Sports Blog

Head coach David Cutcliffe has already made noticeable changes to the Duke football program on the field.  His off-the-field work, however, is becoming equally impressive.

On Wednesday, Cutcliffe continued “Cokes with Cut”, a half-hour session in which Cutcliffe interacts with Duke students and goes over tape from the most recent game. The head coach opened by thanking all the students who came out, noting that he had observed his football players write more papers in a semester than he had in his entire career at Alabama.

Cutcliffe then urged more  student participation in athletics as a whole, and showed great awareness of his audience by using the metaphor of a resistor and a conductor — immediately, all the engineers in the room begin to simultaneously nod.

As for the actual UNC game film, Cutcliffe praised the defense and special teams for their strong efforts, especially defensive lineman Charlie Hatcher. He noted that the offense struggled, mostly because the Tar Heels switched from zone defense early in the game to man-to-man defense, beating up the Blue Devil receivers at the line of scrimmage.  Cutcliffe also lamented Duke’s inability to run the ball, showing a clip of quarterback Thaddeus Lewis scrambling and noting that it was by far the longest run of the game.  Although Duke did not get the Victory Bell this year, Cutcliffe remained upbeat and concluded by saying that soon, the Blue Devils would take control of the Tobacco Road rivalry.

As for upcoming opponent Georgia Tech,  the head coach joked that Duke planned to block a punt against the Yellow Jackets as well. Unfortunately, it might take more than that for the Blue Devils to pull the upset.

Point guard Kyrie Irving, the No. 5 recruit in the country who committed to Duke Oct. 22, apparently has many talents. The high school senior starred in St. Patrick production of Disney’s High School Musical, and he’s not shy about taking the microphone or being pictures singing with the chorus in his basketball jersey.

Hannah Storm interviewed Bob Knight, Mike Krzyzewski and Bill Parcells this morning on their time at West Point, and how the Academy shaped their coaching philosophies and their lives. It’s a longish interview, so here are some of the highlights, in case you’re in class or don’t want to sit through the full 10 minutes:

On West Point:

Krzyzewski: It’s the greatest institution in the world. During that time, I had an opportunity to not only go to the greatest institution in the world, but be coached by one of the greatest coaches ever. I got a double dose of leadership and training. To me, West Point is a school of leadership. The two great coaches with me today, two great guys, they wanted to learn about leadership and teams and what better place to learn about it than the U.S. Military Academy? They tried out what they were learning on us players [laughs]. Some of the things worked and some didn’t. But thank goodness I got a chance to see it.

Storm: So you’re saying that something Coach Knight did didn’t work? What might that have been Coach K?

Krzyzewski: Hey, I’m still not saying that…. [Still] whenever I hear his voice I get down in a defensive stance [laughs].

Knight: The thing that made Mike such a great coach was that he understood what he could and couldn’t do as a player. He was the best I ever had at that.  [Krzyzewski laughs].

And this exchange, later in the interview, is pretty priceless:

Parcells tells a story about K giving up an easy layup, Knight yelling his name twice, and Mike being smart enough to ignore him. “I think he needed to get his hearing checked,” Parcells says.

Krzyzewski counters with, “Well, he used to call me different names. I wasn’t accustomed to hearing my last name.”

You probably didn’t know that college basketball season started tonight, but it did.

Seriously. Right now, on my television, UNC is playing Florida International. The Heels are wearing 1957 throwbacks with red waistbands. Jay Jason Williams is announcing.

While the start of college basketball season basically counts as a holiday in my apartment (cf. I’m watching UNC play FIU), the college basketball powers-that-be (and their television partners) appear not to care. Tonight’s triple-header (UNC-FIU, Syracuse-Albany, Murray State-California) is on ESPNU, goes directly up against Monday Night Football, and its lead-in was “ESPNU Inside the Polls,” a college football show featuring former Auburn football coach Tommy Tuberville and some guy named Tom Luginbill. (You should read the wikipedia link — his credentials are slightly hilarious.) With a lead-in like that, you can tell that college basketball and ESPN are really pulling out all of the stops to make this a memorable season-opener. I’m also not 100 percent sure that this opening game was actually advertised on any of the ESPN networks besides ESPNU.

Anyway, Chronicle alum Seth Davis also thinks that this situation is ridiculous and unfortunate:

The people who have the most influence over the sport have neglected to devise an Opening Day that breaks through all the clutter. It’s a sad commentary that the start of practice, Midnight Madness, attracts so much more attention than the commencement of actual games.

Part of the blame is on circumstances beyond anyone’s control — NCAA rules state that teams aren’t allowed to play games before the second Friday of November, but the games scheduled for this week are exempt because they were scheduled prior to that rule going on the books. Apparently, some of the rest of the blame belongs to Coach K. But it’s not like he’s been busy winning a gold medal or anything. The idea to create an Opening Day was supposed to be part of the mission undertaken by the College Basketball Partnership that was created in 2004 at the behest of Myles Brand, the late NCAA president. The group brought together about two dozen people who respresented the various stakeholders of the game: coaches (Mike Krzyzewski, Jim Boeheim and Tom Izzo), conference commissioners, athletic directors, media executives and TV commentators like Billy Packer and Clark Kellogg. ESPNU has two games on Wednesday, and a game each on Friday and Saturday. The televised-on-ESPN portion of the college basketball season begins in earnest next Monday.

2:30: The game starts getting chippy, so Sean Renfree replaces Thad Lewis and promptly throws an interception on his first play. UNC is whistled for a block in the back on the return, and the two teams have offsetting fouls–all on the same play. The game’s essentially over. Duke drops to 5-4, 3-2 in the ACC. More after the Blue Devils’ press conference.

3:09: Lewis had Vernon over the middle, but the receiver dropped it. An extremely late flag gave Duke 15 yards on a late hit, but it’s not looking good for Duke. With the loss today, the Blue Devils will have to win two of their final three games to be bowl-eligible. Duke still plays Georgia Tech at home, Miami on the road, and Wake Forest at home.

4:00: UNC’s drive stalls at the 16-yard line after Yates’ pass is nowhere close to a receiver. Barth drills the 33-yard field goal, his fourth of the day. UNC 19, Duke 6.

5:32: Or Carolina may strike quickly and put the game out of reach. Da’Norris Searcy returns the punt to the Duke 28, and now Houston is running all over the Blue Devils as UNC marches closer to the end zone.

5:46: Quinn sacks Lewis on third down, dropping the Blue Devils to 2-for-12 on third down conversions. This isn’t looking good for Duke. By the time the Blue Devils get the ball back, it may be too late.

