Dick is host of the “Live @ 5” radio program and has been the voice of the WNBA Seattle Storm for the past three seasons. He also serves as the assistant basketball coach at Mount Rainier High School in Des Moines, a Seattle suburb.

We will start the preview with thoughts from Blue Devil Nation.

Washington is a team, which resembles teams that have given Duke fits in years past. Like St. John’s in 2011 and Georgetown in 2010; Washington, or UDub as they’re referred to in the great Pacific Northwest, has a roster full of 6’5” to 6’9” athletic players. The difference between Washington and those aforementioned Big East teams is the Huskies are a young team. And that is a huge difference.

Washington is a strong shooting perimeter oriented team with an excellent point guard in Abdul Gaddy (6’3”) so Coach Lorenzo Romar likes to play an up tempo game. The Huskies average 81 points per game. Additional perimeter starters, Terrence Ross (6’6”) and C.J. Wilcox (6’5”) are talented players with the ability to get into the lane via dribble penetration.  The size and talent of Washington’s perimeter will be a factor in this game.

The Huskies interior offense is limited with Aziz N’Diaye (7’1”) and Darnell Gant (6’8”), but Gant does have the ability to knock down the 3-point shot if left open so Duke must be prepared to follow him out to the perimeter.

Like Duke with Austin Rivers, Washington features a super freshman in Tony Wroten (6’5”). Wroten is the Huskies Sixth Man and when he enters the game Washington has two big point guards on the floor in Gaddy and Wroten, which allows both to switch between handling the ball and playing off the ball.

Needless to say, having multiple primary ball handlers on the floor provides Coach Romar versatility in running his offense.

The possibility of seeing super freshmen Rivers and Wroten matched up on each other is an exciting sub content of this early season non-conference game.

The key individual match-up in this game for Duke will be Terrence Ross who is a tremendously talented player and Washington’s leading scorer. Ross is a solid perimeter shooter who has the ability to drive by his defender and finish at the rim. The Blue Devils must know where Ross is at all times and have a man in his face.

For Duke fans who are not familiar with Ross, think Harrison Barnes. Ross is that good. Checking Ross will be a huge defensive assignment for Andre Dawkins and Austin Rivers. It would not surprise me to see Coach Krzyzewski insert Michael Gbinije into the rotation to steal some minutes by having the freshman guard Ross.  The health of Andre Dawkins is a concern re defending Ross as Dawkins left the Colorado State game in the first half with back spasms and did not return.

While Gbinije lacks experience, his size and athleticism could bother Ross.

For Washington, Coach Romar must figure out how to contain Mason Plumlee and Duke’s interior strength. N’Diaye has a tendency to be foul prone so look for freshman Shawn Kemp, Jr. (6’9”) to see some minutes in the rotation guarding Plumlee as a preventive measure.

Final analysis: Due to Washington’s youth, Duke will look to disrupt the Huskies offense by pressuring the perimeter and forcing Washington to start their offense further away from the basket than they are accustomed to which will lead to blown opportunities, turnovers and bad shots.

On offense, this is a game where Duke will focus on running things inside-out. The Blue Devils have a big advantage with their post players so they must look inside first and then kick the ball out for open jump shots. Look for Mason Plumlee and Ryan Kelly to receive lots of touches in the game.

In order for Washington to beat Duke, they must prevent the entry pass, limit interior scoring opportunities and force Duke to become a jump shooting team. Based on Duke’s team 3PT FG percentage of 43.2%, it would help the Huskies immensely to catch the Blue Devils on a cold shooting day.

Okay, to learn more about the Washington Huskies let’s move on to the Question and Answer session with subject matter expert Dick Fain:

BDN: Can you give Duke fans an overview of Washington’s strengths and weaknesses?

Dick Fain: Washington has very clear strengths and equally as clear weaknesses. The strengths are all in the backcourt. The Huskies are as athletic as any team in the conference and arguably boast the best shooters as well.

Abdul Gaddy is an improvement over Isaiah Thomas at point guard because he sees the floor much better and is a pass-first guard who makes very good decisions. His 6-3 size also gives him a decided edge over the 5-8 Thomas.

Lorenzo Romar told me two years ago that CJ Wilcox would have been the Pac 10′s best three point shooter had he played instead of redshirted that year. Romar’s words have proven prophetic as Wilcox hit a respectable 40% from three last year and is a blazing hot 16/29 55% this season.

Terrence Ross is a lottery pick with tremendous penetration and shooting abilities and will undoubtedly get Duke’s best perimeter defender. He is still raw and would benefit from staying in school for his sophomore and junior seasons but the Lottery may be too much for him to pass up after this season.

Scott Suggs is a solid shooter and leader that the Dawgs have missed this year due to a training camp injury but should have him back in some capacity by the Duke game.

The Dawgs weaknesses lie in their bigs. Darnell Gant and Desmond Simmons are skilled, athletic, undersized 4 men but have little to no back to the basket ability and are sketchy rebounders at best. Aziz N’diaye is an interesting 7-1 center that is very good a blocking shots and filling the paint but has very little offensive skill. If he stays four years he should be a 1st rounder as he is improving and some NBA team will take a shot on a 7-1 shotblocker.

BDN: We know Washington is a young team with seven freshmen on the squad, which of these freshmen are ready to contribute right away?

Dick Fain: The only freshman that is ready to compete against top 25 competition is Tony Wroten who has been on recruiters radars since he was a 5th grader. Seattle is a city that has produced the likes of Brandon Roy, Jason Terry, Aaron Brooks, Jamal Crawford, Nate Robinson and many other NBA guards but none had the hype out of high school of Wroten. Before blowing out his knee before his junior year, he was ranked the #1 overall player in America, because of the knee injury he fell into the teens.

BDN: Terrence Ross is an outstanding talent, perhaps Washington’s best player, what are his top skill sets and where does he still need improvement?

Dick Fain: Terrence Ross is an interesting story. He was the “other” Terrence that the Huskies got from the Portland area. The Terrence they really wanted (and had) was Terrence Jones who is now at Kentucky. Jones held a televised press conference, put on a Washington hat and then came on my show 10 minutes later to tell me how happy he was that the recruiting process was over and how excited he was to be a Dawg. 10 minutes after that he had a phone conversation with John Calipari and I’m sure you Duke fans are savvy enough to figure out what happened next.

