and productive unit.
Helton is fifth in the ACC in tackles per game (9.2), while Cash, the league’s recent Defensive Back of the Week, is tied with fellow Duke defensive back DeVon Edwards for sixth place (8.7).
Virginia is led by running back Kevin Parks and the quarterback tandem of Matt Johns and Greyson Lambert on offense, while the talented safety combination of All-American Anthony Harris and freshman Quin Blanding lead on defense.
The Cavaliers’ defensive unit is ranked sixth nationally in defending against the run, fifth nationally in team quarterback sacks (3.83/game), and is 27th in total defense allowing 330.8 yards per game.
ACC Digital Network – Duke vs. Virginia preview
Cut’s quotes
Duke head coach David Cutcliffe’s comments during his weekly ACC teleconferences included talking about what he expects to see from Virginia, the difference between Cavaliers quarterbacks Johns and Lambert, Duke’s defensive line depth, and the balance in the Blue Devils’ run and passing game.
What to expect from Virginia:
“We’re playing a Virginia team that is not only playing really well right now; they’ve played really well all season long – all six ballgames – and they’re playing really well in all three phases. They are a very good football team defensively; a very good football team in the kicking game. They’re well coached in both phases. They’re extremely well coached and talented, have playmakers everywhere on the offensive side of the football, so they are a huge challenge. We’ve got to change gears a little bit going from playing an option offense into a completely different style of offense again, so we’ve worked very hard at trying to make that transition work. This is a huge challenge for us. We’re going to have to play as good as we can play in all three phases to have an opportunity to win this football game.”
The difference between Virginia quarterbacks Johns and Lambert:
“I think they’re both better runners than people might think. Lambert is just a little thicker, stronger overall, but they’ve both played well. They don’t change systematically with either one of them because they are similar, big, tall guys, and both of them are accurate. I think they’re both playing very well. They’ve had some great moments in that regard. I think one of the things that both of them do, they use their people well. They let Parks do his thing and the other backs, of course, playing three backs and all those receivers, you’ve got playmakers out there, the big tall tight ends. I think these quarterbacks have a knack of letting them make plays in the passing game. They put the ball in good places, both of them do.”
The depth of Duke’s defensive line:
“We’ve had some guys that have been making plays. Jamal Bruce had to work hard to get healed to get back. It’s continued to shift and change. I mentioned it last week – I think we’re rotating there with Michael [Ramsay] and A.J. Wolf inside. I think Keilin Rayner and Allen Jackson are continuing to close that gap to give us some form of depth. My concerns at end, if we could get Jamal [Wallace] back at full speed, we’re not to that point yet but we’ll see. We’re still early in the week. Dezmond [Johnson] is starting to get some work. We’ll see where we can get him. Now we’re just operating with Johnathan [Jones] and Jordan [DeWalt-Ondijo], Kyler [Brown] and Britton [Grier] and Michael Mann. We have a lot of seniors there, but we have a nice blend of some nice talent. We’re redshirting three defensive linemen, so there’s a positive in that regard.”
The balance between the run and passing games:
“I used to call offenses chameleons. What I meant by that is you take your personnel and you do what you think you can do best to win. We’ve had years where we’ve thrown it for 350 or more yards a game, and we’ve had years where we run it for 250 or more yards a game. I think with our personnel right now, our offensive front is experienced and talented. I think it lends itself to that, particularly when you’re playing conference games where you need to keep the football. Time of possession in the first half was huge in that game [against Georgia Tech]. It’s a little easier to do that with the run game. As we move forward, sometimes that’s going to be dictated by a matchup. ”
—
Duke Injury Report (As of Oct. 16)
PROBABLE
DE Dezmond Johnson (leg)
RB Shaquille Powell (leg)
OUT
TE Dan Beilinson (upper body)
CB Johnathan Lloyd (lower body)
OL Trip McNeill (lower body)
DT Jamal Wallace (lower body)
OUT FOR SEASON
LB Kelby Brown (leg)
TE Braxton Deaver (leg)
DE Taariq Shabazz (leg)
—