6:57: End-around to Boyd, who sneaks into the right corner of the end zone for a touchdown. That’s a devastating blow for the Blue Devils, who are now going to have to find a way to score 10 points in less than seven minutes. That will likely include a North Carolina drive, and if it lasts 6:16, as this last one did, Duke is in trouble. UNC 16, Duke 6.

8:54: Houston should have been stopped at the line of scrimmage, but he bounced back to the inside for a 19 yard gain. That puts the ball inside the Duke 10. With the way this game’s going, Duke has to hold Carolina to a field goal here. A 10-point deficit may be too much for the Blue Devils to overcome given UNC’s effectiveness at running the clock. There will be a huge 3rd-and-3 after this timeout. It will probably be a Houston run–can Duke stop him when it matters?

11:26: Houston is still pounding away at the Duke front seven. He has 28 carries for 118 yards. Meanwhile, the clock keeps rolling. Carolina has had the ball nearly twice as long as Duke (32 minutes to 18).

13:13: On 4th-and-4 from the 35, Robert Quinn breaks up Lewis’ pass to end Duke’s drive.

14:52 4th: Johnny Williams breaks a huge return to the 44, and UNC’s Shane Mularkey is called for a late hit. Duke will start its drive at the UNC 41. The Blue Devils would love to get some points on this drive to counter that last Carolina field goal. Is anyone ever going to score a touchdown in this game?

0:30: Yates swings the ball out to Houston on 3rd-and-20, picking up 6 yards to set up a 41-yard field goal attempt. Casey Barth splits the uprights as time expires in the third quarter. Yates helped Duke out again on that series, airmailing his receiver on second down to set up an incredibly long third down. UNC 9, Duke 6.

As we go to the fourth quarter, Lewis has just 96 yards passing.

1:43: No. On a huge third down that could have gotten Duke into field goal range, Charles Brown intercepts a Lewis pass intended for Vernon and returns the ball 54 yards to the Duke 20. That’s a huge swing–Carolina has re-seized momentum and now has the ball deep in Duke territory.

3:16: Yates’ pass is tipped by Vincent Rey and picked off by Leon Wright, who returns it 31 yards to the UNC 37. Can Duke capitalize on another Tar Heel turnover?

5:15: Houston now has a career-high 19 rushes for a career-high 75 yards after making another Duke defender miss and picking up the first down. Greg Little catches a screen pass but may have fumbled the ball. Cutcliffe is challenging the ruling that Little was down, but the replay looks pretty inconclusive.

6:50: Duke had 2nd-and-1, but Scott lost 4 yards and then UNC brought the house–dropping only one safety–to rush Lewis into a poor throw. Jones’ punt goes 48 yards and UNC’s Jonathan Smith is whistled for a personal foul after the play, pushing Carolina back to the 24.

9:03: Chris Rwabukamba has a nice breakup of a pass intended for Dwight Jones in the end zone, saving a touchdown. Shallot skies a punt from the Duke 36, and it takes a Tar Heel bounce to the 8. The Blue Devils will take over there, with a long 92 yards between them and the end zone.

12:17: The Blue Devils bottle up Houston for a 1-yard loss on first down, a nice sign for a defense that has struggled against the run this afternoon. Pianalto picks up consecutive first downs, moving the Tar Heels into Duke territory.

12:25: Conner Vernon now has 583 receiving yards on the year, which is the best ever for a Duke freshman receiver. He also holds the Duke freshman record for catches, captured last week against Virginia.

12:35: Lewis’ third-down pass is high, and Duke has to punt. Jones gets off a nice kick, but a Blue Devil player hit the kick returner as he was calling for a fair catch. That will give UNC the ball at the 26 instead of the 11.

14:08: Lewis spins out of a sack, then rumbles for a 19 yard gain. He does the same thing on the following play, picking up 14 more yards against a wide-open middle of the Tar Heel defense. For those keeping score at home, Duke has 38 more rushing yards on the last two plays than it did in the entire first half.

14:53 3rd: Duke has a nice return, but it’s called back by a late block-in-the-back flag. Lewis and the offense will start their drive at the 16.

Halftime: Some notable first-half stats: Lewis was 11-for-18 for 86 yards. Duke had just 82 total yards–that’s right, the Blue Devils had -4 yards rushing–to Carolina’s 139. Ryan Houston has 63 of UNC’s 81 rushing yards. Yates is 7-for-15 for 58 yards, and his inaccuracy has really hurt the Tar Heels at times. It’s killed a couple drives short of the end zone, and UNC has had to settle for field goals as a result. Will that continue in the second half?

6-6, end of half: Lewis’ pass goes harmlessly out the back of the end zone, and Maggio makes a 26-yard field goal from the right hash as time expires. So after being outplayed for much of the first half, Duke goes into the locker room tied with UNC. The Blue Devils will also get the ball to start the second half, so they have to be pleased with getting some points on that final drive. They’ve managed to hang in the game, and if they can translate that drive into some second-half momentum, they may be able to take the Victory Bell for the first time since 2003. Defensively, the Blue Devils will have to slow Ryan Houston, and they showed signs of doing that toward the end of the half. And Thad Lewis might not extend his streak of 300-yard games, but if he can manage the offense like he did on that final drive, Duke’s got a chance.

6-3 UNC, 0:26: Kelly picks up the first down, and Lewis spikes the ball to stop the clock. Lewis’ pass for Varner goes over his head, but the Tar Heels are whistled for holding. Vernon gets the ball down to the 6, but Duke has to call its final timeout to stop the clock at 11 seconds. Lewis has to get the ball in the end zone on this next play or else the Blue Devils risk losing the chance to get any points out of this–if the clock runs after the play, Maggio may not be able to get the kick off in time.

6-3 UNC, 0:34: A swing pass to Hollingsworth advances the ball to the 24, and Duke calls its second timeout with 34 seconds remaining in the half. The Blue Devils face a big 3rd-and-4 here.

6-3 UNC, 1:37: Hollingsworth only needed about a foot, and he got it. First down, Duke.

6-3 UNC, 3:20: Lewis has a nice completion, hitting Johnny Williams for the first down. The running game, though, is still struggling. Desmond Scott picks up nothing on a first-down draw, but Lewis comes back on third down to complete a 9-yard pass. It looks like Duke is going to go for it on fourth down, but Cutcliffe calls a timeout to talk it over with his team first. It would be a 47-yard field goal, and that may be out of Maggio’s range.

6-3 UNC, 3:57: The Duke defense comes up big, with Vince Oghobaase sacking Yates on third down. Grant Schallock shanks the punt. It goes just 33 yards, and Duke will take over at its own 48, looking to create some momentum–and potentially take the lead–before halftime.