Back to Ross, he has been a very pleasant surprise since he wasn’t nearly as highly regarded as the All-American Jones. He is a tremendous scorer both on the perimeter and on the drive. He has shown the ability to hit the big shot as his three pointer from the corner in the waning seconds of regulation sent last year’s Pac 10 championship game to overtime allowing for Isaiah Thomas’ buzzer beating heroics in a win over Arizona. He has the potential and athleticism to be a defensive stopper but is not there yet. As I mentioned before, the Lottery is waiting for Ross, the only question is whether it will be the 2012 or 2013 Lottery.

BDN: Speaking of freshmen, how special is Tony Wroten?

Dick Fain: I talked about Wroten’s pedigree, now I’ll talk about his game. Wroten has the best vision of any point guard I’ve ever seen at Washington. He will throw no look passes through 4 defenders and it will find its mark. The rest of his game is good but not great at this point. He is an adequate shooter and can attack the rim. His biggest area to work on is maturity as at times he will wear his frustration on his sleeve. The sky is the limit for him and the Lottery should be in his future especially if he buys in to LoRo’s system and stays at least 3 years.

BDN: Can you expound on Coach Lorenzo Romar and his philosophy for playing the game of basketball?

Dick Fain: Lorenzo Romar is maybe the most underrated coach in the nation. While he is a household name on the west coast, I doubt he is well known in ACC country but he should be. Romar took program that had one trip to the NCAA tournament over the prior 15 years and takes them to the dance nearly every season including three sweet 16′s and a #1 seed in 2005. The Huskies have won the Pac 10 tournament title the last two years and won the outright regular season title the year prior. The only thing eluding his resume is a final four appearance and while this isn’t the year that will happen, next year could be. Duke fans would love Romar because he is a quality human being who does things the right way just like Coach K. In this era of rampant cheating in college basketball, Duke and Washington both steer clear of such shenanigans.

BDN: I’ve heard Abdul Gaddy, in interviews on Seattle Sports Radio KJRAM950, discuss how much he grew last year, observing the game from the bench, after his season ending injury. How important is Gaddy’s leadership to this year’s team?

Dick Fain: I absolutely love Abdul Gaddy’s game. He is a local product from Tacoma who torn his knee up in December of last year (his sophomore year). His freshman year was a learning process with quite a few bumps in the road, but by last year he had earned the starting point guard spot and was running the show until the injury forced Isaiah Thomas out of position to the one spot. During his recovery, he has gotten stronger and has become an adept shooter from behind the arc. His lack of great athleticism will likely keep him out of the lottery but I wouldn’t be surprised at all if he was a first rounder in 2013.

BDN: Okay, it is time to put you on the spot. What is your prediction for the outcome of the game?

Dick Fain: Prediction time! Duke is one of the few teams that have a better backcourt that UW but the margin isn’t great. Where this game is a mismatch is in the interior. The Plumlees and Ryan Kelly should have there way with the Husky bigs and beat Washington on the boards. The Dawgs are one year away from being an elite top 10 team, Duke is there right now. UW makes it a game for 35 minutes but Duke wins 81-72.

Blue Devil Nation offers a big thank you to Dick for agreeing to assist us with the game preview and we encourage all Duke fans to give Dick Fain’s “Live @ 5″ show a listen on the iheartradio app or on SportsradioKJR.com from 8a-9a ET Monday thru Friday and you can follow him on twitter @dickfain.

I listen to Dick every morning during my morning commute to work and can ensure everyone, while his radio show is Seattle sports centric, he is also on the cutting edge for covering national sports events and breaking news.

Vast Improvement

Seeing as Red Zone performance was prominently featured in “The Ugly” section of this season’s first stats article, it seems appropriate to address the team’s success at the top of this update. Duke scored on all 10 Red Zone possessions in the last two games. Eight of the ten scores were touchdowns. Juwan Thompson ran for four touchdowns of 20, 9, 6 and 1 yards. The ability to successfully run the ball in the Red Zone is a development, which should pay huge dividends in the future.

Duke made all four field goals attempted in the two games. Will Snyderwine made three successful kicks and Jeffrey Ijjas was successful on one kick.

While Duke has shown vast improvement in these two areas, it is worth noting they still rank last in the ACC in these categories due to the bad start so it is important for the team to maintain improved performance.

Key Team Accomplishments

Obviously, the most relevant team accomplishment the past two weeks was winning the games. In the final analysis, the final score is the most important statistic.

Passing Offense improved from 297 to 311 yards per game. Duke is now ranked three of 12 in the ACC (up from number five) and 19 of 120 nationally (up from number 25). Numbers for Total Offense are also impressive with Duke’s 409 yards per game ranks six of 12 in the ACC and 56 of 120 nationally.

The ability to sustain long drives results in Duke being ranked two of 12 in the ACC and number 17 of 120 nationally in Time of Possession at 32 minutes and 56 seconds per game. Against Tulane, the Blue Devils reeled off touchdown drives of 18, 12 and 9 plays; while against Florida International they had an 11 play drive which ended with a field goal.

Duke’s four touchdown drives in the FIU game were short drives of 1, 3, 4 and 5 plays.

Even though Duke achieved success running the ball in the Red Zone the past two weeks, overall Rushing Offense remains a concern. At 97 yards per game, Duke is 11 of 12 in the ACC and number 108 nationally.

Key Individual Accomplishments

Conner Vernon leads the ACC in Receptions per Game. His 6.8 receptions per game place him at number 23 in the nation. Vernon is also third in the ACC in Receiving Yards per Game at 101.

Matt Daniels leads the ACC in Passes Defended. His 1.8 passes defended per game place him at number five in the nation. Additionally, he is sixth in the ACC in Tackles with 48.

Sean Renfree is third in the ACC in Passing Average per Game. His 272.2 passing yards per game place him at number 25 in the nation.

