After dropping last weekend’s game against Virginia, the Blue Devils entered this week of practice understanding that they would again be ineligible to appear in a postseason bowl game. And given Duke’s ever-growing injury report—head coach David Cutcliffe estimated that 16 starters have missed time with injuries this season—it seems fair to wonder how the Blue Devils will approach their matchup with Georgia Tech on Saturday, at 12:30 p.m. at Wallace Wade Stadium.
Cutcliffe, however, rejected any notion that his squad would be either too dejected or too injured to compete aggressively against the Yellow Jackets (7-3, 4-3 in the ACC).
“There’s plenty of energy, plenty of enthusiasm…. I expect us to play our best game on Saturday, with whomever we have available. That’s the mentality we’re going into this game with,” Cutcliffe said.
Duke (3-7, 1-5) will have to contend with Georgia Tech’s unique triple option offense, spearheaded by its super-athletic junior quarterback, Tevin Washington. Washington has thrown the ball just 112 times this season—Blue Devils quarterback Sean Renfree, as a reference point, has attempted 372 passes—but has also rushed for 713 yards and 22 touchdowns. Duke is somewhat prepared to defend the option, having played the Yellow Jackets, Navy, and Army in recent seasons.
“We’ve dedicated a lot of time to defending Georgia Tech’s offense since we’ve been here,” Cutcliffe said. “We have a separate playbook that doesn’t sound or look anything like our regular defense [to prepare]…and we’ve put some new things in.”
The ‘new things’ in Cutcliffe’s mock playbook could very well simulate elements of Georgia Tech’s diversified option attack this season. The Yellow Jackets have surprised opponents with deep passes in traditional running situations, many of which have been reeled in by junior receiver Stephen Hill, who has 22 receptions for 651 yards and four touchdowns. And the Blue Devils are well aware of the danger that Hill poses in unsuspecting situations.
“Hill is a rare physical specimen,” sophomore cornerback Ross Cockrell said. “This year, they’ve just been throwing the ball up to him, allowing him to use his size and athleticism over shorter corners and safeties for touchdowns. He’s gained a lot of yards doing that on [situations like] second-and-short.”
Although Georgia Tech’s offense will challenge Duke both in the air and on the ground, the Yellow Jackets’ Achilles’ heel this season has been its rushing defense, ranked third-to-last in the ACC. Blue Devils’ running back Desmond Scott, who was held to just 14 yards on five carries against Virginia, should have an opportunity to rebound on Saturday. The junior running back had made significant strides since recovering from his early season injury and returning against Florida State, averaging 5.7 yards on 42 carries in the four games leading up to the Virginia contest.
But a core component of Duke’s offensive attack will remain in flux, as Cutcliffe refused to name a starting field-goal kicker in his Tuesday press conference. Injuries have rendered preseason All-American kicker Will Snyderwine, who has missed nine of his 16 field goal attempts this season, inconsistent and ineffective. Despite expressing uncertainty as to whether Snyderwine will get a chance on fourth down or if the offense will be left on the field, Cutcliffe expressed confidence in the placekicker’s ability.
“He’s still kicking better than anyone else at this point,” Cutcliffe said. “I need him to know that he’s good. He’s a very gifted kicker.”
Snyderwine is also one of 20 Blue Devil seniors who will be playing in the final home game of their careers on Saturday. Allowing these players to leave Wallace Wade victorious, especially after a season full of disappointments, is a challenge that Cutliffe is embracing.
“We’re going to try and send these seniors away with a victory in their last game at Wallace Wade,” he said. “I came in with many of these guys, so it’s going to be a sad day, but hopefully it’s going to be a great day,” Cutcliffe said.
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