The week ahead is a big one for Duke Athletics as the Men's Basketball team takes on N.C. State on Thursday evening in Cameron Indoor Stadium before traveling to Boston College for another road game on Saturday. Meanwhile, there is a little thing happening on Wednesday called football signing day, when players from around the country will seal their college decisions by sending in their official letters of intent.

Rematch looms

It was less than four weeks ago that N.C. State defeated a Ryan Kelly-less Duke team, knocking the Blue Devils from the ranks of the undefeated. Well, Duke will still be without the services of Kelly, but this time it is uncertain as to whether injured N.C. State point guard Lorenzo Brown will be available. The Pack is coming off a last second loss (without Brown) to ACC league leader Miami. They'll surely feel that their backs against the wall in Cameron, a site which more often than not brings out their best. It should be another tense game and while the Pack will be trying to right the ship, it is almost a must-win situation for Duke if they want to remain in the chase for the ACC regular season title. The Pack matches up better with Duke than do most conference teams, in that they have a solid one-two punch in the front court of C.J. Leslie and Richard Howell -- who is perhaps the most underappreciated star in the league. After Miami, it is a crowded ACC race, and the winner of this game will have a big leg up moving forward.

Speaking of Ryan Kelly

You have heard the old phrase "if I had a dime for every time ...."  Well, if I had a dime for every time somebody asked me about when Kelly would return, I would have a hundred dollar bill. Ask ten people and you'll get ten different answers.  As always, unfounded rumors abound on the web, as fans desperate for information increasingly believe just about anything they read, without bothering to check out the source's credentials. I can tell you that Kelly is getting closer to a return, and awhile back I told our members, "Think Boston College."  Duke plays the Eagles this Saturday and again on February 24th and I feel Kelly will be back within that time frame. Anyhow, nobody is going to rush Kelly back.  Once they get him back, the team needs him to remain on the court for the duration of the season, without relapses or setbacks. It's hard enough for a team to adjust its chemistry, its roles, and its rotations even once in mid-season.  Two or three times?  Much, much more difficult.

Duke will continue to hover ...

.... in the top five of the latest A.P. poll due out just after noon today. I'm not expecting a lot of movement in the polls where Duke is currently ranked fifth in the country, but fourth is not out of the question with Kansas losing. I think Michigan will not fall very far at all after their loss at Indiana. N.C. State will likely be just holding on to a spot in the polls, again, making them hungry to show the nation they can be consistent.

And just like that ....

There are only ten regular season games left on the schedule for Duke. Maybe it's the fact I am getting old, but man, has this season flown by. And Duke of course gets arch-rival North Carolina twice in those final ten games, on February 13th in Cameron and March 9th in Chapel Hill. This stretch of the season should prove more than a little interesting.  And how many have March 2nd circled on their calendars, when Miami comes to town?

Seniors have just five more home games

Wow. There are just five more home games for Mason Plumlee, Seth Curry and Ryan Kelly in the Duke uniform. I hope all the Crazies will give them a phenomenal send-off. I get to know the quality of the young men while covering the recruiting trail, and these are three really good guys. It'll be time to reflect soon enough.

Football Signing Day

Our members know that our football recruiting information is second to none on the web, and we'll certainly be in place when David Cutcliffe and company start to receive prospects' letters of intent. Look for BDN's Patrick Cacchio to have lots of great information and insights, and check back into our archives to read about the prospects who hope to continue to build Duke Football into a consistent winner.

A little bit about the site

We've been in the process of rethinking Blue Devil Nation a bit.  We've been slow to move on some of the changes, but you will see them moving forward. We'll be introducing a couple of new writers who have the qualities we have been looking for, and recruiting is about to heat up around here again in a big way. After fielding several inquiries to join a group or network, we've decided to remain an independent site. That means we have to work a little harder. It may take until the off-season to get some things in place, but the goal is to continue to serve the Blue Devil Nation with solid, dependable information and full beat coverage.  We have assembled a team of what we consider to be true experts in recruiting and coverage, and that should become even more evident as we move forward.