Sometimes almost isn't enough.
Coming off a bye week in a season that has seen too many missed opportunities for a resurrection from the depths of the ACC, the Duke football team travels to Atlanta Saturday to face a Georgia Tech squad that is on the other end of in-between, having won the nail-biters the Blue Devils have lost and as a result looking at bowl possibilities coming down the season's home stretch.
Meanwhile, Duke simply aspires to take its first conference victory in three years.
"We need to one or two of these last games," Duke head coach Carl Franks said. "We'd like to win them both, but we need a win to carry us with a little more momentum into the off-season. I think we'll feel better about ourselves. It'll show how much improvement we've made, and it'll help us keep try to make more improvement in the off-season."
The Blue Devils (2-8, 0-6 in the ACC) at least have their conference-best run defense to feel better about heading into the 1 p.m. showdown at what is expected to be a soggy Bobby Dodd Stadium. The Yellow Jackets (6-4, 3-4 in the ACC) rank second with 119.6 rushing yards allowed behind Duke's 118.4, so Saturday is sure to feature a battle in the trenches.
With a 70-percent chance of rain predicted, Duke might have the same type of advantage it saw in the season opener when Alex Wade pounded East Carolina into the mud to snap the Blue Devils' frighteningly long losing streak. Franks also said he would consider spreading out the offense to create more running room, a scheme made possible after running back Chris Douglas took the bye week to heal.
The Rambling Wreck, meanwhile, are still aching, with injuries to starting tackles Nat Dorsey and Jeremy Phillips only further hurting their offense's chances as Tech prepares to faceoff against a familiar face. Duke defensive coordinator Ted Roof returns to Atlanta to face his former team, having instilled the system he used with the Yellow Jackets to make stars this season out of ACC sack leader Shawn Johnson and stalwart linebacker Ryan Fowler.
"The first thing that they're doing is stopping the run," Tech coach Chan Gailey said. "Anytime you can stop the run-and they're leading the conference in rushing defense-you're going to allow yourself to be in the ballgame. By stopping the run, you make the other team become one-dimensional, and all of a sudden you can knock a pass down here and stop a drive there and stay in the game."
If that's enough to help a Duke pass defense that Franks acknowledged he was worried about, the Blue Devils could keep the ball out of the air on both sides and avoid a fate similar to the last time out, when Clemson quarterback Charlie Whitehurst put together a game-winning drive to outplay Adam Smith and his three interceptions.
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