DURHAM - player to keep an eye on in the future is freshman quarterback Brandon Connette. Patrick Cacchio talked with Connette after the spring game where he took several snaps in an effort to replace the mending Sean Renfree. While Renfree will be the starter going into the season, Connette seems destined to earn the number two slot.
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Good Monday morning Blue Devil Nation! We'll start to churn out some interviews with the likes of Jay Bilas, Chris Collins, Chris Carrawell and Elton Brand as the week progresses. Of course, a lot of ex players were in town for the Coach K Academy which started earlier than normal due Krzyzewski's duties with Team USA. Needless to say, you'll enjoy hearing Bilas talk next season, Collins talk this past year, while CWell talks of future aspirations.
A trip to the Duke University Store will allow you to pick up plenty of national championship gear. Check out the new LAX Championship items and grab another men's basketball t-shirt while you're at it. Also, do not forget our sponsor football fanatics where you can get some really nice gear in a timely manner. The ad is located at the top of our main page.
BDN's Andre Slater was on the scene at Pango's [AAU Camp] this past weekend and he will bring you reports and interviews as the week goes on if you are a premium member. Quincy Miller won the event's most outstanding player and we'll be hearing more about that shortly. BDN Premium still has several prospect interviews on the way including updates on the biggest names on the recruiting radar.
Speaking of recruiting, the Duke Football coaches have just returned from the road and we'll take a look at the latest as we play a little catch up on that front this week. Our staff has had a lot going on of late and that has caused some temporary delays in coverage, but as many of you know, BDN supports Coach Cutcliffe and the football team and we'll attend pretty much every available event to bring you coverage of an up and coming program.
Pre season football magazines are rolling out and Duke is predicted 5th in the coastal division by almost everyone. The best projected record to date is 5-7 with 4-8 being the cumulative average. Our recommendation for the best publication is Phil Steele's College Football Annual. Also worthy of mention is that Elon is rated 2nd in the nation in the FCS by one publication and no lower than 6th nationally in any of them. In short, Elon is a pretty solid club that can give Duke problems on opening night.
DURHAM, N.C. – Kick-off times for Duke’s first three games were announced on Thursday in conjunction with the ACC’s early-season television schedule.
The Blue Devils will open the year at home on September 4 against Elon at 7 p.m. The game will be broadcast live on the internet at ESPN3.com. In week two, Duke kicks off ACC action on the road at Wake Forest with a 12 noon game televised live by Raycom Sports.
Reigning national champion Alabama travels to Durham on September 18. The game will begin at 3:30 p.m. and be televised live by ABC Sports.
Season tickets are available and may be purchased online at GoDuke.com/tickets or by calling the Duke Athletic Ticket Office at 1-877-375-DUKE (3853).
Torrey Campbell is a 5’11” 180 pound junior athlete from Naples, Florida. Torrey is a two-sport athlete for both the football and track teams at Barron Collier High School. Torrey’s outstanding athleticism has garnered him a lot of attention in recent months from major college football programs across the country.
On offense, Torrey has played running back in high school, using his elusive speed to rush for six touchdowns as a junior. Most college are recruiting him to play in the secondary on the defensive side of the field, which is a transition Torrey began during his junior year, registering ten tackles and forcing a fumble. On defense, Torrey says his strengths are “being fast to the ball, and just making plays all over the field.” Heading into his senior year, Torrey is working primarily on his footwork on defense, as this is still a relatively new position for him. Barron Collier will hold camps this summer at Florida Atlantic University, which may prevent Torrey from attending any additional camps.
As he approaches his college decision, Torrey is looking for a school with a good education; he has looked at graduation rates and wants to make sure he receives a good education because “after football there has to be something.” He’s looking for a coaching staff that is “down to earth” and players that are “easy to get along with.” Proximity to home is not important to Torrey, but the actual location of the school, in terms of a good college town or city, will be important.
To date, Torrey has received scholarship offers from 15 college programs, and a handful are starting to stick out to him, though he is still considering all of his options. In no particular order, Tennessee, Boston College, South Florida, Iowa, and Louisville have impressed the junior so far. In June, Torrey will travel to Iowa to compete in the hurdles at the USA Track and Field Nationals, and hopes to visit the Iowa campus then. In July, he is hoping to visit Boston College, Tennessee, and Rutgers. He has also visited South Florida, being relatively close to home, and also took in Georgia Tech and Georgia recently, though the latter two have yet to offer a scholarship. Some schools have started to show interest in Torrey as a two-sport athlete, and he would be very interested in continuing to run track at the collegiate level.
The Duke staff recently visited Torrey during his spring workouts, and he mentioned that he is impressed with the job they are doing rebuilding the Duke program. Torrey hopes to visit as many schools as possible over the summer, before he makes a final decision.
Well, it never fails folks! I attempt to take 48 hours away from the wired world and all heck breaks loose. Okay, okay, not that much but enough starting with the answer to the question about Carrick Felix. Yes, it is true in that he will not enroll at Duke. The word is admissions were the hold up but the fact is nothing official is out there yet and he has opened up his recruitment. The BDN wishes Felix the best in all of his future endeavors but fortunately Duke is really deep this coming season. Felix was viewed as an athletic wing with good defensive capabilities to go with his explosiveness. The Duke staff was looking forward to working with him before the latest happenings.
The Duke Football staff has been on the recruiting trail and they are working it hard. Duke offered Colorado quarterback Brock Berglund which you can read about in our football section. We'll have more on this and another offer coming shortly.
More props to Doug Collins who will be officially named the coach of the Philadelphia Sixers today. Doug of course is the father of Duke Assistant Coach Chris Collins and played his most memorable moments in Philly as a player. While Chris will be returning to Duke this season one has to wonder if this will open some doors down the road. Collins [Chris] is a basketball fanatic who misses only the occasional bounce of the ball if a game is on television. BDN wishes Doug the very best in his new job.
You may have seen a few folks saying Jon Scheyer could play basketball in Israel. It's not far fetched. BDN will follow the situation.
This weekend will likely be an end to one of the AAU's best tournaments, the Tournament of Champions where the games are played on the campuses of Duke, North Carolina and North Carolina State. BDN Premium members will get all the skinny and this may be your last chance to catch this tournament in that the NCAA will soon not allow these events to be played on major college campuses. A lot of other changes are in the works and as summer rolls in we'll discuss the future of off season hoops.
The Duke Blue Devils became the ninth school to offer junior quarterback Brock Berglund this past weekend. Berglund stands 6-4 and weighs in at 205 pounds making him a prototypical size for the position. Berguland is a Colorado native playing his high school football with Victory Christian. He grew up a Colorado Buffaloes fan but he recently claimed that other schools were in the running for his services. Among the schools that have offered are Colorado, Colorado State, Utah, Kansas and Kansas State. When Cutcliffe targets a signal caller he knows what he's looking for and Berglund has all the tools to be one of the nation's best. The Blue Devil Nation will have more on the latest offer later in the week.
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