Saturday night was different this week.
Head Coach Ted Roof returned home a little less on edge-a stark contrast from his mood following Virginia Tech's thrashing of the Blue Devils Sept. 10. The players were also able to relax and take in some college football action around the country.
Most importantly, however, winning was the topic of conversation. "It was a different feeling, but it was a good feeling to have," sophomore safety Chris Davis said. The Blue Devils 40-14 win over the Virginia Military Institute was the perfect remedy after the previous Saturday's 45-0 drubbing at the hands of Virginia Tech. Although Roof admitted that some people might write the win off as less meaningful because it was against a Division I-AA opponent-one that went 0-11 a year ago-he refused to accept that argument. "You see examples all over the country of I-AA schools beating I-A schools," Roof said. "A lot of people look at that as a nowin situation."
But the Blue Devils made the most of the opportunity and followed their 35-yard offensive output against the Hokies with a respectable 351-yard performance against the Keydets. Their ground attack accounted for 235 of those yards as both Cedric Dargan and Justin Boyle found the end zone twice.
"I want our players to be proud of their effort and what they accomplished because they did what they were supposed to do," Roof said. "They came out, they played well early and won convincingly. I understand all the ramifications of the game, but at the same time I want our players to feel good because they did what they were supposed to do."
More important than the win, though, was Duke's ability to correct some of the problems that had plagued them during the Virginia Tech game. Against the Hokies, the Marcus Vickled offense connected for several big plays, including touchdown strikes of 37 and 35 yards. But the Blue Devils' starting defense held VMI in check.
"Coach Roof, he tells us to try and keep their offense on a schedule," Davis said. "Try to limit them to a certain number of yards. First down, second down, try to get them to a third-and-long. We were able to do that this past weekend."
While Duke's defense slowed its opponents' attack, its offensive line provided more time for the Blue Devil quarterbacks to execute. The Keydets recorded just one sack, and senior left guard Jim Moravchik said the line-considered one of Duke's biggest liabilities-has gelled nicely.
"It wasn't really being physically dominated," Moravchik said of the unit's play against Virginia Tech. "If you looked at particular plays, usually one guy would get beat. It was never all five guys getting just totally dominated up front."
And although the Blue Devils realize that Saturday's matchup with No. 23 Virginia will pose a more difficult challenge than VMI, the mood around practice this week will be different, many players said. "We've learned from it, but we've also put it behind us," Moravchik said of the
Virginia Tech game. "You can't let that linger around and grow and become a cancer. That game is over with we can't do anything about it now."
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