6-3 UNC, 7:14: Charlie Hatcher has a nice stop on first down, holding Houston to no gain for what might be the first time all afternoon. Boyd picks up a few yards on a reverse on second down, setting up a long 3rd-and-7. But Yates hits Pianalto for the first down, keeping the Duke defense on the field for at least four more downs.

6-3 UNC, 7:51: Lewis checks it down to Hollingsworth, who doesn’t come close to picking up the first down. Jones has another short punt–this one goes just 34 yards–and Carolina returns it to close to midfield. A holding call, however, brings the ball back to the 16.

6-3 UNC, 9:09: A huge first down on 3rd-and-6 as Lewis hits Varner at the Duke 40. That will give Duke’s defense at least a couple more minutes of rest. A three-and-out there could have been devastating. If the offense doesn’t find more of a rhythm soon, though, the defense will be back out there soon enough.

6-3 UNC, 9:59: Another good break for Duke with North Carolina in striking distance. Yates’ attempt for Greg Little goes over his outstretched hands, and UNC has to settle for a field goal. The Blue Devil defense has to be getting tired: The Tar Heels have had the ball for 14:51 to Duke’s 5:10. The Blue Devils have to figure out a way to string together some plays. To this point, they’ve really only had two big plays: the punt block and the 22-yard completion to Varner. But so far, that’s been enough to keep them in the game.

3-3, 13:27 2nd: North Carolina is driving. Houston is up to 10 carries for 51 yards. Duke doesn’t seem to have any answer for him. He breaks off another run–this one for 8 yards–to get the Tar Heels to the Duke 27. How long can the Blue Devils hang in the game if Carolina keeps running like this?

3-3, end of 1st: Snyderwine update: He has an injured leg, so Maggio is the starting placekicker today. He hasn’t been the starter since the Blue Devils’ disappointing opener against Richmond.

3-3, 1:10 1st: But Lewis bounces back with a 22-yard pass to Brandon King. Another first-down QB draw does little, with Lewis picking up just a yard on the play but protecting the ball well as the Tar Heels go for the strip. On second down, Lewis is hit as he throws and misses Varner in the end zone. He hits Austin Kelly for an 8-yard gain on 3rd down, but Kelly’s just short of the marker. Cutcliffe opts against going for it on 4th-and-short, and Maggio–still in the game instead of Snyderwine–makes the field goal to even the score.

3-0 UNC, 3:13 1st: They’ll get it back in great field position. Jordan Byas flew through the middle of the Tar Heels’ punt formation, blocked the kick and recovered it. Duke gets the ball at the UNC 31, but a QB draw goes nowhere–Lewis loses 6 yards on first down.

3-0 UNC, 4:10 1st: Draughn has a shoulder injury. His return is doubtful, but that probably isn’t much consolation to the Blue Devils right now. Houston has 31 yards as the feature back, and Duke suffers another injury: LB Damian Thornton is down on the play. Yates’ third-down pass, however, sails out of bounds and the Blue Devils will get the ball back.

3-0 UNC, 5:30 1st: Re’quan Boyette picks up four yards on first down, but a screen for Vernon is blown up. The pass falls incomplete, and Vernon is shaken up on the play. Marvin Austin deflects Lewis’ third-down attempt for Johnny Williams, and the Blue Devils go three-and-out. Kevin Jones once again has a short punt, but it takes a Duke bounce to the UNC 31. Duke is struggling to generate much momentum against this Tar Heel defense. That’s going to have to change, because it looks like it’s only a matter of time before the Tar Heels put up some points.

3-0 UNC, 7:14 1st: Duke left Pianalto wide open on third down, and the receiver had little trouble picking up the first down. The Blue Devils appeared to force a fumble, but the referees ruled that Pianalto was already down.

Carolina once again faces third down–this time 3rd-and-5–but this time, Yates’ pass for Houston sails over his head. UNC will have to punt, and it bounces into the end zone for a touchback.

3-0 UNC, 9:30 1st: UNC RB Shaun Draughn has been taken to the locker room with an injury, but with the way Ryan Houston’s running the ball, it might not matter. And now Carolina’s throwing the ball, too–Yates just completed a first-down pass and had Jheranie Boyd wide open on the following play, but the pass hit him in the hands and bounced harmlessly out of play.

3-0 UNC, 11:18 1st: Duke gets a big kickoff return from Conner Vernon, but its first offensive possession isn’t going well. After a short Desmond Scott run, Lewis is hit as he throws and fumbles it. The Blue Devils recover and Lewis completes an 8-yard pass on third down, but it’s well short of the first-down marker. Kevin Jones will have to punt it away.

3-0 UNC, 11:25 1st: If someone told you after Week 1 that Duke would have a better chance of making a bowl than Michigan as of Nov. 7, would you have believed them?

3-0 UNC, 11:29 1st: A break for Duke, as T.J. Yates doesn’t even come close to hitting tight end Zack Pianalto in the end zone on 3rd-and-11 from the 23. Carolina drills the field goal, putting them up by 3.

0-0, 12:42 1st: UNC already has 28 yards on 4 carries after Ryan Houston’s 7-yard run on 3rd-and-2. Duke’s going to have to find a way to slow down this Tar Heel offense. A Duke penalty has put UNC at the 21-yard line.

0-0, 14:53 1st: Maggio’s kickoff is returned to the UNC 26. Not sure why he kicked off instead of Will Snyderwine, but we’ll try to find out. The Tar Heels have already notched a first down by sticking to the run, which is their offensive strength.

PREGAME: Curious how many Duke fans are here? The answer: not many. They fill about a section and a half, and the other 95% of the stadium is clad in baby blue.

PREGAME: The starting lineup for Duke is as expected. UNC will start center Cam Holland over Lowell Dyer, who is sick, and true freshman Brennan Williams at right tackle in his first career start.

PREGAME: Will Flaherty is live-tweeting this afternoon’s game, so be sure to follow that as well. The game will be televised on ESPNU–that’s channel 72, for those of you watching on campus.

PREGAME: We’re coming to you live from Kenan Stadium in Chapel Hill, where Duke is looking to beat its archrival for just the second time in the last 20 tries–and perhaps more importantly, extend a three-game winning streak and move within one victory of bowl eligibility. Kenan Stadium is slowly filling up as we move within 20 minutes of kickoff. One thing to look for this afternoon: How many Duke students make the trip down 15-501 to watch this contest? This rivalry game means more than it has in years, and it has finally been moved from its traditional time over Thanksgiving weekend. In any case, it’s a beautiful day in Chapel Hill–66 and sunny–which is good news for Thad Lewis and the pass-happy Blue Devils. Over the past four weeks, Lewis has attempted 43.25 passes per game and thrown for 383 yards per game to vault Duke into the top-10 in passing offense in the country. Can he keep it up against the Tar Heels?

