Third and goal: Battle in the trenches, winning the turnover battle essential for No. 20 Duke football against Louisville

No. 20 Duke football travels to No 18 Louisville looking for another ACC victory. The Blue Zone has three keys for the Blue Devils to emerge with the win:

Protect the quarterback

Head coach Mike Elko must choose between redshirt freshman Henry Belin IV and injured junior Riley Leonard to facilitate against the Louisville defense. Either way, protecting the quarterback is crucial. Leonard suffered a high ankle sprain in an unfortunate series of events in Duke’s heartbreaking loss to Notre Dame. The Blue Devils rested their quarterback against NC State, giving Belin a chance to prove himself. The redshirt freshman played fairly well for his first game against the Wolfpack, throwing for two touchdowns with a single interception. If Elko decides to play Belin against the Cardinals, the Blue Devil offensive line will need to protect their young quarterback for the sake of his confidence and decision making. If Belin has more time to make passes than he did against NC State, Duke has a chance to gain offensive momentum on Louisville. On the contrary, Leonard’s health is crucial. Elko made the gametime decision to let Leonard play against Florida State despite the uncertainty of his ankle’s health. As a quarterback with the instinct to run, Leonard couldn’t help himself, rushing for 13 yards on one attempt. With Duke leading 20-17 in the third quarter against Florida State, a sack on Leonard reactivated his ankle injury and sent him off the field once again. If Elko ultimately decides to let his starting quarterback play, the Blue Devils must ensure Leonard stays healthy; the success of the latter half of Duke’s season may depend on it.

Stop the run

Although the Cardinals’ star running back Jawhar Jordan didn’t play much in Louisville’s loss to Pittsburgh last week, the possibility of his return is threatening. The redshirt junior played a crucial role in the Cardinals’ upset against the Fighting Irish in Week 6. Jordan rushed for 143 yards and two touchdowns to hand Notre Dame its second loss of the season. If Jordan returns, he may look to recreate that success against the Blue Devils. Despite Louisville’s loss against the Panthers, running backs Isaac Guerendo and Maurice Turner were able to find rushing success. Turner averaged 6.8 yards per carry on 12 attempts and Guerendo scored two touchdowns. If the Blue Devils can successfully stop the Cardinal run game, they will be put at a huge advantage as they eliminate a large part of Louisville’s offense. 

Minimize turnovers

With both Duke and Louisville coming off of tough ACC losses, the teams are desperate for a Week 9 win. Expect a hard fought match on Saturday as both teams look to put their name back in the win column. With unexpected outcomes in pivotal games, anything could happen. Turnovers in the Duke against Louisville matchup, depending on which team they come from, could help the Blue Devils pull out a win or be detrimental to their success. Duke’s season opener against Clemson perfectly displays this effect. The Tigers lost two fumbles and an interception in Week 1; what seemed to be a comfortable first game for Clemson was spoiled by turnovers. The Cardinals suffered this same fate in their last game against the Panthers. Louisville turned over a fumble and threw two interceptions, and were outscored 24-0 in the second half, handing the Cardinals the first loss of their season. Limited turnovers for Duke in Week 9 could help advance its standing in the ACC.