Can luck strike twice?
Four weeks into last season, the Duke football team came into its game with Virginia winless and after a humiliating loss.
Unexpectedly, the Blue Devils defeated the Cavaliers, winning a 24-17 overtime thriller in Charlottesville that signaled a significant departure from Duke's lackluster performances earlier in the season.
This year's installment hopes that a similar turn-around will occur Saturday, as Duke (0-2) hosts the Wahoos (1-1) in Wallace Wade Stadium at 6 p.m.
"We're a little bit more fired up, because we know the situation we were in coming into this game [last year] and we're basically in the same situation this year," Duke quarterback Spencer Romine said. "We've got a good shot to beat them and hopefully we can do it."
So what does Duke need to do to finally notch a victory?
To Romine, the formula for success is quite simple.
"It's like a big puzzle right now," Romine said. "We've got the borders outlined, now we just have to fill in the other pieces."
Needless to say, though, the missing pieces are numerous. One aspect that Duke must improve is its execution when scoring opportunities arise. Despite a plethora of scoring chances, Duke's anemic offense has only mustered five points in two games, 19 less than they posted in one game against the Cavaliers last year.
"We've got to make major improvements everywhere right now," coach Carl Franks said. "We've got to make
"We've got to find somebody who can run a deep route and catch the ball. I haven't seen anybody do that yet. Hopefully, we can find somebody."
While Franks is searching for a receiver to make some big receptions, he will also be looking for a stronger performance from his defensive unit, which has given up 38 points in both of its games this season. In particular, the Blue Devils hope to minimize the number of large gains that their opponents have benefited from. This will be a large task to undertake against a high-octane Virginia offense led by quarterback Dan Ellis and running back Antwoine Womack, both of whom return from last year's squad. Ellis has thrown for 516 yards in two games, while Womack has successfully compensated for the loss of star running back Thomas Jones to graduation by averaging 92.5 yards per game and scoring four touchdowns.
"Antwoine Womack is solid and Dan Ellis is solid, so you can't really prepare for one or the other," Duke linebacker Todd DeLamielleure said. "If one thing isn't working, then they're good at the other thing."
A key focal point will be limiting the number of sizeable gains that Virginia's potent offense makes, a facet of the game that plagued
"I thought we improved a lot play by play against Northwestern, but we still gave up some huge plays," DeLamielleure said. "We've got to cut that out."
Despite all of the problems that need remedying, Duke's players insist that they have been making strides in practice that will eventually translate into success during their games.
In addition, they have kept a positive attitude in their workouts, especially in preparation for their game against the Cavaliers.
"We're upbeat because we realize how much we're going to improve week by week," DeLamielleure said. "If you're a competitor, you're going to be upset when you lose, but you [have to] bounce back."
From an individual standpoint, one player who hopes to bounce back is Romine, who suffered a concussion at the hands of Northwestern's defense last weekend. After taking two days off to recuperate, the senior from Cullman, Ala. will once again be thrown into a difficult situation. Tomorrow, he will face a stingy Virginia defense anchored by linebacker Byron Thweatt, who has recorded 27 tackles in his first two games.
Romine insists, though, that this does not bother him and that he plans on fighting the Cavaliers from beginning to end, without worrying about whether his injury-prone body will take another hard shot.
"I'm looking to play the whole game," Romine said. "I'm just going to go in with no worries-that's part of football."
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