Duke 2014 Spring Football Wrap Up

Strengths & question marks coming out of spring

Duke’s biggest strength heading into 2014 is its speed and talent at the offensive skill positions. The Blue Devils will return their two primary quarterbacks while adding another to the fold, revamp their ground game behind two experienced running backs and bring back five of the team’s top six receivers from a year ago. With that type of continuity, Duke should waste little time hanging some crooked offensive numbers early in the season.

Another big strength of the team is its secondary. Despite losing All-ACC cornerback and future NFL draft pick Ross Cockrell, Duke’s defensive backfield was anchored by four newcomers in 2013. Bryon Fields and Breon Borders saw significant playing time as true freshmen and the safety quartet of Jeremy Cash, DeVon Edwards, Deondre Singleton and Corbin McCarthy all made significant impacts as well. Throw in a new crop of secondary talent that redshirted last year, and the Blue Devils should have a lot of strength back there.

Duke’s main question mark heading into 2014 should be up front on the defensive line, where the Blue Devils lost three of their four starters from last year. Fifth-year senior Jamal Bruce will be the lone returning starter at nose guard, and how this defensive unit will fare next year depends largely on guys like Dezmond Johnson, Jonathan Jones and Carlos Wray, who will likely be stepping in to fill holes in the trenches. Behind them, depth on the defensive line becomes a concern as well. Last year’s D-line was a very experienced bunch with considerable depth but this year’s group appears to be more of a work in progress.

Name a few breakout players to keep an eye on in 2014

The first guy I would keep an eye on is sophomore wide receiver Johnell Barnes. He didn’t see too much playing time during his true freshman season but reeled in an impressive 13.0 yards per catch. He’s a guy with a lot of speed who can stretch the field and should compete for a starting spot this year. Another receiver to watch is highly-touted freshman Trevon Lee.

On the defensive side of the football, look out for redshirt freshman cornerback Evrett Edwards. After receiving noted interest from Alabama head coach Nick Saban following his commitment to Duke, Edwards may have had the most buzz around him of any Blue Devil freshman last season before he was jumped by two of his classmates on the depth chart and ended up a surprise redshirt. Edwards showed off his skills in the Spring Game, playing with the first team and tying for the team lead with eight tackles on the afternoon.

Duke QB Anthony Boone

Grade each position group

QBs: A- No singular Duke quarterback will blow you away, but head coach David Cutcliffe will utilize this entire unit, which is very solid from top to bottom. Starter Anthony Boone will return for his final season with the Blue Devils after exceeding expectations and winning his first 10 games as a starter last year. Brandon Connette played significant snaps as well in 2013 and demonstrated that in addition to being a ground threat—leading the team with 13 rushing touchdowns—he can throw the ball as well.

Throw in redshirt sophomore Thomas Sirk, who missed the entire 2013 season with a ruptured Achilles, and Duke has a crop of talented signal-callers to pull from. The most interesting part of this will be how Cutcliffe decides to use them. He platooned Boone and Connette when Boone struggled at points last season and has loved Sirk’s talent and athleticism. I wouldn’t be wholly shocked if we saw a three-quarterback system in Durham next year.

RBs: B+ Josh Snead showcased his explosiveness last season and Shaquille Powell proved reliable, but the loss of Jela Duncan due to a year-long suspension could hurt this unit in 2014. Joseph Ajeigbe will slide in to fill out Duke’s three-headed monster but shouldn’t see as many carries as the other two. There’s a good chance there could be more of an emphasis on the quarterbacks running the football in the Blue Devils’ zone-read scheme this year.

Receivers: A- Duke returns one of the ACC’s top receivers in Jamison Crowder as well as one of the conference’s most underrated tight ends in Braxton Deaver. Otherwise, the Blue Devils have speed and depth at receiver and like to spread the ball around.

OL: B+ Returning three starters from last year’s team, this is where Duke has a couple of holes to fill. Losing captain Dave Harding and All-ACC pick Perry Simmons will be tough, but the Blue Devils gave lots of playing time to their younger linemen last season for exactly this reason.

DL: B This is definitely one of the team’s shakiest areas, losing three starters from last year and returning minimal depth will put a lot of pressure on returners sliding into new roles.

LB: A David Helton and Kelby Brown combined for 228 tackles and 13.5 tackles for a loss last year. Both are returning as senior leaders. What more could you want from your linebacking corps?

DBs: A- Most of Duke’s young talent in the secondary received significant game experience last year. Add in the players that redshirted last year, and this could be a dangerous group. Jeremy Cash will assert himself as one of the ACC’s top playmakers and could make a push to be an All-American next year.

STs: A With Ross Martin kicking, Will Monday punting, DeVon Edwards returning kicks and Jamison Crowder returning punts, you’d be hard pressed to find a better special teams combination in the ACC. These four may be among the top units in the entire country.

What can we expect from Duke in 2014?

One thing is for certain—Duke won’t be taking anybody by surprise this time around. The 2013 Blue Devils shocked the nation en route to a 10-win season and Chick-fil-A Bowl berth after being picked to finish dead last in the ACC’s Coastal Division a year ago. With the Coastal Division undergoing significant changes heading into 2014, I’d be shocked if Duke was not the division favorite heading into the season.

Talent-wise, this Duke team is just as good, if not better, than the team that won the Coastal in 2013. This year’s schedule looks favorable, especially when it comes to home and road matchups, but there are certain things you can’t always count on. It’s hard to be perfect on the road in ACC play like the Blue Devils were last season and a revamped North Carolina squad and a healthy Duke Johnson at Miami will almost certainly look to stand in the Blue Devils’ way in their quest to repeat as division champs. Ultimately I like Duke to go 9-3 next year, with another trip to Charlotte not out of the question.

Daniel Carp of The Blue Zone provided the information for our Duke football 2013 spring wrap up. For more Duke football information, commentary and analysis, you can follow The Blue Zone on Twitter @chroniclesports.