Countdown to Kickoff Day 16: #35 Duke Blue Devils

Mike Elko took over a nine loss football program and turned that into a nine win football program in one calendar year, which warranted a nine year extension for Elko and a buzz around Durham that doesn’t involve basketball for the first time since *fill in any date you want here*.

The Blue Devils have not lost a football game by more than one possession since November of 2021, and are returning 17 of their starters from a team that went 9-4 last season. This is one of the more experienced teams in the nation and I expect Elko and his staff to take full advantage of that.

That being said, Duke has a terribly difficult schedule when it comes to ACC football. They start their season off at home versus a top ten Clemson team, then later on in the season play #13 Notre Dame, NC State, @ #3 Florida State, @ Louisville, @ #21 UNC, and wrap their season up against Pittsburgh. If there were an ACC gauntlet, Duke’s schedule would be it. This team is talented to compete against every single one of those teams, but to think they will win most of those would be wishful thinking.

Elko and his team will be looking at these matchups as opportunities to prove people like me wrong though, so do not count them out just by looking at their schedule. The list of talent on this team is long and their opponents will not be too enthused about lining up against them. Riley Leonard is a dual threat QB that can carve up any secondary. Eli Pancolm, Jalon Calhoun and Jordan Moore will have zero trouble getting separation at wideout. The backfield consists of two seniors Jaylen Coleman and Jordan Waters, who combined for over 1,000 yards on the ground last year, to go along with Leonard’s 699 yards. Their offensive line is one of the best in the ACC and has NFL talent.

Duke’s defense is no joke either. Showing massive improvement from 2021, shaving 17.5 points off their PPG, and nearly 150 yards off their average Yards/Game when Elko and his defensive mind took over in 2022. They will have to replace some starters, but I expect more of the same this year.

How Many Games will Duke Win in 2023

• 8 or more
• 7 or less

Prediction: A lot of talent and experience on this team, but is the schedule too much for a magical season? Maybe. 8-4