Monthly Archives: November 2010

Duke Football

UNC vs Duke Football Game Notes

 
 

Lance Images

Durham, N.C.
Stadium: Wallace Wade Stadium
Surface: Natural grass
Capacity: 33,941
TV: ESPNU - Pam Ward (Play-by-Play), Danny Kanell (Analyst)
Radio: Blue Devils ISP Sports Network
Internet: GoDuke.com (Live stats)
Tickets: 1-877-375-DUKE
Series: North Carolina, 56-36-4

Victory Bell on the Line

  • Duke and North Carolina will play for the Victory Bell on Saturday, Nov. 27 when the two teams wrap up the regular season at 3:30 p.m. in Wallace Wade Stadium.
  • The Blue Devils are coming off a 30-20 loss on the road at Georgia Tech while the Tar Heels fell to N.C. State at home, 29-25.
  • The game between Duke and North Carolina will be televised on ESPNU with Pam Ward (play-by-play) and Danny Kanell (analyst) calling the action.

Senior Day for Blue Devils

Late Game Rally Falls Short

  • Duke led 13-6 at halftime, but Georgia Tech scored 17 unanswered points in the third quarter and went on to defeat the Blue Devils 30-20 in Atlanta.
  • Redshirt sophomore quarterback Sean Renfree completed 30-of-41 passes for 334 yards and one touchdown on the day for his fifth 300-yard game of the season.
  • True freshman quarterback Brandon Connette set a school record for rushing touchdowns by a freshman with his seventh of the year on a 20-yard run.
  • Senior wide receiver Austin Kelly caught his third touchdown pass of the season on a 37-yard toss from Renfree.
  • Junior safety Matt Daniels caused a fumble and also had a fumble recovery while recording seven tackles.
  • Redshirt senior linebacker Abraham Kromah tallied 13 tackles for his seventh game of the season with 10 or more.
  • Junior kicker Will Snyderwine made two field goals, including a career long of 52, to move into a tie for second on Duke’s career made field goals list (37).

Duke vs. North Carolina

  • Saturday’s game will mark the 97th on the gridiron between the two schools, with North Carolina holding a 56-36-4 all-time series advantage.
  • The first game in the series came on November 27, 1888 with Duke earning a 16-0 victory in Raleigh.
  • The Tar Heels have won six straight and 19 of the past 20 meetings including last year’s 19-6 decision in Chapel Hill.
  • Duke’s last win over North Carolina in Durham came in the form of a 35-29 decision in 1988.

Game Sponsor
TIAA-CREF serves as the game sponsor for this week’s Duke-UNC game.

Battle of the Blues Presented by Continental Tire

  • The Duke-North Carolina rivalry series continues this year with a new name and presenting sponsor.
  • The Battle of the Blues presented by Continental Tire is the year-long rivalry series between the two schools, with points awarded in 23 sports of competition.
  • The winner at season end will receive the Continental Tire Cup.
  • UNC leads the 2010-11 series, 4-2, with this week’s football game worth two points to the winner.

Duke-North Carolina Ties

  • Duke head coach David Cutcliffe and North Carolina head coach Butch Davis both did not coach during the 2005 season. Cutcliffe was on the staff at Notre Dame in the spring of 2005 but resigned due to health reasons before re-joining the Tennessee staff for 2006 while Davis was in between head coaching positions with the NFL’s Cleveland Browns (2001-04) and North Carolina (2007-present).
  • Blue Devil associate head coach Ron Middleton and Tar Heel offensive coordinator John Shoop were on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers staff together in 2004. Shoop was a graduate assistant coach at Vanderbilt from 1992-94 when the Commodores fell three times to Tennessee with Cutcliffe on the Vol coaching staff.
  • UNC aide Art Kaufman served on the Ole Miss staff when Cutcliffe was the head coach of the Rebels.
  • Wes Chesson, who serves as the color analyst for the Duke Radio Network, scored on a 53-yard touchdown pass from Marcell Courtillet on the famed “shoestring play” in Duke’s 17-13 victory in 1969.
  • Anthony Dilweg, the Duke Radio Network’s sideline reporter, completed 29-of-49 passes for 362 yards and three touchdowns in the Blue Devils’ 35-29 win over the Tar Heels in 1988. Dilweg engineered a game-winning 76-yard drive which resulted in Roger Boone’s six-yard scoring run with just 23 seconds left.
  • Duke director of player development Terrell Smith logged seven tackles and forced a fumble in the Blue Devils’ 30-22 victory over North Carolina in 2003. Smith, a captain on the 2003 club, led the Blue Devils in tackles with 140 that season and received All-ACC honors.

