Welcoming to Monday Musings where there is nothing but Duke stuff to absorb. It is currently a good time to be a Duke Blue Devil fan with Mike Krzyewski in the heat of battle with Team USA in Rio to football being in full gear.

A bit of a thankless position for Krzyzewski 

Mike Krzyzewski took over Team USA when it was at a low point and has since righted the ship.  That's what leaders do.  The Duke Basketball coach is in the midst of going for his third Gold Medal for the country which is more than a little impressive.  It's a thankless position in a sense these days, especially if Team USA should lose.

There have been some close calls to date and as we enter the medal round;  some critics or haters are sharpening their teeth to gnash away from their armchair seat is there is a stumble.  The reality that is not recognized is that this team has been together for a month. And there is no appreciation for how good the world is at a sport with teams who play together much more often, having strived to get better over time.  No excuses, just facts.  let's not forget players backing out at pretty much the last-minute not allowing for strategic planning.

Coach K as he is known by most of us, has never lost in the Olympics. In my opinion, the players will rise to the occasion under his leadership in the coming days and the mission will be accomplished.  Hopefully by then, people will realize the immense expectations the team has which in fairness comes with the territory.  The man is closing in on his legacy where he helped those expectations come back to life, for before he took over, said expectation had been tarnished.

Meanwhile, back in Durham

Far away from the happening in Rio, the Duke Men's Basketball team is at work preparing for the upcoming season.  Much like the situation above, Coach Mike Krzyzewski will be expected to win it all this season with a deservedly hyped team.

Videos are coming out of Durham and Duke at breakneck speed building hype on this seasons talented bunch.  The team has been under the watchful eyes of assistants Nate James and Jon Scheyer who are leading the team through varying drills.

Pretty soon, you will see Grayson Allen adorning preseason magazine covers per my sources.  Duke will be good this year - very good, if not nasty good.  With key veterans like Allen., Matt Jones, Amile Jefferson and Luke Kennard returning, you have a solid nucleus to teach the talented newcomers.

And those newcomers can play.  Already showing off their skill set in drills are Jayson Tatum, Frank Jackson,, Marques Bolden, Javin DeLaurier, Jack White and company.  Oh, and Harry Gile is coming along as well.

Anyhow, the official schedule will release by the ACC in the next week or so.  And for what it is worth you will see that the team has plenty of challenges.  In fact, the ACC road schedule is brutal and if you have been paying attention, the league  will be loaded.

Duke Football

Oh how times have changed.  Duke Football recruiting is currently ranked 18th in the country by ESPN with concern to next seasons class.  The health of the program is on solid footing for the future as changes are being worked on a breakneck speed in Wallace Wade Stadium for the coming season.

From my understanding, some of the renovations are a little behind or have had to be altered, bit fans will get the gist of what is to come when Duke kicks off the season in 18 days versus NCCU.  But when you see some possible delays in the finished product, remember that the foundation is solid under Coach David Cutcliffe's watch.

This off-season, Duke worked hard on what they called ''The Year of the Beast,'' in an effort to get stronger as a team.  This consisted of some serious weight training which will help many younger players as they enter the season.

Duke is one of the most inexperienced teams in the league this year with concern to returnees, but this is a team that has been recruiting well.  The schedule is brutally tough, but a fifth consecutive bowl bid is within reach and it will be fun to see how the team responds to the challenge.

Early in preseason drills, we see Thomas Sirk rehabbing his Achilles tendon injury in as fast a way ever.  His leadership is evident in practices despite him not being at full strength just yet.  It is also worth noting that the run game looks solid with veterans Jela Duncan and Shaun Wilson, not to mention some talented newcomers.

The key for Duke this season will be the play up front on both offense and defense.  New coaches are working with the players in this area where several new guys will be expected to contribute and start right away.

It's time to rekindle Monday Musings and this week we'll share some idle thoughts on  Duke Football and Basketball.  The football team was the victim of an officiating snafu that has the nation talking.  Meanwhile, Duke Basketball played their first game under their 2015 National Championship banner.

The aftermath is bitter

As we all know by now, the Atlantic Coast Conference suspended the officiating crew that called the Duke-Miami game this past Saturday.  That's not much of a consolation to the Duke Football program in that they have an undeserved blemish in the loss column which in turn caused the team to fall out oft he national rankings.  There are quite simply no adequate apologies for not getting this game right from league officials in that the outcome may well prevent the team from winning their division.  Duke is also forced to deal with unnecessary bitterness from the loss and must deal with the psychological aspects from the fiasco.  All in all, they have been forced fed a bitter pill they are expected to swallow and move on.  There is no sugar coating the fact that this falls far to the left of the fairness meter and it will take a while to shake the result off.  And if that is not bad enough, the program will be expected to endure the replays for years to come in that their will not be an accompanying asterisk beside the play or their 6-2 record.  What is even more disturbing is that the team is a loss away from falling deep into the division pack should other teams win.

