Next up in The Chronicle's review of Duke's 4-8 season is an evaluation of the Blue Devils' defense. Look back at our grade for Duke's offense here, and check back later this week for an analysis of the team's special teams unit.
Defense: C+
Pass: Duke's secondary was decimated by season-ending injuries to redshirt senior captain DeVon Edwards—who tore his ACL Sept. 24 against Notre Dame—and senior cornerback Breon Borders, who missed the last three games of the year with a hip injury. The Blue Devils paid the price in the defensive backfield, surrendering 10 passing touchdowns in their last three contests and allowing four opponents to pass for more than 300 yards this season.
Duke was particularly susceptible to the big play through the air, allowing 15 passes that went for more than 40 yards. The Blue Devils made some game-changing plays of their own, picking off 10 passes—led by senior Deondre Singleton with three—but they slowed down toward the end of the year with just three interceptions in their last six games.
Under the tutelage of first-year defensive line coach Ben Albert, Duke's pass rush made major strides this season. The Blue Devils had 29 sacks a year after they were one of the worst teams in the nation at pressuring opposing quarterbacks with just 17 sacks. Redshirt senior defensive tackle A.J. Wolf led Duke's front seven to an impressive season, and his contributions against then-No. 15 North Carolina—when he pressured Mitch Trubisky into two uncharacteristic interceptions—helped the Blue Devils to their biggest victory of the year.
Although Duke will have to replace most of their secondary next year, true freshman cornerback Mark Gilbert started the last three games in place of Borders and showed flashes of potential, and classmate Dylan Singleton will also be ready to step into a bigger role at safety.
Rush: Starting linebackers Ben Humphreys and Joe Giles-Harris both had breakout seasons as Duke's two leading tacklers, but the Blue Devils were not always consistent against the run. During a three-game losing streak in the second half of the season, Duke allowed Louisville, Georgia Tech and Virginia Tech all to rush for more than 200 yards, and the Blue Devils also gave up 224 rushing yards and four touchdowns on the ground in a 56-14 loss against Pittsburgh.
Duke often struggled to contain opposing quarterbacks in the run game, letting Wake Forest's Kendall Hinton, the Yellow Jackets' Justin Thomas and Hokie quarterback Jerod Evans run free for big gains.
The Blue Devils did hold three of their first five opponents to fewer than 100 yards on the ground, and the lone bright spot for the unit in the second half of the season was a stifling performance against the Tar Heels. Duke held North Carolina to just 106 yards on 27 carries, and the Tar Heels failed to score a touchdown on their last seven drives.
Humphreys and Giles-Harris will be back next year after earning All-ACC recognition this week, and everyone except Wolf and defensive end Dominic McDonald will return on the defensive line.
X's and O's: Defensive coordinator Jim Knowles called for blitzes often this year to try to put pressure on the quarterback and conceal potential deficiencies in the secondary. This worked on many occasions, but it also allowed mobile quarterbacks to make plays with their feet out of the pocket and sometimes left receivers wide open for big plays downfield.
The Blue Devils also did not have as much success staying disciplined against the triple option as they had in past years. After a strong defensive performance in a 13-6 win against Army that was helped by Hurricane Matthew, Duke's defense had no answer for Georgia Tech in a 38-35 loss. The Yellow Jackets ran for 341 yards and passed for 264 more on just 10 completions to put a dent in Knowles' reputation as the "king of the triple option."
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.