The Last Time
North Carolina 19, Duke 6
November 7, 2009 l Chapel Hill, N.C.

  • North Carolina RB Ryan Houston rushed 37 times for 164 yards to help the Tar Heels to a 19-6 win over Duke in the 96th meeting between the two schools as 59,750 fans looked on at Kenan Stadium in Chapel Hill, N.C.
  • The Tar Heels limited Duke to just 125 yards of total offense while securing their 19th win in the last 20 games in the series
  • The teams accounted for two field goals each in the first half before North Carolina K Casey Barth gave the home team the lead for good with a 41-yard effort on the final snap of the third quarter ... North Carolina then scored 10 points over the final seven minutes of the game
  • Duke WR Conner Vernon caught three passes for 21 yards on the day to set a new school single-season record for reception yards by a freshman, breaking the previous standard of 578 yards set by Walter Jones in 1988
  • In the third period, Duke CB Leon Wright posted his fifth interception of the year and the 10th of his career ... Duke S Jordan Byas blocked a Tar Heel punt in the first quarter to set up the Blue Devils’ first field goal

Victory Bell

  • The battle for the Victory Bell began in 1948 with North Carolina earning possession with a 20-0 win in Chapel Hill. Duke head cheerleader Loring Jones and North Carolina head cheerleader Norman Spear decided on the idea of the Victory Bell.
  • Jones designed the model while Spear obtained a bell from an old railroad train. 
  • Red Lewis, Duke’s business manager for athletics, agreed to find money in the budget to pay for the bell.

North Carolina is Duke’s Most Common Foe

  • With 96 total contests played between the two schools, North Carolina ranks as Duke’s most common football opponent.
  • The only schools Duke has played 80 or more football games against are North Carolina, Wake Forest (91) and N.C. State (81).

