Stock Watch: Juwan Thompson, Duke football and Jahlil Okafor trending up as October comes to an end

The bell of the Blue Zone stock exchange has just rung again, meaning it's time for another taking a look at who is rising and falling with their performances for Blue Devil sports teams. Each week The Blue Zone will look at whose stock is on the rise and whose stock has taken a hit from the week in the world of Duke athletics.

Bull Market—Trending Up

Juwan Thompson: The undrafted rookie, who played offense, defense and special teams at Duke, worked his way onto the Broncos' roster this fall and is seeing meaningful time during the heart of the NFL season. He had a breakout game last Thursday in a 35-21 win against San Diego, rushing seven times for 24 yards and two touchdowns. Although he is still taking second team reps behind starter Ronnie Hillman, he has seen numerous touches during the past three games and is Denver's best option near the goal line. ESPN is even projecting Thompson to garner seven points in its fantasy football leagues this weekend.

Duke football: The Blue Devils continue to sit atop the ACC Coastal Division and moved into both the AP Poll and the Coaches Polls Sunday, checking in at No. 24 in both polls. Duke was also ranked 24th in the College Football Playoff's first rankings Tuesday evening. As players and coaches rested during a bye week this weekend, they watched other Coastal contenders battle it out on the gridiron, as Georgia Tech cruised past then-second-place Pittsburgh 56-28 and North Carolina slid past Virginia 28-27. If Duke can manage a win this week against Pittsburgh, it will have a one-game lead on every ACC Coastal Division team.

Jahlil Okafor: CBS Sports selected the freshman phenomena as the preseason National Player of Year, and although it drew many critics, Okafor proved them wrong with a stellar performance at Countdown to Craziness. He scored 27 points on 12-of-16 shooting and grabbed eight rebounds, living up to the hype that preceded the annual scrimmage and dunk contest. Okafor and the Blue Devils take the floor for their first exhibition this Tuesday, Nov. 4 at 7:00 p.m. for an exhibition game against Livingstone.

Bear Market—Trending Down

Semi Ojeleye: The sophomore was unable to throw it down in this year's dunk contest at Countdown to Craziness, even though he was one of the favorites to win this season after he won in 2013 as a freshman. Ojeleye played a decent scrimmage, registering five points and he might want to stick to jump shots and lay-ups for the time being. He also took home the Iron Devil award for the second consecutive season for his work in the offseason.

Pittsburgh: The Panthers had a clear path to first place in the ACC, if they beat Georgia Tech last week and Duke on Saturday. But that plan went awry when the Panthers fumbled six times against the Yellow Jackets, including a whopping four times in the first quarter. The costly turnovers put the Panthers in a 28-0 hole that they were never able to overcome. In fact, they managed to defy some of the greatest odds college football has ever seen, but not in a good way.