Surely, Duke quarterback Adam Smith must crack a smile when he takes the ball from center and turns to survey his options these days.
When he wants to hand the ball off, waiting in the backfield behind him stand Chris Douglas and Alex Wade, who together combined for almost 2,000 yards rushing last year and who both averaged a head-turning 4.9 yards per rush. Should the junior quarterback want some extra time in the pocket, he can look straight to an offensive line which returns all its five starters from last season.
And if Smith wants to take his chances downfield? Well, there are plenty of targets waiting for the ball out there too.
Perhaps the most unproven of Duke's offensive weapons--the receiving corps--could put together an impressive season if things go its way. Head coach Carl Franks and company are expecting a big year from the team's wideouts, as all the starters from last year's squad are back and have been complemented by some new players as well.
Leading the group is a senior, Reggie Love, who is coming off knee surgery, and a trio of juniors--Lance Johnson, Khary Sharpe and Senterrio Landrum--whose efforts last season totalled 84 receptions, 1,014 yards receiving and 11 touchdowns for the Blue Devils.
After missing the final four weeks of last season with the leg injury, Love returns as the team's No.1 wideout. Love, at 6-foot-4 and 225 pounds, is certainly Smith's biggest target downfield. He and the people around him insist that he is indeed healthy.
"Personally, I felt as though I am physcially stronger and faster than [I was] last year," Love said. "Hopefully, I will not only be able to start at where I left off but at a higher level."
The Charlotte, N.C., native's injury could not have come at a worse time for him last season. In the stretch of games preceding it, Love posted a career best six catches in a game versus Virginia and was starting to come into his own. It is the senior's last chance to breakout, and so far, all signs look good.
His performance last spring, including a Blue-White Scrimmage performance in which he hauled in seven balls for 128 yards and a touchdown, receiving more-than-favorable reviews. He was named Most Improved Player on offense at the end of Spring drills.
"Reggie is a senior now and he's our most experienced guy," Duke assistant coach Aubrey Hill said. "He has been through all the two-a-days and the games and I think he comes into the season with a good perspective. Without a doubt, he is our best blocker and he has good athletic ability, size and hands. He's made some plays for us in the past, and we look for good things from him this year."
Landrum agreed.
"You can tell [Reggie] is one of the older guys," he said. "He is one of the more experienced guys. He has really stepped his game up. You can not really tell on the field thats he has had an injury."
In addition to Love, the three aforementioned junior wideouts plan on being attratctive targets for Smiths passes as well. It seems Johnson, Sharpe and Landrum all bring their indidviual strengths to the field.
"Everybody is different," Love said. "Every guy is good at one thing that the other guys are not. Khary is one of the faster guys we got. [Senterrio] is really agile and nimble and quick, and Lance is bigger with great hands and myself, a really big target."
Sharpe is Smith's most likely game-breaker downfield target. He led Duke last year in catches and receiving yards with 30 and 458, respectively, and received the Big Play Award at the end of last spring.
Landrum possesses both good hands and good speed. He will probably see action as a wideout, rusher and returner. The Sweet Water, Ala., native, who also plays baseball at Duke, returned a kickoff 97 yards for a touchdown in the Blue-White game.
Rounding out the trio of juniors is Johnson, likely possessing the best hands out of the bunch, who might also return punts for coach Franks. In addition, four letterman and four other players will look to push for playing time. Sophomore Ronnie Elliot, the primary kick returner last season, should see the field and have a chance to push for a starting role.
The entire group figures to make practices and games a competition every week, a welcome battle for the coaches.
"Our depth has improved greatly over the past couple of years, and we'll try to use that to our advantage," Hill said. "Most importantly, depth breeds competition. The more players are fighting for playing time, the better they get as individuals, and that in turn helps the group be more dependable."
With the traffic jam in the receiver depth chart, perhaps only one thing is clear: it does not really matter which players come out on top because quarterback Smith should be smiling when he looks to his wideouts either way.
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