2010 Marks 89th Straight Season for Duke-Carolina
The Blue Devils and Tar Heels have met every year since 1922.

Notable Games in the Duke-North Carolina Series

  • 1888 — Then Trinity College, Duke wins the first game in the series, 16-0. Stonewall Durham scores the first touchdown in the series.
  • 1935 — Duke’s Jack Alexander rushes for 193 yards as the Blue Devils post a 25-0 victory.
  • 1937 — En route to the Southern Conference title, unranked North Carolina defeats eighth-ranked Duke, 14-6, in Durham.
  • 1939 — In the only meeting when both teams were ranked among the nation’s top 25, No. 13 Duke rallies from a 3-0 halftime deficit to hand No. 7 North Carolina its lone loss of the season. Duke would finish the year 8-1 and win the Southern Conference championship while UNC went 8-1-1.
  • 1949 — The crowd of 57,500, Duke’s largest crowd to date, pours into what is now Wallace Wade Stadium to see Duke lose to North Carolina, 21-20.
  • 1950 — Wallace Wade coaches his final game for Duke and defeats North Carolina, 7-0.
  • 1955 — In its first appearance on television, Duke defeats North Carolina, 6-0, as Oliver Rudy scores on a 35-yard run in the second quarter. The victory clinches the Blue Devils’ third straight ACC title.
  • 1959 — With a national television audience looking on, North Carolina scores on its first three possessions and never looks back, winning 50-0.
  • 1965 — In head coach Bill Murray’s final game, the Blue Devils down North Carolina, 34-7, to give Murray a share of his seventh ACC title. Bob Matheson returns an interception 35 yards for a score while Jay Calabrese contributes three touchdowns.
  • 1970 — Don McCauley rushes 47 times for 279 yards and five TDs as North Carolina wins, 59-34.
  • 1980 — North Carolina’s Amos Lawrence rushes for 143 yards — his fourth 100-yard effort versus Duke — as the No. 15 Tar Heels win in Chapel Hill, 44-21.
  • 1985 — Wide receiver Doug Green catches three second-half touchdown passes — including two in the final two minutes — to guide Duke past North Carolina, 23-21, in Chapel Hill. Green, who finishes with 10 receptions for 152 yards, grabs the game-winning score from Steve Slayden with just 1:10 left in the game as Duke rallies from a 21-3 late third quarter deficit.
  • 1988 — Duke quarterback Anthony Dilweg concluded his outstanding season by throwing for 362 yards and three touchdowns in a 35-29 victory. The league’s player of the year, Dilweg directed the game-winning, 76-yard drive and concluded with Roger Boone’s six-yard touchdown run with 23 seconds left in the game.
  • 1989 — In Chapel Hill, Duke wraps up the ACC title with a 41-0 win over the Tar Heels. The win, Duke’s seventh straight to close the regular season, is highlighted by Dave Brown’s school-record 479 passing yards. The victory marked Duke’s seventh straight of the season after opening the year with a 1-3 ledger.
  • 1994 — With both teams heading to bowl games, North Carolina closed out the regular season with a 41-40 win over Duke on the strength of a late 71-yard TD pass from Mike Thomas to Octavus Barnes. Duke’s Spence Fischer completes 33-of-57 passes for 395 yards and four touchdowns in the contest. Duke’s 60-yard field goal try as time expired fell short.
  • 2002 — Dan Orner boots a 47-yard field goal as time expires to boost North Carolina past Duke, 23-21. The Blue Devils had taken a 21-20 advantage with just over two minutes remaining on Adam Smith’s 33-yard TD pass to Senterrio Landrum.
  • 2003 — Duke darts out to a 23-0 halftime lead and holds on for a 30-22 victory in Chapel Hill, snapping a 13-game Tar Heel winning streak in the series. Duke’s Cedric Dargan and Chris Douglas combine to rush for 171 yards and three touchdowns in the triumph while Matt Zielinski sacked Tar Heel quarterback Darian Durant on North Carolina’s final possession to preserve the win.
  • 2007 — For the first time in the history of the rivalry, the two teams decided the outcome in overtime. Following a missed field goal by Duke, North Carolina won the game with a 25-yard touchdown run for the 20-14 final score
Duke Basketball

Mason Plumlee leads Duke past Marquette

Plumlee has a career night - Lanc King Images

Mason Plumlee lead Duke past a game MArquette team on Monday evening.

The 6-foot-10 sophomore scored a career-high 25 points had 12 rebounds and five blocks to lead Duke to an 82-77 victory over Marquette in the semifinals of the CBE Classic on Monday night.

The younger of the two brothers on the Blue Devils' roster — 6-11 Miles Plumlee is a junior — dominated inside all game and scored 14 points after Marquette tied the game for the last time at 57-all.

"Of course you always want the ball as a player," the native of Warsaw, Ind. said. "I just wanted to stay within the plays that were called and my opportunities were there. They did a good job of hitting me. ... I think it was our defense mainly that pulled it out for us."

He was a big part of that as well with the career-high five blocks and half of his 12 rebounds — two off his career high — were on the defensive end.

Plumlee wasn't ready to call this a breakout performance for the Blue Devils (4-0).

"It's early in the season. The first couple of games were good, but we looked at coming here as our first real test," Plumlee said. "I know personally I did too. It's a decent start."