Jamison Crowder is sixth in the ACC in Kick Return Average and ninth in the ACC in All Purpose Yards. He is averaging 21.8 yards per kick return and 127.4 all purpose yards per game.

Alex King is fifth in the ACC in Punting averaging 41.2 yards per punt.

Donovan Varner is seventh in the ACC in Receptions per Game at 5.8.

Moving Forward

The next three games will be played in Wallace Wade Stadium so Duke will have home field advantage accompanying momentum gained during the current three game win streak. It is time for the Blue Devils to step up and record a signature victory in order to make the rest of the ACC sit up and take notice. The first opportunity will be on October 15th against the Florida State Seminoles.

With three games in the books, season statistics start to have meaning by showing trends so here is a look at where Duke is shining and where they are in need of improvement. Even though this article is titled The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, there is no more relevant starting point than the ugly.

The Ugly

Duke’s performance in the Red Zone has been abysmal! In fact, Duke is ranked 120 out of 120 Football Bowl Subdivision teams having ventured into the Red Zone 10 times with a success rate of 40 percent. Duke has missed three field goals, thrown an interception, turned the ball over on downs, and had time expire to end the 1st half on the six unsuccessful possessions.

The need to solve the Red Zone woes cannot be overstated. The Blue Devils must capitalize and come away with points at a much, much higher percentage on future trips into the Red Zone.

Equally troubling is Duke’s 0-6 performance on Field Goal attempts. A healthy Will Snyderwine back on the field should solve this problem. However, until Snyderwine is able to resume the kicking duties, Duke could be looking to try to convert fourth down into first down when in field goal range.

Enough discussion on the ugly stuff…

The Good

Defensive End Kenny Anunike leads the ACC in Sacks with four and is third in Tackles for Loss with five. An inability to pressure the quarterback has been a concern for the Blue Devils’ defense so Anunike’s performance the past two games is an exciting development and a statistic worth watching closely the next couple of weeks.

Staying on the defensive side of the ball, Matt Daniels is fifth in the ACC in Tackles averaging 10.3 per game and Kelby Brown is 17th with 6.7.

A known strength of the Blue Devils offense is talent and depth at the wide receiver position. All three of Duke’s starting wide outs are ranked in the ACC Top 10 in Receptions per Game. Conner Vernon is tied for third with 6.7, Donovan Varner is number six with 6, and Brandon Braxton is number seven with 5.7. Additionally, Vernon is tied for fifth in Receiving Yards per Game averaging 97.3.

Combining the Blue Devils’ wide receiver talent with quarterback Sean Renfree, results in Duke being ranked 25 of 120 nationally, and five of 12 in the ACC, in Passing Offense averaging 296.67 yards through the air per game.

Renfree set Duke’s single game completions record in the game against Boston College. His 41 completions this past Saturday surpassed Thaddeus Lewis’ previous mark of 40 completions set in 2009 against N.C. State.

Another noteworthy performer is true freshman Jamison Crowder who is ranked fourth in the ACC in Kick Returns averaging 21.2 yards per kick. Crowder has displayed good speed and looked good running the ball so fans should keep an eye on him because he has a good chance to break off a couple of long returns before this season is over.

Lee Butler is fourth in the ACC in Punt Returns averaging 7.7 yards per return.

The Bad

At 18.3 points per game, Duke is 11th in the ACC in Scoring Offense. With the arsenal of weapons available on offense, this is a statistic which must improve and a statistic everyone associated with the program expects to improve. Simply stated, Duke is too talented on the offensive side of the ball to continue to struggle scoring points.

Finally, the Blue Devils have failed to consistently run the ball in their first three games and are currently rank tied for 10th in the ACC at 96.3 yards per game. The struggles can be partially attributed to injuries sustained by Desmond Scott in the first game of the season and Josh Snead during preseason, but Duke needs to show improvement in the running game as the season progresses.

Juwan Thompson has been impressive averaging 5.4 yards per carry on the season but he needs help sharing the running responsibilities. The pending return to action of Desmond Scott in the next week or two will certainly provide Thompson the support he requires as Scott has been Duke’s leading rusher the past two seasons.

Moving Forward

The next two weeks will be critical as Duke faces non-conference foe Tulane (2-1), in Wallace Wade Stadium, followed by a trip to Miami to face the Florida International Golden Panthers (3-0). The expectation is Duke will build off the road victory over Boston College and play inspired football against the last two non-conference opponents this season. The objective is to reach Bye Week with a 3-2 record and then focus upon the tough ACC schedule in October and November.

Blue Devil Nation will be all over the action providing Duke Fans complete football coverage including an updated look at the statistics after the trip to play FIU.

The dog days of summer are usually spent watching the pennant races heat up and preparing for the upcoming football season, while plenty of time was still devoted to those meaningful activities, Duke Basketball fans were treated to competitive international basketball in August. For diehard college basketball fans, those games were a sweet appetizer for the upcoming season.

So, what did we learn during the four games? In no particular order, we learned the following:

Ryan Kelly is looking really good

Ryan Kelly led the Blue Devils in scoring with 60 points over the four games. He also collected 33 rebounds for an impressive 15 points and 8.2 rebounds per game stat line. But the story isn’t Kelly’s stat line, but rather his calm, collected attitude on the court. The story is how smooth and confident Kelly looked knocking down a jump shot, collecting a rebound or delivering a pass to an open teammate.

If Kelly can build off his play in the Friendship Games, and continue to improve his all around game, he could be a player who gives opponents match-up fits and develops into an All ACC performer in 2012.

Starting Rotation

Over the four games, the same five players started: Miles Plumlee, Ryan Kelly, Andre Dawkins, Austin Rivers and Seth Curry. While I am sure Coach Krzyzewski will still mix and match line-ups in the early season games, with some fluctuation in the starting line-up based upon practice intensity and previous game performance, the fact the same five guys started all four summer games is indicative that a solid pecking order has been established.

The perimeter is deep and talented

Seth Curry, Andre Dawkins and Austin Rivers combine to be a formidable three guard back court. Curry and Rivers can both handle the ball even though they are not true point guards, while Dawkins, who has always been a very dangerous shooter, appears ready to be a threat to attack the rim via back door cuts and by working the baseline.