On Friday the 13th, Duke fans are hoping for some good luck: Harrison Barnes, a top Duke target and the No. 2 prospect in the Class of 2010 according to Rivals.com, will be announcing where he will be attending college next fall.

The 6-foot-6 forward is considered to have elite talent and—if he decides to leave college after just one season—is projected to be the No. 1 pick in the 2011 NBA Draft by NBADraft.net.

The Blue Devils, who recently secured five-start point guard Kyrie Irving, are finalists for Barnes’s services next season. The general consensus is that Barnes will choose between Duke and Tobacco Road rival North Carolina, yet the forward does list Kansas, Oklahoma, UCLA and Iowa State among his possible destinations as well.

Do you think the Blue Devils will get a commitment out of Barnes next week?

Junior Nolan Smith (center) will miss two games due to a minor NCAA infraction.

After a dominant 84-48 exhibition victory against Findlay Tuesday night, head coach Mike Krzyzewski was forced to address some less than exciting business: due to junior Nolan Smith’s brief participation in an unapproved summer league game, the guard will forced to sit out for the first two regular games of the season.

“He played in a summer league that wasn’t sanctioned and when we found out, we brought it up and let the NCAA know,” Krzyzewski said. ”It’s a very common occurrence. Actually it’s something that I’m not a big proponent of. I think kids should be able to play wherever they want to play.”

Smith played in a game in Washington D.C., not too far from his home in Upper Marlboro, Md., but he said that he does not remember the exact name of the leauge. Also participating were a number of international and professional players. The junior noted that this situation is largely the result of an oversight on his part. The idea of getting permission to play in the game—which took place right before the second session of summer school—didn’t even cross his mind.

“I’ve just got to take the punishment and roll with it,” Smith said. “I messed up on my part. Before anything they ask us to get permission, and I just walked in, not thinking, and thought I was just playing a pickup game with my friends and I didn’t get permission so I just have to face the punishment.”

Smith will not play on Nov. 13 against UNC-Greensboro or on Nov. 16 against Coastal Carolina. Fortunately for the Blue Devils, however these opponents are unlikely to pose significant challenges. Both games will be played in Cameron Indoor Stadium where out-of-conference opponents have lost 68 straight games. Duke’s last non-conference defeat at home was an 83-82 loss against St. John’s on February 26, 2000.

In an effort to prepare for these two games and see what Duke will be working with in his absence—as Smith put it in the locker room after the game—the Blue Devils played the first half of the Findlay exhibition without the junior. Upon his return after the suspension, however, Smith will remain a starter.

To end the comments on the issue—one that Krzyzewski said he wasn’t overly concerned with—the coach had advice for other college players: “This is what every college basketball player has to know. Don’t play in a game that keeps time and score unless it’s a sanctioned game. So you never go out on the court and play in a game that has time and score. Call us up, it has to be approved by the athletic director and [in this case] it wasn’t.”

The Blue Devils leave with the win and got the chance to try out a lot of different lineups. All in all, this is the type of test that Duke was looking for: to play a team with a winning history to emulate a regular season game.

Before the game ended, junior Steve Johnson got a chance to play a few minutes. The crowd called for walk-on Casey Peters to come into the game, but time expired before Duke got an opportunity to make a sub.

Make sure to check out DukeChronicle.com tomorrow for more coverage of this game!

Duke 80, Findlay 42, 3:29 left in the second half

With just a few minutes left to play, a few fans are taking the chance to head out a bit early and beat the rush. You can’t really blame them, I think the 38-point lead is pretty safe.

In other fan news, the students just started the “Go to Hell Carolina, Go to Hell” chant for the first time all game.

Duke 71, Findlay 37, 7:11 left in the second half

Zoubek made both shots before heading to the bench to give Miles Plumlee some playing time. The biggest question on my mind right now: Can Duke score 100 points tonight? At this point, it’d be a stretch to think it will happen.

Duke 69, Findlay 37, 7:49 left in the second half

Findlay’s Parker just showed some nice range on a 3-point shot.

On the other end, Zoubek—who is back in the game for Miles Plumlee—picked up his ninth rebound before getting fouled and missing the shot from the line. The Oilers already have eight team fouls while the Blue Devils have just one.

On the next trip down the court, Zoubek made a nice move for the bucket. As Findlay move the ball up court, Scheyer made a steal and made the uncontested layup to extend Duke’s lead.

Zoubek got fouled—again—as he made a move in the post. The senior now has 7 points to go along with 9 boards and will shoot the free throws after the timeout.

Duke 62, Findlay 32, 10:12 left in the second half

Mason Plumlee is back in the game after coming in for Zoubek and just swatted one of the Oilers’ shots. The ball went flying out of bounds, but it sure looked sweet.

Duke is currently working with a very young group of players on the hardwood: Dawkins, Kelly, and Miles Plumlee are all freshmen, Czyz is a sophomore and so Smith is the only upperclassman on the floor.

Duke 59, Findlay 27, 12:24 left in the second half

With a comfortable lead, I think it’s time to give you a link. J.J. Redick is allegedly working on a rap album. Apparently poetry wasn’t enough?

Also: Olek Czyz, a fan favorite, is now on the court. He just threw the ball down on  a pass to Brian Zoubek to the delight of the crowd. The forward looks a lot more comfortable on the floor this year and seems to be moving well on the defensive end.

Currently on the floor: Smith, Dawkins, Czyz, Kelly and Zoubek.

Duke 55, Findlay 27, 14:51 left in the second half

Miles Plumlee just took a serious vertical leap for the swat. The sophomore had two blocks in the first half and has dominated the paint defensively so far this game.

On the following possession, Scheyer hit a nice shot and now has 12 points on the game.

Duke just ran a set play—something that they won’t do too many times this year as it looks to get out on the break—and Singler got the bucket on the assist from Smith. On the next trip down the court, Smith kept the ball for himself and scored for the first time on the night.

Duke 49, Findlay 27, 17:23 left in the second half

Nolan Smith is back on the court and just picked up an assist after dishing the ball to Kyle Singler for a 3-pointer.

Duke has looked much sharper so far in the second half. Singler now has 16 points, and the Blue Devils have been dominant in the paint.

After a transition bucket by senior Jon Scheyer, Findlay takes a timeout to talk things over.

Duke 36, Findlay 23, beginning of the 2nd Half

At halftime, Sports Information Director Matt Plizga declined to comment on Nolan Smith’s status for the first two games of the season, but he did say that Krzyzewski would address the question at the postgame press conference.