The next opponent should definitely be tougher. Duke will face the winner of the other semifinal between No. 4 Kansas State and No. 22 Gonzaga.

The Blue Devils took a big early lead then saw Marquette (4-1) tie it three times before Duke went on a 9-0 run that gave it the cushion it needed down the stretch on the way to the reigning national champion's 14th consecutive win.

"I thought we started out well, got a 23-9 (lead), but we didn't built on it. It was almost like we got happy, like it was just going to come. Those kids from Marquette they started turning us over," Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said. "... I thought the best seven minutes of the game were from the 10-minute mark to the three-minute mark for us. There was a lot of game pressure. The game got tied. I thought our kids responded beautifully to that type of pressure."

The Blue Devils took the 14-point lead with 11:15 to play in the first half. Duke was still ahead 40-31 at halftime but the Golden Eagles were able to tie the game three times but never took the lead.

The last tie was 57-all on a baseline jumper by Jae Crowder with 10:28 to play. The Blue Devils scored the next nine points — four by Plumlee — and the Golden Eagles didn't have another run in them, especially when Plumlee took over.

"Mason, obviously, was outstanding. We got him the ball. He made some simple great moves down there. Mason's performance tonight was huge," Krzyzewski said.

Miles Plumlee had two points and two rebounds in 10 minutes for Duke, which will have a third Plumlee next season as 7-0 Marshall Plumlee has signed a letter of intent to attend Duke.

Nolan Smith had 18 points for Duke and Kyle Singler added 14 while freshman Kyrie Irving had 11 points and seven assists.

Jimmy Butler led Marquette, which was 4 of 20 on 3-pointers, with 22 points and Crowder added 15.

"I don't know if you can pick a poison because everyone is poisonous," Marquette coach Buzz Williams said of the Blue Devils. "Five (Mason Plumlee) just wore us out. He's really a good player. They all present challenges to us. Plumlee is good off the bounce. Plumlee can hold his position. He has as many offensive rebounds (six) as he had defensive rebounds. I would say of those six offensive rebounds, he scored four of them, so 33 percent of his points come on put backs. You can't do that."

This is the seventh straight season Duke has started 4-0 and it is the 21st time it has had that record in Mike Krzyzewski's 32 seasons. This was Krzyzewski's 799th win at Duke and his 872nd overall, four behind Adolph Rupp on the all-time list.

The win extended Duke's November winning streak 26 games with the last loss being to Marquette in the finals of 2006 CBE Classic.

The Golden Eagles dropped to 1-7 all-time versus No. 1 teams and 2-6 against Duke.

Although Duke built its early lead on 3-pointers in consecutive trips by Irving, Singler and Seth Curry, Plumlee was the one who made things tough inside on both ends of the court for Marquette.

His fastbreak dunk and move down low capped the 9-0 run that gave the Blue Devils a 66-57 lead with 8:46 to go.

"I think we didn't get back like we planned to get back (on defense). We took a lot of unexpected shots," Butler said of not being to take advantage of tying it for the last time. "We let up in a lot of different areas in our game that we don't need to be doing."

The final score was as close as Marquette would get and that came about with a sloppy final minute by both teams.

Duke Basketball

BDN Previews Duke vs Marquette

Muiles Plumlee looks to get is game going in Kansas City after a slow start - Rick Crank Photo

Make no mistake that tonight's game with Marquette will be the Blue Devils first real test of the season.  The Golden Eagles have enough pieces to field another solid ball club and should place in their sixth straight NCAA Tournament come March.

The Golden Eagles are led by Darius Johnson-Odom [13.0 in 2010]and Jimmy Butler a 6-7 frontcourt player who anchors their front line.  They also return solid veterans in 6-7 senior forward Joseph Fulce [questionable for tonight] and guard Dwight Buycks. 

