Duke will hit the road for the first time since its season-opener against Tulane and take on Army at Michie Stadium at noon Saturday. Last weekend against Boston College, Duke squeaked out a 9-7 victory behind a stout defensive performance and three Ross Martin field goals. The Blue Devils take an impressive 4-1 record into West Point, N.Y., but there is still plenty of room for improvement before the team hits the meat of its schedule. Here are three keys to Duke’s final non-conference game of the season:
Take risks downfield in the passing game
A break in the Blue Devils' ACC schedule to play a 1-4 Army team presents an ideal opportunity for quarterback Thomas Sirk to regain some confidence and reestablish the offensive rhythm that led the Duke to blowout victories against Tulane and N.C. Central. Sirk threw for more than 600 yards and had five touchdown passes in these two games, but has struggled to adjust to better defenses in his first year as a starter. The Glen St. Mary, Fla., native has just one touchdown pass and three interceptions since his successful start to the season and has not surpassed 200 passing yards in a game during this stretch.
Most of Sirk’s passes against Northwestern and Georgia Tech were screens and check-downs, but he began to look down the field last week against Boston College. Freshman wide receiver T.J. Rahming was forced into a bigger role due to Johnell Barnes’s first half suspension and Sirk found him five times for 75 yards in the half. The junior quarterback will need to keep this chemistry going and connect on big plays with his other receivers against the Black Knights’ secondary, which has only allowed three touchdown passes all season.
Win the time of possession battle
Duke’s defense has been one of the best in the nation this year, but it has shown signs of tiring in the fourth quarters of each of its last three games. In Duke’s lone loss of the season to Northwestern, the Wildcats were able to find a hole and ice the game with a 55-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter. A week later, Georgia Tech quarterback Justin Thomas capped a long drive with a 12-yard touchdown run to cut into Duke’s lead with time winding down in the contest. Last week, Boston College sustained a five-minute, 49-yard drive late in the game before missing a potential game-winning field goal.
All three of these teams had an advantage in time of possession against Duke, and although the Blue Devils were able to come through with game-saving stops against the Yellow Jackets and the Eagles, Duke’s offense needs to do a better job of keeping its defense off the field. A more effective rushing attack would go a long way towards achieving this goal. Shaquille Powell and the rest of the running back corps had a game to forget a week ago as the Blue Devils could only muster 33 rushing yards on 35 carries. More success in this area of the game will take time off the clock and give the defense some much-needed rest.
Stay disciplined and dominant on defense
The Black Knights run a triple-option offense, a system Duke has already seen this season against Georgia Tech. Army’s offensive unit is much less talented than that of the Yellow Jackets, but the Blue Devils still need to be disciplined and avoid unnecessary risks on defense. Duke’s defense has succeeded against Georgia Tech's multi-pronged rushing attack in each of the last two years by sticking to its assignments and shutting down every option in their flexible offensive scheme.
As long as the Blue Devil defense prepares well enough for Army’s system, their talent and athleticism should keep the Black Knights in check. Safety Jeremy Cash and linebacker Dwayne Norman will both need to continue their big years and rack up tackles on rushing attempts. If the Blue Devil defensive line wins the battle at the line of scrimmage and prevents holes from opening up, Army will be yet another opponent that struggles to move the ball against Duke.
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