A few stats from the first half:

• Duke had 10 turnovers in the first half and shot 13-33 (39.4%) from the floor.
• Kyle Singler leads the Blue Devils in scoring with nine points in 16 minutes. The junior also had seven rebounds.
• Duke made more free throws (seven) than the Oilers attempted (six)
• Though Singler had a productive first half, he did turn the ball over four times.

Duke 36, Findlay 23, HALFTIME.

Just got a message from a reader (DukeDevil007) who might have an idea of why Nolan Smith didn’t start the game:

From what I just read elsewhere, apparently Nolan accidentally took part of a summer league game that is illegal for college players. He will have to sit the first two regular season games, so Coach K adjusted the first half lineup to get the lineup ready for UNCG and CC. Nolan will be back in the 2nd half.

I did hear Smith say earlier this year that there shouldn’t be any problems with him playing the first few games of the season, but I will try to check at half time and see if anyone knows if this is correct.

Duke 34, Findlay 18, 2:30 left in the first half:

If you’re not already following us on Twitter, click this here and check it out. Andy Moore is currently giving updates with his tweets for @ChronicleSports.

Duke is starting to get in a rhythm, and a 3-point shot by Scheyer got Cameron Indoor as loud as it has been all night. Findlay has found ways to score, but the Blue Devil lead is growing larger by the minute.

Also in Cameron Indoor tonight is former head coach Bucky Waters. He’s sitting on press row directly to my right and seems to be enjoying the game so far.

Duke 27, Findlay 14, 5:45 left in the first half:

As Krzyzewski promised during a preseason press conference, Singler is playing exclusively on the perimeter. So far, he looks comfortable there, assisting a Scheyer 3-pointer to put Duke up 11.

I do have to say, though, this hasn’t exactly been too nice looking of a game. With 7:20 to play, the teams have combined for 15 fouls and a bunch of turnovers.

After a media timeout, Scheyer, Kelly, Singler, Thomas and Zoubek are out on the court. Outside of a little pile at Duke’s offensive end fighting for the ball, it’s been an relatively uneventful couple of minutes.

Duke 22, Findlay 14, 8:20 left in the first half:

During the timeout, the crowd got a message from former Duke great Carlos Boozer who spoke about the great atmosphere in Cameron Indoor.

With 10:40 left, Findlay guard Brown drew the foul and made one of two free throws. On the second shot—the one he missed—the Cameron Crazies got the whole arena quiet until right before he shot and then screamed in unison. Lance Thomas answered on the other end with a bucket.

Other evidence that some things never change: Krzyzewski has actively been walking the sidelines and, of course, working the referees early.

Two free throws by Singler and then two made free throws on the other end by the Oilers leave us at 20-14.

Duke 16, Findlay 11, 11:11 left in the first half:

Current lineup: Scheyer, Andre Dawkins, Ryan Kelly, Miles Plumlee and Zoubek.

As Duke gives Cameron Indoor a good look at all of its guards, it’s hard not to wonder what transfer Seth Curry would look like out on the floor. Curry, per NCAA rules, must sit out for the 2009-2010 season. Nonetheless, he sits on the end of the bench in aa gray polo sweater.

Singler, who is back on the floor after subbing in for Zoubek, just missed both free throws. On the next Findlay possession, the Oilers’ JoVaughn Brown had a nice finger roll to keep his team within five points nearly halfway through the half.

(Side note: As I type keep you all updated, I was just nearly hit by the ball on Findlay’s offensive end.)

Duke 16, Findlay 9, 13:56 left in the first half:

Senior Jordan Davidson is getting some time early and helping out Jon Scheyer with some of the ballhandling responsibilities. Meanwhile, the Plumlee brothers have been productive on the offensive end accounting for back-to-back baskets.

The biggest mystery so far tonight: Why did Nolan start? My guess would be that Krzyzewski is simply taking the opportunity to try out a new lineup.

Duke 10, Findlay 4, 17:04 left in the first half:

Mason Plumlee is now in the game having replaced Zoubek. The freshman forward got to the line soon after entering and made both free throws to put Duke up 10-2.

The Oilers’ Marcus Parker may only be 5-foot-9, but he is playing some physical defense on Scheyer has he takes the ball up the court.

It’s already pretty evident that Duke will be able to get the win tonight, but it won’t be for a lack of effort on Findlay’s part. The Division II champions have moved the ball well on offense in the first four minutes.

Still, the fans are showing Findlay no love. “Five fouls, four points,” chant the Cameron Crazies.

Duke 8, Findlay 2, 17:04 left in the first half:

After securing the tip on the opening play of the game, sophomore Miles Plumlee was fouled and made one of two free throws. The Oilers scored on their first possession to get the 2-1 lead, but they couldn’t hold it for long as Duke scored five straight.

The Blue Devils are experimenting with a fairly tall lineup at the moment: Scheyer is the only player shorter than 6-foot-8.

PREGAME: We’re just minutes away from game time in Cameron Indoor Stadium as the Blue Devils take on the Oilers in their final exhibition game of the season. Findlay—a Division II program—went 36-0 last season and is ranked N0. 4 in the Division II preseason poll. Don’t expect this one to be too close, though. Nonetheless, stay along with us as we see how the Blue Devils look as they get ready for the upcoming season.

Starting for Duke tonight will be: Jon Scheyer, Kyle Singler, Lance Thomas, Miles Plumlee and Brian Zoubek.

And as for the Cameron Crazies, we hear that there are no cheer sheets tonight. The chant in reference to the Oilers’ orange and black of “Halloween’s Over” was impromptu!

Duke may not be starting the year as the top-ranked team in the country, as it did in 2005-06, but it does have one thing in common with that team: a preseason All-American.

Junior forward Kyle Singler, the ACC Preseason Player of the Year, was named to the AP preseason All-America team Monday, becoming the first Blue Devil to take that honor since J.J. Redick and Shelden Williams were both named to the team prior to the 2005-06 campaign. This year’s team also boasts the first pair of teammates since Redick and Williams: Cole Aldrich and Sherron Collins of No. 1 Kansas. Notre Dame’s Luke Harangody led all players with 57 votes, and Kentucky forward Patrick Patterson rounds out the squad.

Singler averaged 16.5 points and 7.7 rebounds per game last year. After spending much of his first two seasons in the paint, he will play primarily on the perimeter for the suddenly forward-heavy Blue Devils.

Evidently, the AP believes what Singler said at Duke’s media day: That switch isn’t going to hurt his game.

When the time and network for Duke’s Nov. 7 game at North Carolina was announced last week, the Blue Devils hadn’t yet won their third straight conference game and the Tar Heels hadn’t yet knocked off Virginia Tech on the road. The two victories — and the fact that the rivalry for the Victory Bell actually is relevant, for once — means that you won’t have to scramble for access to ESPN360 next weekend.