But there are two talented freshman and a JUCO to go with the four vets.  Jae Crowder was the JUCO Player of the Year [NJCAA] last season where he led Howard College to the national title.  He is joined by Vander Blue a consensus top 40 prospect who played on the Gold Medal winning USA U-18 squad and fellow freshman Jamail Jones who put up numbers of 16.1 ppg and 6.3 boards in high school.

Marquette is 17-3 overall since 2004 in multi team regular season events and they won the O'Reilly Auto Parts  CBE Classic in 2006.

The Blue Devils come into the game ranked number one in the nation but they are still very much experimenting with a new roster and that will continue in the next two days of tournament play.  On paper, Duke is the clear favorite but Marquette is very much a top 25 or better team and they'll make some noise in the Big East.

I'm expecting the teams to get up and down the court if former styles of play take place.  In short, both teams like to run.  Look for Duke to outlast a game bunch and in the process work not only on their break but the half court game in preparation for the winner of the Kansas State-Gonzaga game.  The call here is Duke 83 Marquette 69.  Stay tuned for post game coverage as BDN's Terry Rains is on the scene in Kansas City.  For more on the game check out BDN's Monday Musings

Duke Basketball

Duke Great Christian Laettner Enters HOF

Laettner had more confidence than any player I've seen in my years of following Duke Basketball. He's pictured here with Coach K - pic Lance Images for BDN

I am one of those folks who think Christian Laettner was Duke's All Time Greatest Players and the legendary figure was honored and inducted into the NABC Basketball Hall of Fame.

K.C.com on Laettner to Hall

From Duke Sports Information -

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -  Former Duke men's basketball standout Christian Laettner was inducted into the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame on Sunday evening at a ceremony at the Midland by AMC in Kansas City, Mo.

Laettner is one of 13 Duke players to have their jersey number retired in the rafters of Cameron Indoor Stadium. He helped lead the Blue Devils to four straight NCAA Final Fours, including national championships in 1991 and 1992. The 1992 National Player of the Year and three-time All-America, Laettner averaged 16.6 points and 7.8 rebounds for his career. His 2,460 points and 1,149 rebounds in his career rank third all-time at Duke while he holds the school record with 713 career made free throws.

Photo from my pal, Lance KingAs a junior, Laettner was named second team All-America, MVP of the Final Four, ACC Athlete of the Year, first team All-ACC and to the All-Midwest Regional team. He averaged 19.8 points, 8.7 rebounds, had 75 steals, 44 blocked shots and a .575 field goal percentage. He followed his terrific junior season with an even better senior campaign, averaging 21.5 points, 7.9 rebounds, had 74 steals, 32 blocked shots and a .575 field goal percentage. He was named National Player of the Year, ACC Player of the Year, ACC Athlete of the Year, ACC Tournament MVP and MVP of the East Regional.

Laettner was the third player taken in the 1992 NBA Draft and played 13 seasons in the NBA with the Minnesota Timberwolves, Atlanta Hawks, Detroit Pistons, Dallas Mavericks, Washington Wizards and Miami Heat.

He was also a member of the Dream Team that went on to win the gold medal in the 1992 Barcelona Olympics.

Laettner becomes the fourth person with Duke ties to enter the Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame, joining Vic Bubas, Lefty Driesell and Dick Groat. He is joined in the 2010 class by David Thompson (N.C. State), Sidney Wicks (UCLA), Jerry West (West Virginia), Davey Whitney (Alcorn State Coach), Tex Winter (Marquette, Kansas State, Northwestern, Washington and Long Beach State Coach) and contributors Wayne Duke and Tom Jernstedt.

Duke's men's basketball team is currently in Kansas City for the final two rounds of the O'Reilly Auto Parts CBE Classic and will face Marquette Monday night at 7:30 p.m. (ET) in the Sprint Center.

Duke Basketball, Duke Football

Monday Musings – Duke vs Marquette, Duke vs UNC, Cheerleader of the Week

As always it's a busy time around BDN where we covered both the basketball and football games this past weekend. This week will be no different as we have staff members in Kansas City for consecutive games and we'll start our focus on Duke and UNC on the gridiron as well. And oc course, there is our Cheerleader of the Week!

