Duke Names Captains

SONY DSCDURHAM, N.C. – Duke head football coach David Cutcliffe announced Thursday the naming of Anthony Boone, Kelby Brown, Jeremy Cash, Jamison Crowder and Laken Tomlinson as team captains for the 2014 season. The five individuals were elected by their teammates.

It is the second-straight season Boone has been chosen as a team captain. The redshirt senior quarterback from Weddington, N.C., became the first signal-caller in Duke history to help the team to wins in his first 10 starts. He completed 64.0 percent of his passes in 2013, good for the third-best mark in Duke history. In 33 career games (12 starts), Boone has thrown for 3,089 yards with 19 touchdowns while rushing for 425 yards and 11 TDs. This preseason, Boone was named to the preseason Watch Lists for the Manning Award, Maxwell Award and O’Brien Award.

Brown, a redshirt senior from Matthews, N.C., was the returning starter at Mike linebacker before suffering a season-ending knee injury during preseason camp. Brown was named to the preseason Watch Lists for the Bednarik Award, Butkus Award, Lombardi Award, Nagurski Trophy and Lott IMPACT Trophy. In 2013, Brown was a first team All-ACC selection by the Atlantic Coast Sports Media Association after booking 114 tackles, 11.0 hits for lost yardage, 1.0 sack, two interceptions and two forced fumbles. In only ACC contests, he paced the league with 10.38 tackles per game.

Cash, a redshirt junior from Miami, Fla., is the returning starter at the Strike safety position. Following the 2013 campaign in which he registered 121 tackles, 9.5 hits for lost yardage and four interceptions, Cash was tabbed a second team All-American by USA Today. He was on the field for a team-high 1,120 snaps and averaged 9.63 tackles per game during ACC regular season contests. Already this preseason, Cash has been on the preseason Watch Lists for the Bednarik Award, Nagurski Trophy and Thorpe Award as well as the ESPN, Lindy’s, Athlon Sports, Phil Steele and USA Today All-ACC squads.

Crowder, a senior from Monroe, N.C., was named to the 2013 All-America second team as a punt returner by the Football Writers Association of America, Sports Illustrated and Phil Steele. He was also a first team All-ACC selection as a wide receiver by the Atlantic Coast Sports Media Association and the league’s head coaches. Crowder finished 2013 with a Duke single-season record 108 receptions. He matched or broke Blue Devil marks with 1,360 receiving yards, 7.79 grabs per game, 14 contests with multiple receptions, 13 games with at least five receptions, four matchups with at least 10 receptions, seven 100-yard receiving games and two punt returns for touchdowns. He has been named to the 2014 preseason All-America teams by Sporting News, Athlon Sports, Phil Steele and USA Today.

Tomlinson, a redshirt senior offensive lineman from Chicago, is the returning starter at right guard. He is a preseason second team All-America pick by Athlon Sports and Phil Steele and has been placed on the Watch Lists for the Lombardi Award and Outland Trophy. In 2013, Tomlinson was named to the ESPN All-Bowl Team after helping the Blue Devils compile 661 total yards and 48 points against Texas A&M in the 46th annual Chick-fil-A Bowl in Atlanta, Ga. Tomlinson was an integral component of Duke’s offensive front that ranked first in the ACC in sacks allowed per passing attempt (27.8). He was also part of a Blue Devil offensive unit that established school single-season records for total first downs (298), offensive yards (5,966) and points (459).

Duke opens the 2014 campaign against Elon on Aug. 30 at Wallace Wade Stadium. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. To order tickets, call (919) 681-BLUE or visit www.GoDuke.com/footballtix.