Offense: A
Pass: Redshirt senior quarterback Anthony Boone connected with junior wide receiver Max McCaffrey on seven occasions Saturday afternoon, including a 36-yard bullet that McCaffrey ran in for a touchdown. Boone, who continues to look comfortable in the pocket, completed his third game without an interception. Duke’s 40-percent third-down conversion rate stands out as an area of improvement, but overall it was a solid performance from the Blue Devil passing attack despite some missed throws downfield.
Rush: True freshman running back Shaun Wilson proved to be Duke’s standout performer of the night. Rushing for a school-record 245 yards on just 12 carries, the Charlotte native captivated onlookers with four huge runs, three of which went for long touchdowns that broke the game open. Wilson is making a name for himself early considering this was just the third game of his career.
X’s and O’s: The Kansas game marks the second in a row to feature a wide receiver other than All-ACC wideout Jamison Crowder as Boone’s favorite target, suggesting that the Blue Devils are diversifying their offensive weapons. As new players like McCaffrey and Wilson emerge as scoring options, Duke will be even tougher to stop.
Defense: A+
Pass: Duke recorded their first forced turnovers of the 2014 season Saturday. Safeties DeVon Edwards and Evrett Edwards both intercepted errant Jayhawk passes, resulting in drives that ended in Blue Devil field goals. Duke’s secondary frustrated Kansas quarterback Montell Cozart, limiting the sophomore to just 89 yards passing for the game. Duke defenders Jeremy Cash, Jamal Bruce and Jonathan Jones led the Blue Devils in wreaking havoc in the Jayhawk backfield and all three players recorded sacks.
Rush: Duke’s fourth down defense continues to be strength for the team, as the Blue Devils shut Kansas out on its two fourth down attempts. Similarly, the Duke defense held strong on third and short, limiting the Jayhawks to a 4-of-17 third-down conversion rate. Both stats underscore the fact that the Blue Devils forced Kansas to punt six times and never allowed a touchdown. The Jayhawks ended the game with more than 200 yards on the ground, but most of those yards came in garbage time against Duke reserves.
X’s and O’s: Duke’s secondary proved to be the key to the team’s defensive success, as is usually the case in defensive coordinator Jim Knowles' 4-2-5 scheme. An All-ACC performer, Cash set the tone for his teammates, flying all over the field and racking up 12 tackles despite not playing many snaps near the end of the game.
Young linebackers Chris Holmes and Zavier Carmichael looked even more comfortable as they get used to increased repetitions, so the defense earns an A+ this week for a solid performance that limited Kansas to a single field goal.
Special Teams: A-
Duke continues to struggle at times with kickoff return defense, as the Blue Devils allowed JaCorey Shepherd to bring a kickoff back near the 40 yard line to set Kansas up with good field position. Will Monday also had two uncharacteristically bad punts, but for the most part Duke's special teams with new kickoff specialist Jack Willoughby was pretty solid.
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