No choice but to move forward

The Blue Devils have no choice other than to move on and with North Carolina looming, they'd better do so and soon.  Coach David Cutcliffe knows he has to get back to work and soon.  In fact, he said that he would let the university continue to look into the situation as he did just that in his Sunday call in show with members of the media.  Duke cannot lay all the blame on one play, meaning they must improve in certain areas on the field as a team and a staff.  The Blue Devils should have won consecutive thrillers to be sure, but had the margin been more manageable the games would not come down to a single play.

UNC will present quite the challenge

A season ago, North Carolina came into Wallace Wade pumped up and prepared.  The Tar Heels put their collective knees in the Blue Devils chest on their way to a convincing victory.  This seasons version of North Carolina football is even better where their offense can score on practically any defensive scheme in bunches.  Their defense also rose to the occasion by playing perhaps their best game of the season.  The Blue Devils will have to focus in and soon for all indications are that the Tar Heels have as expected circled this game on their calendar.  This would have been a game against two 7-1 teams, but now Duke finds themselves in a dreaded must win situation due to the tainted loss to Miami.

Scrimmage shows little insight on the season to come

The Duke Basketball team rolled over Florida Southern, scoring in bunches in Cameron Indoor Stadium this past Friday.  Quite frankly, it was more of a first view for the fan base than an accurate barometer on what to expect this coming season.  We are likely to see Mike Krzyzzewski and his staff settle in on a core group of players sooner than one might expect.   The lack of size of their opponent dictated smaller lineups at times which made the big man rotation different from what we could see.  The freshman all looked good while the veterans showed they were indeed the core of the team in the early season contest.  Matt Jones suffered what could be a nagging groin injury while Grayson Allen had some trouble adjusting to the surprise of many.  Duke will take to the court again this Wednesday evening against Livingstone.  The regular season begins with back to back games on November 13th and 14th against Siena and Bryant.  The Blue Devils will seek to find more team chemistry in said games before their November 17th meeting with Kentucky in the State Farm Champions Classic.

Viewing Notes

The only way to see the exhibition game with Livingstone is through BDN + via subscription on the GoDuke.com site.  Saturdays football game versus UNC will kickoff at 12 noon on ESPN 2.  The first of the regular season games for men's basketball versus Siena will be on ESPNU.  The next evening will provide more of a challenge for viewers in that the Bryant game will be the only contest this season carried on ESPN 3.

Fans were treated to the best Duke Basketball of the season in this weeks past two wins.  The Blue Devils are playing spirited basketball despite being down to just eight scholarship players.

Cameron at it's best for win over UNC

The old girl Cameron Indoor Stadium is known for it's fans but it had been a while since it's been as good of late.  During the win over UNC, the place gave the Blue Devils a needed lift staying in the game with a never say die effort.  The team, of course, had the same mentality and Duke came away with two fun, meaningful and memorable wins.  The Crazies also showed up for the Clemson game and Duke put on one of their better performance of the season.

Classic win over UNC

Well, when you come back to win in overtime as Duke did over a UNC team playing good basketball, it is memorable.  The win over their arch rival was an instant classic where Tyus Jones became a part of Duke legends who willed their team to win.  But it wasn't just his play, for Quinn Cook was as good a senior leader as one could ask for in the game.  Amazingly, Duke has showed no signs of wilting as other teams past had despite playing three freshman pretty much the entire game.  The win still has the fan base buzzing and Duke riding high.

The confidence carried over to Clemson

How many teams could lose Jahlil Okafor to injury, have just seven recruited players available and rip Clemson apart?  Not many.  The Blue Devils moved he ball like no other time this season on the offensive end.  They played zone the entire game which allowed them to press and gain the legs to run the ball when they boarded the ball or stops were made.  In short, Duke put on a clinic once they got rolling over Clemson in a feel good win.  The performance was the best job of the season for Coach Mike Krzyzewski and his staff.  The week was the best of the season for the team who is riding high going on the road against Virginia Tech this week.  Duke has played so well that they well could make a jump in the polls despite teams ahead of them not losing.

Recruits have to be impressed

Against UNC, Caleb Swanigan was cheering like he played for Duke.  Dennis Smith Jr. and Harry Giles exchanged many a comment and Derryck Thornton lost his business like demeanor during the comeback win.  Early returns are that all the prospects came away impressed and see that Duke is a place where freshman do contribute  right away.  Brandon Ingram took in the action against Clemson as well and Duke looks to add him to Luke Kennard who visited for the UNC game and Chase Jeter who will be here for Wake Forest.  All in all, it's an important and good time for Duke Basketball on the recruiting front.

Dukies in the NBA

Well, Miles Plumlee recently joined the Milwaukee Bucks.  Kyle Singler was traded to Oklahoma City where he has already started two games as well.  And in Los Angeles, JJ Redick and Austin Rivers went off in the same game for a big win.  Some of the Duke alum are finding new and better situations and homes and it will be fin to watch progress this season.