Duke football is still trying to get its first win of the season. This week it is matching up against Syracuse.
Duke Offense
Chase Brice played well last week, and he’ll have to keep it up if Duke is going to win this season. For the offense to perform well, it starts with him. Brice must prove he can be a leader for this team and lead his team to victory, or Duke will have to find someone else next year. Mataeo Durant and Deon Jackson both played well. A couple of weeks ago, I said Duke should give Durant more carries. Duke has increased Durant’s carries since then, and it seems to have paid off.
Duke Defense
This defense showed up again this past week forcing three turnovers and getting two sacks. The one thing it must focus on is its running defense. The Blue Devils allowed Khalil Herbert to run for 208 yards last week. The defense has kept Duke in games and have given it chances to win, but the offense can never seem to capitalize. If Duke’s defense can repeat that, then it’s done all it can do.
Syracuse Offense
The Orange will more than likely give the ball to Sean Tucker early after he ran for 112 yards on 24 carries and two touchdowns. That was my one criticism when it came to how Duke’s defense played. Syracuse may have struggled so far this year so far, but it had to open its season against two top-25 teams in North Carolina and Pittsburgh. Tommy DeVito has struggled this season, similar to Brice. He takes care of the ball, but he didn’t throw his first touchdown until this past weekend against Georgia Tech. Duke’s defense should force DeVito to beat them to apply pressure.
Syracuse Defense
The Orange defense are probably licking its chops looking at this matchup it has against Brice. Brice has struggled to take care of the ball this season. He did well last week, but he has to do it on a consistent basis. Syracuse’s defense was able to get four interceptions last week. Brice needs to continue to be smart and be patient. The offensive line also needs to give Brice time to find open receivers.
Duke will win this game. It showed improvement last week, and that game gave it something to look at in a positive way. The Blue Devils will win this game 28-24 to get their first win of the season. However, if they don’t win this game, there is one question that will remain. Where does Duke football go from here?