Dawkins and Rivers each scored 57 points in the four games with Curry right behind them at 54 points. Dawkins sank a blistering 48.3 percent of his 3-point attempts, while Curry led the team with nine steals.

Rivers has the ability to create his own shot and drive to the rim; however, these international games demonstrated he still has a lot to learn. There will be further discussion on Rivers in a bit.

Turning to the bench players, Tyler Thornton is a pest and I mean that in the best possible way. His tenacious approach to playing defense will continue to earn him significant playing time.

Alex Murphy has length and the ability to run the court. While he struggled early on, he improved every game and was impressive in the United Arab Emirates game. Murphy should see time on the wing in relief of Dawkins and at power forward when Coach Krzyzewski decides to go with a small line-up.

Post game is in good hands

Led by senior Miles Plumlee, and including juniors Ryan Kelly and Mason Plumlee, this year’s Duke Blue Devils are as talented and experienced in the front court as they have been in a number of years.

The three upperclassmen combined for 134 points and 96 rebounds, which averages to 33.5 points and 24 rebounds per game, from the center and power forward positions, against legitimate competition. We are not talking summer pick-up games here. Last season, those three players combined for 18.6 points and 17 rebounds per game.

I realize the comparison is apples to oranges, four international games to an entire NCAA season, but I’m just throwing it out there as food for thought. It is data points fanatic fans can chew on.

To take the apples to oranges comparison one giant leap further, on the 2004 team, Luol Deng, Shelden Williams and Shavlik Randolph combined for 34.7 points and 19.9 rebounds per game.

While I am not trying to suggest this year’s front court will be as formidable as the 2004 front court, I am suggesting this front court has the potential to be very, very good and perhaps the best front court we’ve had since 2004. And that is saying something seeing as the 2006 front court of Shelden Williams and Josh McRoberts was not shabby.

To maneuver this section back into the here and now, before this year’s trio of front court players can reach their maximum potential, they must prove themselves in two areas: consistency of play and foul management. If those prerequisites are achieved, the sky is the limit.

Austin Rivers is ready to start as a freshman

Rivers was simultaneously impressive and inconsistent. He scored 57 points, but he led the team in turnovers with 15 and only connected on 5 of 21 3-point attempts.

The poor 3-point shooting can easily be explained away by the deeper arc on an international court. The turnovers are more a result of poor decision making and playing out of control. On multiple occasions Rivers drove too deep into the teeth of the opponent’s defense and was left without an option other than to throw the ball toward a teammate on the perimeter.

So, should Duke Fans Worldwide go into a panic and chew their finger nails until they bleed? No! Rivers is a freshman so those type plays should be expected. Like every other freshman, Rivers must adjust to the speed of the game and the increased talent level on the court.

Rivers’ decision making will improve and he will rapidly learn to play within himself and once that happens, which I expect will take place sooner rather than later, he will be a force to contend with on the hardwood.

During the Friendship Games, we learned Austin Rivers is ready to immediately start and be an impact player.

Why the 4-2-5 Defense?

Since arriving at Duke in 2008, Coach David Cutcliffe has emphasized speed. One of his first comments on recruiting was, “We’re going to start with people who can run.” The 4-2-5 defense is flexible and emphasizes the use of speed. Simply stated, the defense removes a bigger player (linebacker) and replaces him with a faster player (safety). Of course it is actually a bit more complicated.

Football terminology can be confusing as the average fan attempts to determine exactly who are those linebackers named Mike, Will and Sam everyone keeps referring to and why the weak safety doesn’t spend more time in the weight room with the strong safety. Obviously, I’m just trying to be funny and probably not succeeding, but the point is I know how confusing the terminology can be due to the number of articles I read while preparing to draft this article.

Moving on…

Gary Patterson, the current head coach at Texas Christian University, and previous defensive coordinator at the University of New Mexico, has achieved much success with the 4-2-5 defense. In 2010, TCU finished the season 13-0 and defeated Wisconsin 21-19 in the Rose Bowl.

Patterson provides an in depth explanation of the 4-2-5 defense in this 1997 article written when he was the defensive coordinator at New Mexico.

The 4-2-5 Basics

The base defense uses eight men in the box to stop the run coupled with zone pass coverage such as the Cover 3. Achieving success with the 4-2-5 defense requires a team to commit to stopping the run first. Brian Billick explains the eight men in the box concept, on a white board with diagrams, in this video clip on You Tube.

Applying pressure via the blitz is the second objective. The defense is flexible and allows a team to bring pressure off the corners or inside without sacrificing pass coverage. The defense utilizes pressure to create turnovers.

Limiting big play opportunities is another feature. The use of five defensive backs makes it easier to disguise coverage and confuse the offense by showing blitz and zone coverage simultaneously.

Finally, the 4-2-5 attempts to force the offense to adjust to the defense. An offense that is adjusting is typically adjusting away from its strength. Influencing an offense to abandon its strength is a major accomplishment.

To summarize: stop the run, pressure the quarterback, do not give up big plays, and force the offense to adjust.

Cover 3 Zone

The spread offense is prevalent in today’s college football landscape and the 4-2-5 in conjunction with the Cover 3 Zone is well suited to stopping the spread. Therefore, it is important to understand the principles of the Cover 3 Zone.

The Cover 3 Zone splits the top of the field into three deep zones, which frees up the strong safety to provide run support on the tight end side of the offense. The Cover 3 Zone provides the defense with an extra man in the box to stop the opponent’s running game.

Between five and 14 yards from the line of scrimmage, where receivers run outs, curls, hooks and slants, the two inside linebackers and the strong and weak safety provide coverage support. This underneath support allows the cornerbacks to focus upon any receiver who goes 14 yards beyond the line of scrimmage between the hash marks and the sideline with the free safety responsible for the middle of the field.

Let’s clarify each player’s pass coverage responsibility:

Cornerback (2): the deep outside from the hash marks to the sideline. The cornerback cannot allow a receiver to beat him on the outside because he receives no support in this area.
Free Safety: the deep middle between the hash marks and to provide inside support to the cornerbacks. The free safety must play as deep as the deepest pass route takes him.
Strong Safety: stopping the run and underneath pass coverage in the flats.
Weak Safety: stopping the run and underneath pass coverage in the flats.
Linebacker (2): stopping the run and underneath pass coverage in the hook/curl zones.