The ACC announced Sunday that the game in Chapel Hill, previously scheduled for a 3 p.m. start, has been changed to 3:30 p.m. and will now air on ESPNU.

The difference? Sports bars have games on ESPNU on tap, and ESPN360 affairs are only available on an Internet stream. Either way, we’ll be tweeting throughout, and you can always follow along that way.

Call it a pipe dream, but after Duke’s 28-17 victory over Virginia earlier today, the Blue Devils now have a clear path to the ACC Championship Game.

True, said “clear” path is littered with Top-25 opponents Georgia Tech and Miami, not to mention a road test against rival North Carolina, but after Virginia Tech was upset by those same Tar Heels last Thursday, Duke now stands alone in second place in the ACC Coastal division with a 3-1 record.  The Yellow Jackets are in first with a 5-1 record, but the Blue Devils will host Georgia Tech on November 14th in Wallace Wade Stadium.  Thus, if Duke wins out it will, in fact, be the ACC Coastal Division Champion.

Yes, the odds are astronomical that Duke will be able to finish the season on a seven-game ACC winning streak, but for a team that last season won one ACC game, even the possibility of the Blue Devils being a player in the conference race must be uplifting to David Cutcliffe’s team and to a suffering Blue Devil fan base.

So, Blue Devil fans, where do you see the newly energized Duke football team finishing in the ACC this year?

Duke 28, Virginia 17, FINAL: A huge, huge win for Duke tonight. Three straight conference wins for the Blue Devils, the first time that’s happened since… I’m not sure, I’ll find out, though. Now, looking forward, Duke has North Carolina next week, then Georgia Tech, Miami, and Wake Forest. It needs to win two out of those four games to make a bowl.

The small, but vocal, Duke fans are cheering uproariously as the team celebrates with them. The Chronicle Sports Blog, signing off from Charlottesville.

Duke 28, Virginia 17, 1:05 left in the fourth quarter: Duke (Hollingsworth, mainly) runs the ball to kill clock, and Snyderwine hits the nail on the proverbial coffin with a 43-yard field goal that splits the uprights. Hopefully, people will not forget just how well the walk-on has played today. Five field goals attempted, five made. His consistency today has been a huge part of the win.

Duke 25, Virginia 17, 3:00 left in the fourth quarter: Virginia goes for it on fourth-and-10 after two straight dropped passes by Virginia receivers, and Jeremy Ringfield comes through with a huge sack on Sewell. Besides the fumble recovery, that’s the loudest reaction I’ve heard from the Duke coaches that are adjacent to the press box. Duke has the ball at the Virginia 28.

Duke 25, Virginia 17, 3:22 left in the fourth quarter: Virginia fumbles, and Charlie Hatcher picks up the ball and runs it to the house for the Blue Devils’ second touchdown in less than a minute. Duke sidelines are in bedlam– all the coaches are jumping up and down. Mass exodus from the stadium. People are leaving in droves. It’s still a one-possession game, though. The defense needs just one more stop.

Duke 18, Virginia 17, 3:45 left in the fourth quarter: Touchdown, Duke! With defenders swarming all around him, Lewis somehow got off a throw to an all alone Conner Vernon who streaked down the center of the field for the score. The pass had to be around 40 yards. Duke went for two, and failed to convert, but it did succeed in making Scott Stadium absolutely silent.

Duke 12, Virginia 17, 5:45 left in the fourth quarter: Yeah, it was an interception. Chase Minnifield is credited with the pick.

Virginia could do nothing with the field position, though, and the Cavs are punting. Williams to return.

Duke 12, Virginia 17, 8:01 left in the fourth quarter: Duke got the big play it’s needed all game– a 40 yard pass from Lewis to Varner that put the Blue Devils at the three-yard line. But Re’quan Boyette ran for a loss of four yards, and soon it was 3rd and goal from the seven. Forced to throw under extreme pass pressure, Lewis hit a Cav in the hands in the back corner of the end zone. It now looks like Virginia has the ball after what appeared to be an interception. Under review.

Nice passes by Thad spearheaded the drive (what a surprise). On third-and-three, at the 33, Lewis found Johnny Williams for a first down. After Lewis ran a draw for two yards, he hit Austin Kelly to put at the Virginia 43. Those two throws set up the big ‘un to Varner.

Duke 12, Virginia 17, 11:22 left in the fourth quarter: Touchdown, Virginia.

On the kickoff to start the Cavs drive, Snyderwine gave Virginia great field position with a kick out-of-bounds. But the Cavs looked like they were about to squander the opportunity when they faced a long third-down at their 41 yard-line.

Vinnie Rey stuffed a pass play a yard short of a first down, but the Cavs went for it anyway, and Sewell found Eric Thornton for a 27-yard pass. Once in the red zone, Sewell found tight end Joe Torchia for a 19-yard scoring play. It capped an eight play, 63 yard drive, that now has the Blue Devils looking for a score.

Duke 12, Virginia 10, 13:53 left in the fourth quarter: Another red zone trip, another Snyderwine field goal– this one a 24 yard one that split the uprights. He is 4-for-4, which matches his career best.

On another note, I have just been informed that viewers watching at home may notice that one of the referees currently has his fly open. XYZ, my striped friend. XYZ.

Duke 9, Virginia 10, start of fourth quarter: Can Duke finally get a touchdown? The Blue Devils have the ball at the 27 after a 32-yard bullet from Lewis to Vernon. Stay tuned, sports fans.

Duke 9, Virginia 10, 1:10 left in the third quarter: Cav fans are screaming for blood after a long pass from Sewell to a receiver at the 20-yard line was deflected. Apparently, they wanted a pass interference call. At least that’s what I inferred from the large men yelling near me.

Duke has the ball at the 41.

Duke 9, Virginia 10, 2:59 left in the third quarter: A frustrating series of possessions for Duke. Lewis hit Conner Vernon who made a great 15-yard catch, complete with his helmet flying off… and it was promptly brought back by a Duke 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty. Then, on third-down, Lewis was chased by two defenders, threw up a prayer, which connected with Austin Kelly… who promptly dropped it. Mistakes and miscues, it’s safe to say, are killing the Blue Devils.

Duke 9, Virginia 10, 4:19 left in the third quarter: Battle for field position, part deux: a sack on Sewell forced Virginia’s Rathjen (nice name) to punt to the Duke 31-yard line. This is a big drive for the Blue Devils. They really need a score.

