Duke opens the 2016 campaign Saturday at 6 p.m. against N.C. Central, a team the Blue Devils have outscored 100-0 in their last two meetings combined. Duke is expected to dispatch the Eagles easily again this year, but the game will provide valuable experience for its young quarterback. Every week throughout the football season, we’ll break down a player on each team who could be the difference-maker in the upcoming contest.
Duke: quarterback Daniel Jones
Even after redshirt senior Thomas Sirk ruptured his left Achilles' tendon in February, there was optimism among those in the program that he would be able to return for a significant portion of the 2016 campaign and maybe even play in this weekend’s season opener.
But now, the Blue Devils will have to turn to Jones after the 6-foot-4 Sirk re-injured the same Achilles last week.
Jones did not see any game action in his first season at Duke, but the redshirt freshman from Charlotte, N.C., emerged the victor from a competition with fellow quarterbacks Parker Boehme and Quentin Harris. At 6-foot-5, Jones will be able to see clearly over the Blue Devil offensive line—something that Sirk did well last season.
But unlike his predecessor, Jones did not appear to be much of a threat on the ground during the Blue Devils' only scrimmage open to the media despite notching 10 rushing touchdowns during his senior season of high school at Charlotte Latin. Instead, he will be a more prototypical pocket passer—a type of player that Duke head coach David Cutcliffe hasn’t had under center since the 2012 season with Sean Renfree.
Given Jones’ inexperience as a collegiate-level starter, it will certainly not be a one-man show. Duke's offense will revolve around its quarterback, but it will also feature a two-headed monster in the backfield with veteran running backs Jela Duncan and Shaun Wilson. Throw in sophomore receiver T.J. Rahming—who has sung the praises of Jones throughout the spring and summer—and Duke has the pieces to help Jones succeed from the get-go.
N.C. Central: running back Dorrel McClain
In last year’s edition of the Bull City Gridiron Classic, the Eagle running back was one of only two skill-position players to tally more than 30 yards rushing and receiving for N.C. Central. And as a redshirt freshman in 2015, he started the last seven of his team’s 11 contests—earning him Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Rookie of the Year honors as well as a spot on the conference’s first team. The 5-foot-10 halfback averaged 5.6 yards per carry in his first season at N.C. Central and found the end zone eight times on the ground.
With McClain—who finished with 108 all-purpose yards per game—likely to dominate the Eagles’ offensive attack Saturday evening, it will be up to the ACC’s seventh-ranked rushing defense from 2015 to step up and slow the 190-pound running back down. N.C. Central finished with only 54 yards total on the ground in last season’s home opener for the Blue Devils, but expect the Eagles to return to Wallace Wade Stadium more prepared after their best season ever in the MEAC—when they finished tied atop the conference standings.
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Twitter: @mpgladstone13
A junior from just outside Philadelphia, Mitchell is probably reminding you how the Eagles won the Super Bowl this year and that the Phillies are definitely on the rebound. Outside of The Chronicle, he majors in Economics, minors in Statistics and is working toward the PJMS certificate, in addition to playing trombone in the Duke University Marching Band. And if you're getting him a sandwich with beef and cheese outside the state of Pennsylvania, you best not call it a "Philly cheesesteak."