For more on the Cover 3 Zone, this article at the Clemson Tigers blog “Shakin’ The Southland” provides some nice details.

While the Cover 3 Zone is effective in conjunction with the 4-2-5, it is not the only option. The defensive package will contain lots of blitz options with those options mixing up the accompanying coverage assignments. Cornerbacks with the ability to play man-to-man really open up the 4-2-5 defense’s flexibility.

Blitz Packages

There are innumerous blitz opportunities in the 4-2-5 scheme with the inside blitz and double edge blitz being two examples.

To execute the inside blitz, the two linebackers blitz while the strong side defensive end (tight end side of the line) checks the tight end while executing a run/pass read, if the defensive end reads pass, he drops into middle coverage with primary responsibility for the tight end.

The inside blitz is strong against an inside run (between the tackles) or play action pass play, but it is vulnerable to a quarterback who sprints out of the pocket to the strong side.

When the double edge blitz is called, the weak and strong safeties blitz and the two linebackers takeover responsibility for pass coverage in the flats with the nose guard dropping into middle coverage after checking the center and executing a run/pass read. The vulnerability area for this blitz is the flats, while the strength is containing a mobile quarterback.

For more details, go here, for verbiage with diagrams. Ah, a picture is worth a thousand words.

Cover 2 Zone

The Cover 2 Zone is effective against Pro Set two running back offenses. In the Cover 2, the strong safety and free safety are each responsible for half the field deep. The cornerbacks are responsible for the flats, and typically play the wide receivers bump and run. The Cover 2 Man is another variant where the underneath defenders play man-to-man.

The linebackers are responsible for the hook/curl zones. The Cover 2 is strong against short routes and timing routes, but can be exploited by crossing routes or by sending two receivers deep on the same side of the field.

For a more detailed analysis of the Cover 2 Zone, I’ll once again refer the reader to the “Shakin The Southland” website and this article plus this You Tube video or this You Tube video featuring Bill Billick. I guarantee this is good stuff so be sure and click on the links.

Duke Specific Analysis

It is time to focus this article by discussing some Duke specific details. First, safety is the deepest position on Duke’s defensive roster, and Matt Daniels is the defensive leader so running a scheme which features the safety position passes the common sense test.

In 2010, Duke struggled to stop the run giving up 208 yards rushing per contest so a defense designed to stop the run first makes sense. The extra man in the box coupled with a blitz package oriented to stopping the run will prevent opponents from successfully running the ball straight up the middle play after play.

In 2010, Duke struggled to pressure the quarterback, recording only 12 sacks so a defense that includes multiple blitz packages and a commitment to applying pressure makes sense. Focusing upon pressuring the quarterback on pass plays will result in improved performance by the cornerbacks and free safety with the added benefit of increased interceptions.

Defensive Coordinator Jim Knowles possesses extensive knowledge and experience with the 4-2-5 so he will be able to teach the players how to execute the intricacies of the scheme.

The Blue Devils are poised to take a big step forward in the rebuilding process and that big step could include winning the requisite number of games to qualify for a bowl game. For Duke to become bowl eligible in 2011, the defense must step up and perform much better than they did in 2010.

To determine if the switch to the 4-2-5 defense is a successful move, fans need to view defensive statistics with a critical eye: rushing yards allowed, sacks by and turnover margin will be key indicators of whether or not the scheme is fulfilling expectations.

DEFENSE

Categorically the biggest unknown for Duke in 2011 is the defensive line as evidenced by Coach Cutcliffe’s recent statement: “The biggest question mark for us is the defensive front, we need to be much improved there compared to a year ago, and if we do that I feel we can be a good solid football team.”

The interior line will be anchored by redshirt senior nose guard Charlie Hatcher and four additional returning lettermen: Kenny Anunike, Justin Foxx, Curtis Hazelton and Sydney Sarmiento. However, depth will be critical to keeping the defensive line fresh for sixty minutes and establishing depth will be dependent upon the youngsters stepping up and proving they are capable of performing.

Redshirt freshmen Jamal Bruce, Steve Ingram, Jamal Wallace, Will Bryant, Dez Johnson, Jordan Dewalt-Ondijo and Nick Sink need to prove they are ready to play quality downs along the defensive line.

Possessing a cornerback who can shutdown the opponent’s top wide receiver provides the defensive coordinator with opportunities to implement multiple blitz packages, which pressure the quarterback and create turnovers. For Duke, the cornerback with the talent to develop into a lockdown defender is sophomore Ross Cockrell.

Duke was minus 11 in turnovers in the 2010 season, which ranked last in the ACC. It is hard to win ball games when you turn the ball over more than your opponent. In 2011, the defense must generate turnovers and recent statements from defensive leader Matt Daniels indicate the 4-2-5 will be geared toward generating turnovers. Daniels stated, “We’re going to be applying a lot of pressure, with pressure come turnovers. The defense has become a lot more aggressive with its scheme, the scheme that Knowles has drawn up for us. We’re ready to get after it and show the world who we are as a defense.”

To be successful the new scheme will have to accomplish two things Duke did not achieve in 2010; pressure the quarterback and stop the run. Duke recorded only 12 sacks last season and allowed opponents to rush for 208 yards per game. Both those marks ranked last in the ACC.

Duke ranked last in the ACC in rush defense, pass defense, total defense, sacks, interceptions and turnover margin last season so the 4-2-5 defense must prove to be a more effective scheme in order for Duke to make the next step as a program and qualify for a bowl game.

OFFENSE

In his first full season as Duke’s starting quarterback, Renfree passed for 3,114 yards and 14 touchdowns. Unfortunately, Renfree also tossed 17 interceptions, which cost Duke dearly in losses against Wake Forest, Army and Miami. Renfree recovered from his early season woes and only threw two interceptions over Duke’s last five games.