Duke 9, Virginia 10, 6:51 left in the third quarter: Jones is punting for the Blue Devils. On this drive, Thad converted on another third-down with a 14-yard pass to Vernon put Duke at its 40. Again, though, a big sack on Lewis by John-Kevin Dolce put the Blue Devils at 3rd-and-long from the 48, and he almost got picked off trying to hit Brett Huffman streaking down the sidelines.

Official attendance for the game is 41,713. Minus about 15,000, I would say.

Duke 9, Virginia 10, 11:38 left in the third quarter: The Wahoos received the ball to start the second half, and they immediately started driving towards the end zone, showing more offensive firepower than they had in the entire previous half. Cavs QB Sewell hit one of his receivers for about a 20-yard toss, and Charlie Hatcher got caught roughing the passer on the throw, which put Virginia at the 31-yard line. After a couple of big rushes by Jackson, Sewell ran in a quarterback sneak for the first touchdown of the game, capping a drive which lasted just over three minutes. Duke now trails for the first time today.

Duke 9, Virginia 3, HALFTIME: Two Pee-Wee teams are providing the halftime entertainment right now. The “Steelers” quarterback just got rocked; their parents must not be Malcolm Gladwell readers.

Some stats from the first half: Thad Lewis went 13-of-20 for 128 yards. Hollingsworth is Duke’s leading rusher with 27 yards on seven carries. The Blue Devils have 12 first-downs and 178 yards of total offense to the Cavs’ six first-downs and 81 yards.

Also, I incorrectly called Virginia quarterback Marc Verica Drew Jarrett for much of the first half. That’s the beauty of live blogging for ya!

Duke 9, Virginia 3, HALFTIME: The first half is over, and with it, the first time all season that Duke has failed to score a touchdown in the game’s first 30 minutes. The Blue Devils’ final drive of the half was highlighted by the fourth sack of the game on Lewis, who has been consistently under pressure throughout the game. In other news, Sewell is back under center for Virginia. He took a knee rather than throw a Hail Mary to end the second quarter, much to the chagrin of the fans in attendance. (They want a touchdown. And they’re booing.)

Halloween costume winners so far: Two obese men adorned in blonde wigs and Duke (or, more accurately, Dook) cheerleader uniforms. Cross dressing will always be funny.

Duke 9, Virginia 3, 2:50 left in the second quarter: Virginia is forced to punt after a nice defensive series from the Blue Devils, with Matt Daniels providing an exclamation point on it with a ferocious hit to put the Cavs at 4th-and-8. Duke has the ball at the 32 and, oh, look, “Thriller” is playing right now. How original.

Duke 9, Virginia 3, 6:49 left in the second quarter: Lewis is going to be feeling this game tomorrow. The quarterback was hit hard on a 2nd-down sack that put the Blue Devils at 3rd-and-long. He hit Donovan Varner on a long pass on the next play, and he stretched for the first-down, but wound up two yards short.

Duke 9, Virginia 3, 9:58 left in the second quarter: We’ve got a battle for field position here. Duke was forced to punt for the first time today after the Cavs forced a three-and-out. And now, Virginia has just punted to the 9-yard line following its three-and-out. Not exactly the offensive explosion of the N.C. State game from a couple of weeks ago.

Duke 9, Virginia 3, 11:51 left in the second quarter: Big news for the Duke defense: Cavs quarterback Jameel Sewell was knocked out of the game at the 13:50 mark, bringing in Marc Verica, who continued an 11-play, 55 yard drive, capped by a 33-yard field goal from Robert Randolph. No word on the condition of Sewell, but if he is out for the game, Virginia fans shouldn’t be that worried. While Verica made a couple of very poor passes (including one which found the hands of a security guard 20 feet left of the field), he didn’t really look terrible.

In case you were curious as to why Virginia is nicknamed the Wahoos, this is an interesting Wikipedia entry on it. Money quote:

A common explanation by students and alumni of the term’s popularity is that it references the fish Acanthocybium solandri, purported to have the ability to drink up to twice its body weight daily.

Beer!

Duke 9, Virginia 0, 14:55 left in the second quarter: Back-to-back sacks on Lewis (one for a loss of 10 yards) prevented Duke from getting its first touchdown of the game, and forced Snyderwine to come on the field and make his third field-goal of the game. That’s three consecutive drives now where the Blue Devils have failed to find the end zone when they get inside the 30. Cutcliffe can’t be pleased with that stat.

First downs in the first half: Duke, 9. Virginia, 0. How are the Blue Devils only up by nine?

Duke 6, Virginia 0, 2:27 left in the first quarter: Hey! Guess who just got an interception for Duke? If you guessed Leon Wright, well, you’re right. By my unofficial count that’s Wright’s 78th pick of the season. (Okay, actually his fourth).

Duke 6, Virginia 0, 2:56 left in the first quarter: Snyderwine just hit a 28-yard field goal to put Duke up by six. The Blue Devils could have had a touchdown, though. On third-down and with the ball at the 11, Lewis attempted to hit Austin Kelly, but the pass was broken up.

Some highlights from the drive: Faced with 3rd and 3 on the 21, Lewis hit a wide-open Kelly for a 25-yard strike. Desmond Scott and Jay Hollingsworth both made their first appearances in the game, and both picked up quick first downs on their scrambles.

Faced with an unrelenting Virginia pass rush, Lewis has shown great agility so far in avoiding tacklers. Rumor has it he’s been limited in practice with a bum ankle, so wow. Impressive.

Duke 3, Virginia 0, 8:40 left in the first quarter: A near interception on the first play of the Virginia drive highlighted a great defensive effort by the Blue Devils in forcing a 3-and-out. A long Cavs punt, and subsequent -10 yard return by Conner Vernon, though, has the offense on the 14-yard line with a long way to march.

On another note, Duke could do well to copy some of the things that make this small stadium here special. Chief among them: A grassy hill behind one of the end zones. Let’s get on it Kevin White!

Duke 3, Virginia 0, 9:25 left in the first quarter: Thad Lewis orchestrated an impressive first drive with not only his trademark pinpoint passing, but his legs as well: The senior ran for two first downs, one of which was a 10-yard play. A Cavs’ sack on the 27-yard line set up a 44-yard field goal from Will Snyderwine. Cutcliffe showed great faith in his kicking unit in allowing Snyderwine to take the long kick. Faith in the kicker– not something one could really say for the Blue Devils in the past few years.

The Blue Devils also  attempted a little trickery with a flea flicker during the drive. Alas, the pass from Johnny Williams was knocked down.

PREGAME: A very happy Halloween to all of you out there from The Chronicle’s Sports Blog. We’re coming at you live today from Charlottesville, Virginia for Duke’s (4-3, 2-1 in the ACC) matchup against the Virginia Cavaliers (3-4, 2-1). There’s an appropriately spooky atmosphere here in Scott Stadium– the skies are menacingly overcast and costumed fans stand side-by-side with their compatriots in orange.