Good Monday Blue Devil Nation and may you all have a great Thanksgiving week ahead.  The Duke Basketball team embarks on two contests that will provide a better look at where they stand this week and the football team takes on those dreaded North Carolina Tar Heels on the football field this week.  So, without further ado here are this weeks Monday Musings and of course, our cheerleader of the week.

Duke will be tested

The Men's basketball team could face two contrasting styles which will challenge both their backcourt and frontcourt.  Marquette is the first challenge this evening and they bring a Big East toughness and a loaded backcourt to the table.  If Kansas State defeats Gonzaga, Duke will face a loaded frontcourt of physical and athletic players.  The Wildcats will also have a home court advantage and that could prove huge for the nations #3 rated team.

The bench will shorten

In the next two nights we'll see which players Krzyzewski has confidence in for his bench will shorten against stellar competition.  Keep in mind that the rotation is likely to look quite different from one night to the next due to the aforementioned match ups.  The games should provide fans a glimpse of what the team will look like as the season goes on but Krzyzewski is far from settled on which combinations will be`on the court come March.

And the arch rival struggles

In watching North Carolina's first few games a few things come to mind when evaluating their future.  The first is that UNC indeed lacks a leader and until they get someone to fill that role, they'll not turn the corner to Top Ten country.  Harrison Barnes will get better as the season goes on, but the question is will UNC get better as a team.  The likely answer to that is yes, but these Heels are not he juggernaut they once were.  Still, too much talent is on hand for them to fold up like last season and finding a leader is a must.  The parts are there but fitting them together is not always and easy task.

The blame game can at times be ridiculous

Perfection!  That's all we'll stand for!  Okay, okay, some of us realize that Duke is a work in progress and we don't find something wrong or someone to point the finger at in the early season.  Unfortunately, there is a faction of the fan base that constantly worries and you can always count on them to play chicken little.  With the Duke backcourt being solid, those fans have turned their attention to the Plumlees.  "They're not Lance Thomas and Brian Zoubek," one poster said.  Uh, no they're not but does that fan remember the gripes those two experienced until they won a national title?  The Plumlees are a big key to the success to the 2010-11 Blue Devils but they like others are still learning how to fill their roles and they'll be fine.  It's no secret that Ryan Kelly and Josh Hairston are pretty much all that's behind them, so I'm afraid the brothers will experience what Thomas and Zoubs did along the way, no matter how short sighted those not so basketball savvy critics are.

So close but how far?

Duke Football could have won games against Boston College, Georgia Tech, Maryland and Wake Forest this season had a bounce or two gone their way.  Had they won three of these close contests they'd be bowl eligible.  The real question is how close are they from turning the corner where they can win these games.  That's a tough call but Duke returns pretty much all of their better players next season but they'll need to score touchdowns in the red zone before improvement will become evident.

It's Carolina at Duke on Thanksgiving and Duke at Oregon

Make no mistake a win over Carolina in the finale would help ease the frustration from close losses mentioned above.  There was a day when this game was huge but Duke will only be considered a true rival again when they find a way to defeat their neighbors and not just play them close.  With the game being played over the Thanksgiving holidays, the students will be gone and the Duke Basketball team will tip off thirty minutes after the kickoff in Oregon for Kyle Singler's away game in front of his peeps.  With both games being televised, this will likely mean an increase in the dreaded baby blue which will dominate more than half of Wallace Wade Stadium.  A great solution is to back the Devils against UNC in person and DVR the basketball game.  After all, when Duke finally does beat UNC on the gridiron, don't you want to say you were there?

It's Holiday Tournament time

One of our favorite holiday basketball tournaments to cover is the Glaxo Invitational in Raleigh, N.C. But we'll take in some other events as well and as a member of BDN Premium you can keep up with coverage of the Blue Devils future hopefuls and those who've already signed.