The media looked past Renfree, when casting votes for the Preseason All ACC team, giving Florida State’s unproven EJ Manuel the nod at quarterback. Hopefully, this omission will stir Renfree’s competitive juices and motivate him to go out and prove the talking heads wrong.

Duke’s offense is potentially the ACC’s most potent, but in order to convert potential into reality, Coach Cutcliffe needs Renfree to be superb week in and week out. Seeing as Renfree’s knee injury will be almost two full years in the past, he should be fully recovered both physically and mentally, which will facilitate his ability to lead Duke to victories.

Renfree has been named to the preseason Davey O’Brien Award Watch List. The Davey O’Brien Award is presented annually to the nation’s top quarterback.

This Dynamic Duo has led the ACC in receptions the past two seasons. Donovan Varner caught 65 passes for 1047 yards and eight touchdowns, in 2009. In 2010, Conner Vernon caught 73 passes for 973 yards and four touchdowns.

With Sean Renfree a year more experienced, expectations are high for the Duke passing attack so if Varner and Vernon are both competitive for All ACC honors, at the end of the season, it means Duke’s passing offense performed to expectations.

Both Varner and Vernon have been named to the preseason Biletnikoff Award Watch List. The Biletnikoff Award recognizes the nation’s top wide receiver.

Conventional wisdom states games are won or lost in the trenches and Duke has steadily improved along the offensive line since Coach Cutcliffe arrived in Durham. The line ranked third in the ACC in sacks allowed per pass attempt in 2010. In 2011, improved run blocking will allow the Blue Devils to execute a balanced offensive attack capable of both scoring points and eating up large chunks of the clock with sustained drives.

Depth should be a positive factor for the offensive line in 2011 as six lettermen, including four starters, return. Additionally, talented redshirt freshmen Laken Tomlinson and Takoby Cofield are expected to pressure the starters for playing time.

Center Brian Moore has been named to the Rimington Trophy Preseason Watch List. The Rimington Trophy recognizes the nation’s best center.

With the improvements being made up front, Duke should see improvement in the running game. Junior Desmond Scott has been the Blue Devils leading rusher for the past two seasons rushing for 549 yards and three touchdowns as a sophomore. His 35 yard touchdown run, on a toss sweep, in the fourth quarter against Virginia, was one of the top individual plays in the 2010 season.

Sophomores Josh Snead and Juwon Thompson will see lots of time at tailback alongside Scott. Snead was plagued by minor injuries throughout his freshman season.

SCHEDULE

With a tough home schedule, it is paramount the Blue Devils take care of business on the road. The games at Boston College, at Florida International and at Virginia are all games the Blue Devils are capable of winning. Victories in two of those contests would go a long way toward securing the six wins required to qualify for a bowl game. Victories in all three would be preferred.

The Blue Devils also play road games against Miami and North Carolina. A victory in either of those games would be considered an upset. Speaking of upsets…

The Blue Devils will have ample opportunity to defeat a Top 25 opponent with home games scheduled against Stanford, Florida State and Virginia Tech who are all ranked in the various preseason polls. Is this the year Duke knocks off a ranked opponent? To reach bowl eligibility, the Blue Devils might need to knock off one of those big name opponents at Wallace Wade Stadium.

Duke has another opportunity when they face Miami on the road in Coral Gables. The Hurricanes are also ranked in the preseason Top 25.

Coach Cutcliffe is 1-12 in November at Duke. With a tough schedule during the middle of the season, which includes games against Florida State and Virginia Tech in October, the Blue Devils will need to take care of business in November, on the road at Miami (Nov 5), at Virginia (Nov 12), and at North Carolina (Nov 26), and at home against Georgia Tech on November 19.

The past two seasons, Duke has gone 1-3 and 0-4 in November games. In 2011, there is a good chance Duke will need to win at least two ball games in November in order to become bowl eligible.

Every Duke fan should breakout a fat red Sharpie and circle November 19 on their calendar as the game against Georgia Tech in Wallace Wade Stadium could be the make or break game for bowl eligibility in 2011. The Blue Devils might not pull off the big upset in 2011, with a win over Stanford, Florida State or Virginia Tech, but the game against Georgia Tech, in Wallace Wade, on November 19, is a game that should make Yellow Jackets’ fans nervous.

ACC Player of the Year Nolan Smith

Since the tournament expanded to include 11 teams in 2005 and then 12 teams in 2006, the #1 seed has won four times and the #3 seed has won twice. All six years the tournament has been won by either Duke or North Carolina with Duke winning four times and Carolina twice. Duke won in 2009 and 2010 so they will be seeking a three-peat in 2011.

Duke will be looking to be the first #2 seed to win the tournament since expansion. Duke and Carolina could be destined to meet for a third time in the Championship Game after having split the regular season with each team winning at home. The ACC Championship Game would be the rubber match for the season series. Duke and Carolina have not faced each other in the ACC Tournament since 2003. However, there is a lot of basketball to be played before that match-up can be realized.

Carolina (1), Duke (2), Florida State (3) and Clemson (4) have earned the first round byes and will see action on Friday in the quarterfinals. History and the odds favor one of these four teams winning the championship. One of these teams can win the championship by stringing together three good games, while seeds five through 12 must win four games.

Carolina (24-6, 14-2) has all the pieces and must be considered the favorite to win their 18th ACC Championship this week. The Tar Heels enter the tournament riding a seven game winning streak and have won 12 of 13 games since suffering an embarrassing 20 point defeat at Georgia Tech on January 16. Even though Carolina has looked vulnerable at times such as during an ugly 48-46 win over Boston College, they continue to win ball games. And in the end, winning is what matters most.

Freshman Kendall Marshall has developed into the solid point guard every team needs to distribute the basketball and earned 3rd Team All ACC honors. He leads the ACC in assists averaging 5.6 per game and is second in assists to turnover ratio at 2.5. Add in 5.9 points per game and Marshall’s statistics show that he has all the tools required to be a successful point guard in the ACC.

The second piece is inside strength and Carolina has it with Tyler Zeller and John Henson. Both Carolina big men can finish on offense and rebound the ball. Zeller averages 14.6 points and 7.1 rebounds per game, which is number 8 and number 9 in the ACC respectively. Moreover, he leads the conference in field goal percentage at .541. Henson is third in the conference in rebounding at 9.7 per game, while contributing 11.3 points per game. Additionally, Henson is an intimidating shot blocker.