Duke is coming off a 17-13 victory over Maryland last week; Virginia, a 34-9 loss to Georgia Tech. The Cavs do have the best pass defense in the ACC, and Duke has the best passing offense. Who will win that interesting matchup?

The Cavs won the coin toss and elected to kick. Johnny Williams was stuffed at the 14 for the return.

In the “I think he’s joking, but I’m not completely sure” category, it appears former Blue Devil J.J. Redick is looking to release a rap album. When asked about his musical endeavor, Redick said, “We were trying to make it a little underground, viral marketing and all that stuff, but apparently its gonna get out there.”

According to The Big Lead, it was Orlando Magic teammate Ryan Anderson who let the press know about the secret second career of Redick.

“We’re hoping it drops before the new year,” says Redick, “but again, we actually have a pretty full time job.”

Look out, Mike Posner.

Harrison Barnes recently detailed his busy weekend at Duke in an online journal post

Wonder what exactly basketball recruits do during their official recruiting visits? A recent online journal posting by Duke target Harrison Barnes sheds some light on the top recruit’s visit to the Gothic Wonderland last weekend.

During his visit, Barnes sat in on team meetings, attended Duke’s exhibition game against Pfeiffer, ate a steak and lobster dinner at the  home of coach Mike Krzyzewski and toured East Campus before concluding with a trip up to the bell tower of the Duke Chapel—which Barnes called a “powerful experience.”

Barnes also spent portions of his weekend in sitdown meetings with Dean of Admissions Christoph Guttentag and Duke Law School Dean David F. Levi to discuss Duke’s academic offerings and programs.

Barnes has indicated that he will make a decision on his future school no later than mid-November after concluding the remainder of his official visits. In addition to his trip to Durham, Barnes has made official stops at North Carolina, Oklahoma and Kansas and is scheduled to visit UCLA this weekend.

If you love college basketball, you should know that tomorrow could be a very important day.

Frustrated by a recruiting process — complete with package deals, scheming AAU coaches, and John Calipari — shadier than the Corleone family business, the National Association of Basketball Coaches has contributed to a package of legislation that the NCAA Division I board of directors will consider on Thursday.

ESPN’s Dana O’Neil has the full story, but she summarizes the package’s four major aims:

• Eliminating so-called package deals, making it nearly impossible for a college program to hire any of the myriad of hangers-on associated with prospective student-athletes.

• Disallowing college coaches to subscribe to recruiting services run by people associated with prospects. This would curtail services offered by AAU programs (and others) that charge colleges to subscribe but sometimes offer little to no information on the prospect.

• Preventing payment to nonprofit organizations benefiting summer-club teams, prospects or people attached to prospects.

• Preventing coaches from hiring outsiders to work at their camps and clinics

The new legislation would also allow punishments for violations to follow coaches from job to job. (Sadly, it comes a year too late to nail Calipari.)

Given the contributions of the coaches, it is expected that the package will pass, but it is less clear how much of a difference they will make. Still, I’ll be eagerly awaiting the results, and if you love college basketball, you probably will too.

If last Saturday’s contest with Virginia looked like a giant mudbath because of the weather, head coach David Cutcliffe expects this week’s game at Virginia to more closely resemble a wrestling match.

At his weekly media luncheon Tuesday, Cutcliffe praised the Cavaliers (3-4) for their toughness and physicality, especially on the defensive side of the ball.

“When I think about Virginia, it’s because of coach [Al] Groh,” Cutcliffe said. “The physical defense, this is the hardest-hitting team that we will play. They are loaded for big hits—their secondary is special. There’s a reason they lead the conference in pass defense, so what a matchup in that regard.”

The Cavaliers have also shown toughness of the mental variety. A disastrous 0-3 start  included a 12-point home loss to FCS William and Mary—bad memories of Richmond, anyone?—but Virginia has recovered nicely, winning three of its last four games. The most recent loss came against surging Georgia Tech, and the Cavaliers have already beaten Indiana by 40 points at Scott Stadium.

Still, Duke isn’t worried so much by Virginia’s mental state, but by its unusual defensive scheme.

The Cavalier defense runs out of the 3-4 alignment, Cutcliffe said, which includes just three down linemen versus four upright linebackers. The scheme allows linebackers to blitz more frequently and out of more unique positions than the traditional 4-3.The 3-4 is common in the NFL, but is utilized less frequently at the college level.

“The 3-4 defense lends itself to being an excellent zone blitz format, which is something we don’t see that often,” Cutcliffe said.

That zone-blitzing scheme has elevated Virginia’s pass defense to the top of the ACC, although that statistic is a bit misleading since two of the Cavaliers’ conference opponents, Georgia Tech and North Carolina, rank in the bottom two in passing offense. Virginia’s other ACC opponent, Maryland, ranks in the middle of the conference in passing offense, while Duke tops that list.

If Thaddeus Lewis and the Blue Devils fall from their perch as the ACC’s best passing team Saturday, you can thank Virginia’s unique defense for it.

Head coach David Cutcliffe talks about this week's game against Virginia.

At Tuesday’s weekly press conference, head coach David Cutcliffe announced the the team’s captains for the week for the upcoming game against Virginia. Duke will face off against the Cavaliers in Charlottesville, Va. at 3:30 on Saturday:

Offensive Captains: AUSTIN KELLY and JAY HOLLINGSWORTH

Junior Austin Kelly (left) will lead the offense with Jay Hollinsgsworth (right)

Hollingsworth, a sophomore, will lead the offensive unit along with Kelly, a junior tight end. Kelly caught nine passes against Maryland for 67 yards. The junior leads the ACC with 5.57 receptions per game and has caught five or more passes for in five straight games. Kelly is a crucial member of a potent Blue Devil receiving unit and a favorite target of quarterback Thaddeus Lewis. In the last three games, Lewis has is 92-for-133 passing for 1,189 yards, nine touchdowns and just one interception.

Defensive Captains: LEON WRIGHT and KINNEY RUCKER

Seniors Leon Wright (left) and Kinney Rucker (right) will lead the defense.

Cutcliffe’s two defensive captains are both seniors this week. Kinney Rucker joins cornerback Leon Wright, who has been particularly active on the defensive end as of late. So far this season, Wright has 31 tackles and three interceptions returned for 84 yards. The Blue Devil defense will look to match the success it had last year against Virginia. During the last meeting against the Cavaliers, the Duke defense forced six turnovers.

Will the leadership of the four captains be enough to keep Duke’s bowl dreams alive?