Tag Archives: Duke Football Recruiitng

Monday Musings

BDN Monday Musings takes a look at Duke Athletics

This week, we have an abbreviated version of Monday Musings as we continue to work on other site projects -

Rebounding from a tough loss

Duke is not feeling sorry for themselves after the Florida State loss at home which killed several records.  This team will now start new streaks if they have their way.  After any loss, much of the Blue Devils fanbase goes into Chicken Little mode and you would swear that the sun will never rise.  Food for thought is that Duke has 3 losses against a brutal schedule ranked the toughest.  That means on Kentucky and Syracuse have less losses of any of what are considered the true national contenders. 

The new polls

Kentucky is the new #1 after Syracuse faced their first defeat of the season but are they good enough to be a unanimous #1 save 4 votes in the A.P. poll?  Duke is ranked 6th in the Coaches poll and 8th in the A.P. this week.  Interestingly, Florida State moves into the A.P. poll at #23 after their upset win in Cameron, ranked one spot ahead of a UConn team they lost to by a bucket.  Duke has defeated #5 Kansas, #10 Michigan State, #19 Virginia and #20 Michigan and lost to #3 Ohio State and #23 Florida State which translates to 4-2 against the top 25.

Bracketology

For me, early bracketology is much like "what if," articles in that I'm not a big fan of either one.  But many do and in this weeks edition of ESPN Bracketology by Joe Lunardi, Duke is a #2 seed opening with  a tough Cleveland State team.  Kansas is the #1 seed followed by the Blue Devils, then West Virginia at #3 and Creighton at #4.  FWIW, they're in the St. Louis region, if they get that far for the first two games will be in Greensboro.  I'd take  that bracket and yes, I just got caught linking and reading early bracketology ... ugh.

Duke Women are young and GOOD!

Due to workload we haven't been able to cover the women as much as we'd like but I made it to the Maryland game yesterday and it is by far the smoothest, cleanest game I have been to since Coach P took over.  No missed free throws and few turnovers made for a good game on the eyes and of course, Duke won and remains atop the ACC.  The Blue Devils offensive sets against were crisp and there was great spacing.  Freshman Elizabeth Williams has it going on for sure and you should check here out and Haley Peters "womaned" up yesterday with an outstanding performance.  Duke takes on UConn in Cameron next Monday and very few tickets are left.  Get you a pair through Duke and back the Blue Devils against the beast from the east.

Football recruiting red hot

Duke entertained Jela Duncan and others and BDN Football Analyst Patrick Cacchio has the latest on all the happenings on the front.  BDN Premium has some good stuff up for members and gridiron fans and we have the only recent and in depth interview with Amile Jefferson.  It's a great time to join and talk Duke Athletics on our subscription only message board where you avoid all the free board maniacs and have real discussions.

Blue Devil Nation Open Facebook Page

As most of you know, Blue Devil Nation on has a message board for paying members of BDN Premium, but we do have a Blue Devil Nation Open Facebook page which you can join and it is our version of a free message board.  So, if you want to hang and chat with other Duke fans, check it out.

Duke Football

Sam Marshall will bolster Duke’s defensive front in 2011

Sam Marshall is a 6’8” 260 pound senior lineman from Fredericksburg, Virginia. He committed to the Blue Devils in July and recently returned to campus to take in the Alabama game. BDN checked in with the big defensive end prospect after his visit.

“Overall, the visit was good, particularly the atmosphere and the fans,” he told BDN about his visit. “It was a tough loss, but I still saw some good things.”

During his visit, Sam was able to catch up with Coach Roper, Coach Hobby, and Coach Cutcliffe. He told BDN the coaching staff and the prestige of a Duke education were the big selling points that led to his commitment. Though he plays both offense and defense in high school, the Blue Devils’ coaching staff intends to use Sam on defense, which was another important factor in his decision, as other schools were recruiting him as an offensive lineman. His height is likely to wreak havoc on opposing quarterbacks, which will be a welcome new dimension to the Duke defense. Before choosing the Blue Devils, Sam held offers from Virginia, North Carolina State, Marshall, Louisville, East Carolina, and Western Michigan.


Sam’s team at Chancellor High School has started off 2-1, though Sam missed the second game (a loss) with an ankle sprain. He said he’s back near 100% now, and is working on “getting stronger and faster and better in all areas” over the course of his senior year. So far, he’s recorded 6 tackles and a sack in two games.

In closing, Sam told BDN, “I’m excited to join the Duke program and help the team any way I can.”