For the week leading up to Duke football’s 2013 Spring Game, the Blue Zone will be breaking down this year’s returning squad unit by unit to examine the key changes you’ll see for next year’s Blue Devils. Today, we look at the offensive line.
Key returners: redshirt junior Takoby Cofield, redshirt senior Dave Harding, redshirt junior Laken Tomlinson, redshirt senior Perry Simmons
Key departures: Brian Moore
Now in the mix: redshirt sophomore Matt Skura, redshirt sophomore Lucas Patrick
2012 performance: Duke's offensive line was one of the most consistent in the ACC in 2012. Allowing just 19.0 sacks, the Blue Devils were tops in the conference in sacks allowed. The unit did not fare as well in run support, as Duke averaged just 3.6 yards per carry last season.
The offensive line did struggle with penalties down the stretch. A number of false starts and holding calls seemed to become a regular occurrence for the Blue Devils during their five-game losing streak to finish the season.
On the bright side, this unit did an excellent job staying on the field last season. Duke was injury-ridden at nearly every other position, but all five of the team's offensive linemen started all 13 games for the Blue Devils last season.
Season outlook: Losing just one graduating senior, Duke will return four of its five starters on the offensive line this season. Experience up front will be crucial for the Blue Devils with a first-year starting quarterback and a number of young playmakers.
In addition to making sure the entire line stays healthy like it did last season, Duke's primary responsibility will be replacing center Brian Moore, who was the anchor of the offensive line last season. Moore, who was a starter during most of his career at Duke, leaves a gaping hole at the center of the team's offensive line for next season.
The team has two options for filling the void left by Moore's departure. Dave Harding could shift over from his usual guard slot to take over at center, allowing Lucas Patrick to slide in at left guard. Patrick showed a lot of promise last season and did see a fair amount of game action. The other option would be to turn to redshirt sophomore Matt Skura, who Cutcliffe said has excelled this spring at the center spot. Both Skura and Patrick have been working with the first team this spring as Harding recovers from offseason surgery.
As the most experienced unit on the team, the Blue Devil offensive line will be one of the keys to replicating the team's offensive success from last season.
Previous unit breakdowns: Quarterbacks, running backs, wide receivers, tight ends
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