The third piece is perimeter shooting. Carolina has struggled with this aspect of the game for significant parts of the season and is viewed as a team better suited to get out in transition and finish at the rim. While they remain a strong transition team, their outside shooting has been improving. Against Duke, in the regular season finale, they went 4 for 9 on 3-point attempts. They went 6 for 12 in their previous game against Florida State. By comparison, the Tar Heels were 2 for 14 in their loss at Cameron Indoor Stadium and 2 for 12 when they lost at Georgia Tech. Outside shooting remains a concern for the Tar Heels but it is an area showing improvement.

Carolina will play the winner of the Virginia (8) vs. Miami (9) game on Friday at 12 pm.

During the early part of the season, Duke (27-4, 13-3) looked like a team destined to dominate the ACC this season. However, that all changed on December 4 at the Izod Center in NJ when freshman phenom Kyrie Irving was injured late in a game against Butler. Without the elite point guard, Duke has become a jump shooting team who looks stagnant on offense and struggles to score when the 3-point field goal is not dropping.

The Blue Devils are led by seniors Nolan Smith and Kyle Singler. Smith is the ACC Player-of-the-Year and Singler is 1st Team All ACC. Smith averaged 23.4 points and 4.94 assists per game in 16 ACC contests this season, while Singler averaged 15.8 points and 7.8 rebounds. However, Singler shot an uncharacteristic 29.2% (26/89) on 3-point field goals in ACC action. Duke needs both players playing their best if the Blue Devils are going to challenge to win their 19th ACC Championship this week.

Smith and Singler cannot carry the scoring load by themselves so it is vital for a third or fourth player to step up and provide consistent scoring for the Blue Devils. Seth Curry is the most likely candidate as he averaged 10.9 points per game in conference action. Ryan Kelly (6.8 ppg), Mason Plumlee (6.4 ppg) and Andre Dawkins (5.2 ppg) are other candidates. Dawkins is a fantastic shooter who has made 53 3-point field goals this season including eight in a game back on December 8 against Bradley. If Dawkins can reemerge as an offensive option in March, his presence will provide Duke’s offense with enormous firepower.

It will be important for Duke to control the boards to improve their opportunity to win games. Mason Plumlee is #5 in the conference with 8.7 rebounds per game. Looking at ACC games only, Mason Plumlee pulled down rebounds at a rate of 9.7 per game. Kyle Singler is Duke’s second best with 7.8 rebounds per game in conference action, while Miles Plumlee contributes 4.9 per game. The Blue Devils need to limit their opponents second chance opportunities while simultaneously capitalizing on offensive rebounds. Strong games on the glass from Mason and Miles Plumlee could be vital to the Blue Devils achieving success in March and April.

Duke will play the winner of the Maryland (7) vs. NC State (10) game on Friday at 7 pm.

Florida State (21-9, 11-5) is another team which was bitten by the injury bug this season. The Seminoles lost leading scorer Chris Singleton in February to a broken foot. He may return to action this weekend. Early in the season, Xavier Gibson broke his hand and missed nine games. The Seminoles have size and athleticism, play physical defense and, if Singleton does return to action, have the talent to win this tournament.

Florida State is number one in the nation in field goal percentage defense and in the top 25 in blocked shots and rebounding margin. Bernard James has developed into an excellent inside presence over the course of the season averaging 2.3 blocks along with 8.3 points and 5.9 rebounds per game. He plays a little over 20 minutes per contest. Seven footer Jon Kreft provides inside depth by playing 10 minutes per game.

On the perimeter, Derwin Kitchen, Michael Snaer, Deividas Dulkys and Luke Loucks combine to contribute 29.5 points per game. Kitchen is the primary ball handler and averages 3.6 assists per game.

Florida State will play the winner of the Virginia Tech (6) vs. Georgia Tech (11) game on Friday at 9 pm.

First year Coach Brad Brownell has Clemson (20-10, 9-7) playing consistent basketball in March. The Tigers won three of their last four games to earn a first round bye and stay in contention for an NCAA Tournament bid. Their loss came against the Blue Devils in Durham. The Tigers play a deliberate conservative brand of basketball under Brownell, in direct contrast to the pressing high risk high reward style which was prevalent in years past.

Seniors Jerai Grant and Demontez Stitt are the leaders of this team. Grant was named to the ACC All Defensive Team, while Stitt was named 3rd Team All ACC. Talented sophomores Devin Booker and Milton Jennings along with juniors Andre Young, Tanner Smith, Bryan Narcisse and freshman Cory Stanton all average double digit minutes per game.

While Coach Brownell is in his first season at Clemson, he has post season coaching experience. He has led UNC-Wilmington and Wright State to NCAA Tournament berths.

Clemson will play the winner of the Boston College (5) vs. Wake Forest (12) game on Friday at 2 pm.

While this tournament preview will not make predictions on which teams will advance to play in Saturday’s semi-final games and Sunday’s championship, it will point out in 2010 three of the four top seeds lost on Friday, and since the league expanded in 2005, 2008 is the only year all four top seeds have advanced to the semi-finals. So when you kick back with your beverage of choice and a bowl of popcorn to enjoy the games, be ready for multiple upsets as it is the ACC Tournament and upsets are the norm.

There’s no real point in discussing Kyrie’s injury because there is too much we do not know so let’s take a look at each of the “things we know” and break them down:

Duke has senior leadership.

The presence of senior leadership is not widespread in today’s college basketball landscape; however that does not make it any less valuable. In fact, it makes it more valuable as Duke has what few other teams have – two proven senior leaders in All American candidates Kyle Singler and Nolan Smith.

Coach Krzyzewski discussed Singler after the victory over Oregon in Portland: “I’m very proud of Kyle. Today was a special day for him. He is truly one of the special kids I’ve had the opportunity to coach at any level. He has a warrior’s spirit. He’s all about winning and playing hard and I love the way he performs. He’s never nervous. He’s the same all the time. He never has a play in a game or in practice when he’s not working hard. He’s what I call a no-maintenance guy.”

