Duke football is on pace to do something no Blue Devil squad has before.
With a 12th game added to this year's schedule, Duke (0-7) has a chance to one-up three previous Blue Devil teams that finished the season with an abysmal 0-11 record.
Though I never root for my team to lose unless the top draft pick is on the line, I'm really looking forward to seeing if Duke can pull off this impressive feat.
Looking ahead in the schedule, it might not be easy for the Blue Devils to remain winless, but judging by how they've played thus far, it's definitely not out of the realm of possibility.
Next up is Vanderbilt, probably the toughest game for Duke to lose before facing off in a potentially epic battle with North Carolina to end the season. Even though they are a 3-5 squad, the Commodores knocked off then-No.16 Georgia on the road Oct. 14 and will certainly come into this Saturday's matchup as the favorites.
True, one of Vanderbilt's wins should be stricken from the record since it came over Temple-the only team in Division I-A with a longer active losing streak than the Blue Devils. But Duke hasn't beaten the Commodores since 1991 and has lost five consecutive games against them since then.
Following Vanderbilt will be another somewhat shaky opponent before Duke hits the road for two guaranteed losses at Boston College and Georgia Tech. Navy returns to Durham Nov. 4 after escaping with a 28-21 win last season and the Midshipmen will be without starting quarterback Brian Hampton.
There should not be too much reason for concern, however, as the Midshipmen have amassed a 5-2 record using one of the nation's best rushing offenses. In addition, the last time the Blue Devils faced an inexperienced quarterback at home, they got blown out, 37-0, by Virginia.
If Duke can get through those four games without getting into the win column, and North Carolina remains winless against Division I-A opponents, the stage will be set for one of the most exciting Duke-UNC football games in history.
In what can only be called the "Toilet Bowl," the Tobacco Road rivals will clash on the gridiron with last place in the ACC-possibly the nation, too-on the line.
This one will be tough for the Blue Devils to lose and make my dream of an 0-12 season come true. The Tar Heels have been almost as bad as Duke this year, losing by 17 points or more in each of their last five games and posting a 1-6 overall record, with the lone win coming in a nail-biter against Division I-AA Furman.
As we all know, however, the Blue Devils were shutout 13-0 by Division I-AA Richmond to open the season, and the Duke offense has come up empty on three occasions compared to just one shutout for lowly UNC. And if the game comes down to the wire as all Duke-North Carolina games have a habit of doing, the Blue Devils have proved this year they have a knack for not coming through in the clutch.
There was the 28-yard game-winning kick blocked at Wake Forest and last week's gut-wrencher that saw a Miami defender pick off a would-be game-winning touchdown pass from Thaddeus Lewis on the game's final play. The Tar Heels have yet to play in a close game aside from the one against Furman, but it's hard to imagine they could have less ability to win tight ones.
I might be getting ahead of myself with the possible "Toilet Bowl," but hopefully some of you will join me in rooting for the matchup, and then sucking it up and rooting for the Tar Heels so Duke can finish off its record-setting 12-loss season.
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