During preseason practice, sophomore quarterback Marcus Jones was the center of attention.
Duke fans wondered whether, with little experience, Jones could step up and replace Zack Asack, who was suspended July 19 for plagiarism.
Freshman quarterback Thaddeus Lewis was an afterthought, still a year of experience away from viably competing for the number one job.
After Last Saturday's game, however, that perception has begun to shift. In Duke's 13-0 loss to Richmond, Lewis received the majority of the snaps.
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Quarterback controversies are not new to the Duke football program. Last season, quarterback Mike Schneider appeared to be the solidified starter for the year. But after Schneider's early season woes, Asack, then a freshman, began to receive playing time and eventually took over the spot for Schneider, who has since transferred to Division I-AA Youngstown State.
The transition Saturday this year, however, was much more sudden than the switch a year ago.
During the game against the Spiders, Roof unexpectedly gave Lewis the reins of the offense at quarterback on the third series of the season. Lewis said that was part of the original plan.
But Lewis certainly did not expect to guide the offense for most of the night.
"Mostly [Roof] told me I was going to play the third series," Lewis said Saturday. "I didn't know after that. It wasn't really planned. I was supposed to get some playing experience, and I guess the coaching staff made the decision to keep me in the game."
After the game, Roof did not say whether Lewis was the new starting quarterback. But the confidence that Roof showed with the playing time he gave to Lewis signaled that Roof may be leaning toward Lewis, contrary to the preseason decision.
Against the Spiders, Lewis handled the offense more effectively than Jones. He was able to find more receivers open downfield, and whenever the pocket collapsed-which it did often-Lewis frequently scrambled away from the defensive pressure and salvaged the play.
Although the offense did not gain a first down during Lewis' first series, he marched the Blue Devils down the field into field goal range on his next two drives, connecting on 5-of-8 passes for 20 yards.
Jones, on the other hand, failed to move the offense into scoring position during any of his three series, completing only two of his eight passes for 11 yards.
Roof said he would evaluate Lewis and Jones' play and see how each of them practiced in order to determine the starter against Wake Forest.
"We're going to practice them both and see how that unfolds and make a decision closer to game time," Roof said. "I thought both of them did some good things, and I thought both of them made some mistakes and we've got to correct the mistakes and move on and build on what they did well."
Judging by the end of the Richmond game, the odds are in favor of Lewis.
Although he failed to punch the ball into the end zone on the next-to-last drive of the game, Lewis weaved in and out of defenders. He frequently connected with receivers in the flat and near the sideline, moving the Duke offense to the Richmond two-yard line.
His favorite target on the drive was sophomore wide receiver Raphael Chestnut, who caught three passes from Lewis for 34 yards on the drive.
In the past, Roof has used two quarterbacks during the same game on several occasions. Asack first became a factor during the 2005 contest at Virginia, and he was named the starter for the next week's game at home against Navy.
Roof continued to use both quarterbacks, however, even inserting Schneider for Asack on the last drive of the Navy and North Carolina games.
For now, the quarterback situation that once seemed clear in the preseason has once again become murky as Duke searches for answers on offense.
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