Nolan Smith is currently number eight on statistics guru Ken Pomeroy’s list of contenders for the 2011 Player-of-the-Year Award.

During the St. Louis post game press conference, Associate Head Coach Chris Collins stated, “For Nolan to get back, I mean he didn’t have a field goal against Bradley the other night, but he played a good floor game. For him to come back today and have the six rebounds, five assists but also get 22 points at the point guard position, I thought was really good.”

Last season’s run to the national championship demonstrated the utility of senior leadership as Scheyer, Thomas and Zoubek combined to be a steadying influence upon the Blue Devils during the stretch run. In 2009, North Carolina won the championship with senior Tyler Hansbrough as their key player. Kansas started two seniors and two juniors in 2008 when they won the national championship, and when the Florida Gators repeated as national champions in 2007, they started a senior and four juniors.

There seems to be a pattern here and the pattern is experience is King come March and April. The experienced leadership on Duke’s roster in 2011 will provide the Blue Devils a decided advantage once the post season arrives. Singler and Smith are two of the best players in the nation.

Duke is deep and talented.

The roster contains five McDonald’s All Americans: Kyle Singler, Nolan Smith, Mason Plumlee, Ryan Kelly and Kyrie Irving. However, other players on the roster earned accolades prior to arriving in Durham.

Freshman Tyler Thornton was the Washington D.C. Gatorade Player-of-the-Year while fellow freshman Josh Hairston was the Maryland Gatorade Player-of-the-Year. After the St. Louis game, Associate Head Coach Chris Collins commented on the play of Thornton and Hairston, “I mean we felt great when the guys came off the bench. I mean Josh Hairston and Tyler Thornton did a great job, especially in the second half. They hit us with a little run to start the half. We weren’t as happy with our energy coming out of halftime. We went to our bench and those guys played great.”

Prior to transferring to Duke, Seth Curry was the Big South Conference Freshman of the Year.

Andre Dawkins skipped his senior year of high school and enrolled at Duke early so he missed out on the opportunity to be named as a member of the various All American teams. However, he was a two-time first team NCSAA All-American.

Duke has all the requisite pieces required to be a champion.

It takes more than talented players to win a championship. It takes the right mix of players who complement each others game. A championship team needs perimeter players and inside players, jump shooters as well as players who can attack the rim, rebounding specialists and defensive specialists. Chemistry is vital to building a championship team.

Duke’s roster contains all of those individual pieces.

The freshman to sophomore jump is alive and well in Durham.

Andre Dawkins was inserted into the starting line-up for the Bradley game in response to Irving’s toe injury. Dawkins responded by scoring 28 points on 8-14 shooting on 3-pointers. After the game, Coach Krzyzewski stated, “It’s great; I hope it’s not a passing fancy. Andre has been, and I said it last week, Andre has been as consistent as anybody we’ve had this season including Kyle and Nolan and Kyrie. Andre has been solid, just really solid and was hitting with a limited amount of shots.”

Dawkins currently leads the ACC in 3-PT FG percentage at .536 and is averaging 12 points per game.

Mason Plumlee is averaging 8.3 points and 7.7 rebounds per game. Against Michigan State, in the ACC-Big Ten Challenge, Mason played 35 minutes, having five steals, to go along with a 10 points, 10 rebounds double-double. Coach Krzyzewski praised his performance, “Mason had to play 35 minutes with the foul trouble we had and they kept alternating bigs and Mason got a double-double and five steals. As obviously sensational as Kyrie was, quietly Mason was outstanding, he was outstanding.”

Mason’s high scoring game so far this season was against Marquette when the 6’10 big man exploded for 25 points on 12-16 shooting from the field. Additionally, he recorded 12 rebounds and five blocked shots. Mason leads the team in blocked shots.

Ryan Kelly scored a career high 13 points in the most recent game against Elon. Kelly is a versatile player with advanced passing skills and solid shooting ability. He has demonstrated rebounding and shot blocking skills as well. As his playing time increases, his game will continue to develop. Kelly is much better now than he was as a freshman, and he will most likely be much better in March compared to December.

Seth Curry is the fourth sophomore but he is two years removed from his freshman season due to sitting out last season after his transfer to Duke from Liberty. Curry has been a little inconsistent at times this season but he has demonstrated a solid shooting stroke and excellent wing defense skills. Curry has second most steals on the team behind Singler.

This team still needs to develop in several areas.

Duke is 11-0 and the unanimous number one ranked team in the country. The ACC schedule kicks off next week when the Miami Hurricanes visit Cameron Indoor Stadium, and with the conference schedule comes games against teams, and perhaps more importantly coaches, who are intimately familiar with the Blue Devils. Things are going to get tougher in January and February before the real test of March and hopefully April arrives. This Duke team is deep and talented with the senior leadership that provides an unlimited upside, so 2011 has the potential to be another great year, but everyone knows there is a lot of work to be accomplished over the next three and a half months.

Every team has to develop their unique identity but this year’s team has been thrown a curve ball with the injury to Irving. Therefore, a need exists for the team to rediscover who they are specifically in regard to playing style. Will the team continue to apply maximum pressure on the perimeter with an emphasis on creating turnovers? Or will they revert to last season’s style, which focused upon rebounding? On offense, will they push the ball at every opportunity? Or will they look to become a dominant half court offensive team?

There are a lot of questions and the answers will be forthcoming over the next month, all one has to do is watch. Coach Krzyzewski is a master at transforming a team.

Free throw shooting is another area where the team could improve. Duke is shooting .743 as a team; however, Mason Plumlee (.417), Miles Plumlee (.611) and Josh Hairston (.538) all have room to improve. In a close game, the ability of these players to convert from the free throw line could the decisive factor.

With 2011 literally just around the corner, it is time for Duke fans to sit back and enjoy the ride as Coach Krzyzewski and the Staff lead the Blue Devils in their pursuit of excellence. No one knows how the season will end, but it is apparent the 2011 Duke Blue Devils have all the pieces in place to make a serious run toward Houston and another national championship.