In hopes of winning its first bowl game since 1961, No. 22 Duke takes on Johnny Manziel and No. 20 Texas A&M in the Chick-fil-A Bowl. Kick-off is at 8 p.m. at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta. Here are the keys to tonight’s game:
Contain Manziel while covering downfield
At times this season, Duke has had trouble defending mobile quarterbacks. Georgia Tech’s Vad Lee, Virginia Tech’s Logan Thomas, Wake Forest’s Tanner Price, and North Carolina’s Marquise Williams all had success running the ball—especially in third down situations—against the Blue Devils’ defense. Now, Duke is tasked with stopping Johnny Manziel and his ability to turn a broken play into a huge gain with his feet. Duke must contain Manziel and keep him from making explosive plays, but must also pay great attention to covering downfield. The Aggies rank seventh in the nation in passing yards per game at 350.9 and fifth overall in points per game at 43.6. Protected by a potential future top-10 pick in offensive lineman Jake Matthews, Manziel does more than avoid the rush with his feet and often has time to let plays develop and deliver the deep ball. His favorite target, 6-foot-5 sophomore Mike Evans, has accumulated 1,322 yards and 12 touchdowns this season and will pose a great challenge to a young Duke secondary. In order to get its 11th win of the season, the Blue Devil defense must find a way to contain the best scrambling quarterback in the country while limiting Evans’ production.
Early success in the passing game
Texas A&M’s defense has given up an average of 7.3 yards per pass attempt and has allowed 28 passing touchdowns in twelve games this season. Anthony Boone and Duke’s passing game must exploit the Aggies’ weak pass defense and first-team All-ACC receiver Jamison Crowder must make a significant impact for the Blue Devils to pull off the victory. Duke’s most successful games have been those in which many players contribute in the passing game. Thus, it is imperative that Boone shares the ball and that tight end Braxton Deaver and receivers Brandon Braxton, Max McCaffery and Issac Blakeney leave their mark.
Win the field position battle
Everyone expects the Chick-fil-A Bowl to be an exciting showcase of big plays and lots of offense. It is thus essential that Duke makes Manziel and the Texas A&M offense score on long drives and that the Blue Devil offense avoids three-and-outs. All-ACC punter Will Monday averages 42.7 yards per punt and has had success pinning opponents deep in their own territories this season. On the other side of special teams, Jamison Crowder and DeVon Edwards have starred returning punts and kick-offs and must continue to have success in order to give the Duke offense favorable field position.
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.