Heading into Saturday’s game against Northwestern, Duke head coach David Cutcliffe and his players had one word to describe the contest—a challenge.
After blowing past a sluggish Tulane squad and FCS crosstown foe N.C. Central, the Blue Devils are ready to face some stiffer competition this week. Their wish will be granted when Duke faces No. 23 Northwestern Saturday at 12:30 p.m. at Wallace Wade Stadium.
Cutcliffe said that this year’s Wildcats, who notched a 16-6 win against then-No. 21 Stanford in week one, could be the best Northwestern team he has ever seen.
“We have to play really well from a technique standpoint,” he said. “From a discipline standpoint, certainly we have to find a way to make some plays on both sides of the ball against a very good, top-25 football team. So [it’s] a huge challenge, and that’s what the rest of the season will be.”
Duke (2-0) and Northwestern (2-0) are known for their stellar academics, so it comes as no surprise that both are very disciplined and fundamentally sound on the gridiron. But in the two teams’ last meeting in 2008, a holding penalty wiped out a go-ahead Blue Devil touchdown with less than two minutes remaining, allowing the Wildcats to squeak by with a 24-20 victory.
Since that game, both programs have been trending in the right direction, giving each academic powerhouse a solid team on the gridiron in recent years. Northwestern head coach Pat Fitzgerald has led his team to five bowl appearances since the start of the 2008 season, while Cutcliffe has taken the Blue Devils to three straight bowl games, dating back to 2012.
The recent success will be on display Saturday, as the contest—named a “Nerd Bowl” by some—will have serious implications.
A key part of the Blue Devils’ early success has been on the defensive side of the football, especially their ability to shut down opposing teams’ rushing attacks. Duke held N.C. Central to 54 yards on the ground last week and limited Tulane to just 25 rushing yards a week earlier. Athletic and sound play from the front six of defensive coordinator Jim Knowles’ 4-2-5 defense has been a key factor in stopping the run up front, where true freshman Brandon Boyce and senior Carlos Wray have combined for two sacks and 2.5 tackles for loss so far this season.
A major focal point for the Blue Devils will be stopping running back Justin Jackson on the ground and forcing redshirt freshman Clayton Thorson—who has just two career starts under his belt—to beat the Duke defense and its experienced secondary through the air. Jackson rushed for 1,187 yards and 10 touchdowns last season as a true freshman and is already off to a strong start with 212 yards this year, averaging 4.2 yards per carry.
Linebacker Dwayne Norman said that the Blue Devil front six is built to contain a speedy back like Jackson.
“He’s really good for his size,” Norman said. “He has a really fast first step and we have a defense that is fast enough to run with him and the rest of the offense.”
On the other side of the football, a Northwestern defense that returns eight starters will provide stiff competition for a Duke offense that is currently ninth in the FBS averaging 592.5 total yards per game. Duke quarterback Thomas Sirk has had a near-flawless start to the season, showcasing his dual-threat ability in the first two games of the season by averaging 302.0 passing yards and 77.0 rushing yards.
Sirk will be up against a secondary that has only allowed 223 total yards this season and is anchored by senior defensive back Nick Vanhoose and junior Matthew Harris. Harris already has two interceptions on the season and took one back 71 yards for a touchdown last weekend against Eastern Illinois. It will be pivotal for Sirk to maintain the crisp decision-making and precise accuracy he has shown thus far against the Wildcats.
“They’re very solid in what they do and have some very talented players on the defensive side of the football,” Sirk said. “It’s going to be a challenge for our offense. We are looking forward to the competition this week. We just have to come out and do what we do and execute [at] a high level.”
The Blue Devil rushing attack will look to alleviate the pressure on Sirk and use the one-two punch of running backs Shaquille Powell and Shaun Wilson to balance the Duke offense. Wilson has been impressive so far in 2015, rushing for 134 yards and a touchdown this season and adding 120 receiving yards. The big numbers have shifted the attention to Wilson, but Powell remains the starter.
The Blue Devils will also need increased production at wide receiver and will look to junior Johnell Barnes to continue to make big plays through the air. The Lehigh Acres, Fla., native leads Duke with 13 catches for 165 yards and a touchdown. Freshman T.J. Rahming and senior Max McCaffrey have also made significant contributions to a receiving corps that lost starters Jamison Crowder and Issac Blakeney from last year’s team.
The week-by-week growth of the receivers is beginning to lead to consistency, a goal of Cutcliffe’s program and a quality that players are taking seriously heading into this weekend’s showdown with a talented top-25 opponent.
“We’ve seen consistency from our receivers,” Sirk said. “Those guys are learning a lot each game and in practice each day. We have to continue to bring those guys along and continue to grow.”
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