1. The Division Title
"My time at Tennessee was building from the ground up. But this, no offense to anybody else, this just feels special," Duke head coach David Cutcliffe said. "This is better. This is different. I know exactly where we were when we came here. I know where we were when we worked out in January 2008. I have a very vivid picture what that workout looked like and to coach the division champions today is pretty special."
starting quarterback Anthony Boone broke his collarbone
came back from a 22-0 deficit to knock off Virginia notched a 13-10 upset victory against a ranked Virginia Tech squad
"This is the reason I came to Duke, to play in big games like this," offensive guard Dave Harding said. "That’s the reason everyone else chose to go to Duke when it wasn’t the cool thing to do. We came together in a total team victory in all three phases of the game."
DeVon Edwards played the hero
“He’s a player we’ve been waiting for,” wide receiver Jamison Crowder said. “He came out of his shell. We knew he had that talent… and he helped us get the win. It’s the first time I’ve ever been part of a team where something like that happened. It was crazy."
toppled the Hurricanes
"At the beginning of the season, when we got to Greensboro, one of the reporters asked me what my goals were and I said, 'To go to the ACC Championship,'" redshirt senior cornerback Ross Cockrell said. "At the beginning of the season we were picked last.... We continued to play hard and believe in the process, and now we're in a position where we can go out there and control our destiny."
ranked for the first time since 1994
sealed the 27-25 victory
picked to finish last in the Coastal Division
"I just think people need to believe that Duke football is going to be a powerhouse," redshirt sophomore Jeremy Cash said. "Whether you want to believe it or not, we are going to run the ACC."
fell to No. 1 Florida State 45-7
"This has been one heck of a year. We're definitely going to be back here next year, I can promise you that," Boone said. "We've still got a bowl game to win, and that's still one of our big goals for this year. We went to a bowl game last year and got a taste of it, but this year we want a victory."
the Chick-fil-A Bowl
Check out the rest of The Blue Zone's top 10 stories of 2013:
1. The Division Title—Duke football shocks the world with 10-win season
2. The Phenom—Jabari Parker exceeds the hype
3. The Comeback—Duke lacrosse rallies from 2-4 start, five-goal deficit to win national championship
4. The Commitments—Building Duke's monster 2014 recruiting class on the hardwood
5. The Expansion—ACC grows to 15 teams
6. The Return, part III—Andre Dawkins makes his long-awaited return to the Blue Devils
7. The Return, part II—Coach K commits to Team USA and Duke through 2016
8. The Return, part I—Ryan Kelly goes for 36 against Miami in his first game back from injury
9. The Leg—Kevin Ware sparks Louisville to Elite Eight victory against Blue Devils
10. The Pick—Sean Renfree becomes Duke's first NFL draft selection since 2004
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.