DURHAM - The Blue Devil Nation was once again on hand for the weekly press conference with Duke Football Coach David Cutcliffe. Hear Coach talk about the win over Navy and this weekends Virginia game by tuning into BDN Audio -
Just press play -
The Blue Devil Nation continues to share what is normally saved for premium members in an effort to shine the light on Duke Football. Here is the audio from yesterdays media call in show where Cutcliffe answered a few questions. Please feel free to link BDN's football coverage for we have supported and covered Duke Football from the start.
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The Duke Blue Devils won their third consecutive ACC game by beating Virginia in Charlottesville 28-17 on Saturday. Maybe it's time to start believing in this team for a quick look at the standings shows that the Blue Devils are in sole possession of second place in the ACC's Coastal Division.
Coach Cutcliffe and his staff continue to surprise the college football world in just their second year in Durham and a change in culture is happening in more ways than one.. Duke and Virginia went toe to toe for most of the game, but a consistent and resilient game plan allowed Duke to push their record to 3-1 in the ACC and 5-3 overall.
Thaddeus Lewis made big plays when it counted and was cool under pressure while Nick Snyderwine connected on 5 of 5 field goals, showing what it means to have consistency in the kicking game. Plenty of other Devils helped as well and we'll continue coverage on this key win mid afternoon. Until then, check out the links page.
• Game 21 •
[1 AP/1 Coaches] Duke (18-2, 5-1 ACC) vs. Virginia (7-9, 1-4 ACC)
Sunday, February 1, 2009 • 2:08 PM ET • FSN
Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) • Durham, N.C.
Blue Devil Bits
Duke is 18-2 on the year, including a 5-1 mark in Atlantic Coast Conference play, following a 70-68 loss at No. 6 Wake Forest on Wednesday.
Duke is 12-0 at home this season with a 3-0 home record in league play. The Blue
Devils have won 10 or more home games in each of the last 14 seasons, posting a 193-18 (.915) record during that span, including four undefeated seasons.
The Blue Devils are ranked first in the AP poll and the ESPN/USA Today Coaches poll. Duke has now been ranked No. 1 in the AP poll 111 times, the second-most in NCAA history.
Duke is also rated first in the latest RPI according to CollegeRPI.com. The site ranks Duke’s strength of schedule sixth in the NCAA.
Sophomore Kyle Singler finished with 22 points and 12 rebounds against Wake Forest. Singler now has six double-doubles this season and 10 for his career.
Gerald Henderson scored 20 points on 9-of-17 shooting on Wednesday. He also had eight rebounds and three steals in the loss. Henderson has scored 20 or more points in four of the last six games.
Senior David McClure matched a career high with 12 rebounds in 25 minutes against the Demon Deacons. The Ridgefield, Conn., native grabbed nine rebounds in the second half and now has three career games with 10 or more rebounds.
Numbers Game -
Duke will play its first February game of 2009 on Sunday against Virginia. Under Coach K, the Blue Devils are 165-63 in the month of February, including a 14-7 record against the Cavaliers.
The Blue Devils have won the last 12 meetings with Virginia in Cameron Indoor Stadium. The last time Duke lost at home to the Cavaliers was on Jan. 14, 1995, under Pete Gaudet, 91-88, in double overtime. The last loss at home to Virginia under Coach K was a 77-69 setback on Jan. 17, 1993.
Duke has a 14-0 record all-time against Virginia when ranked No. 1 in the AP poll. The Blue Devils have been ranked in each of the last 27 games against the Cavaliers.
The Blue Devils are the only team in the ACC holding opponents to under 60 points per game in conference play. Duke is allowing 54.7 points per game in league action and has held five of its six opponents under 60 points, including two opponent to under 50 points.
Duke leads the ACC in field goal percentage defense and three-point field goal percentage defense in conference-only games. The Blue Devils are holding teams to .365 shooting from the field and .243 from beyond the arc.
Sophomore Kyle Singler is tied for sixth in the ACC with six double-figure rebound games this season. Singler is third in the league with six double-doubles, including two games with at least 20 points and 10 rebounds.
Gerald Henderson has scored in double figures in 12 straight games, which is tied for the fifth-longest streak in the ACC. He has scored 20 or more points in four of the last six games, averaging 20.8 points per game in that span.
Junior Brian Zoubek is two blocked shots shy of 50 for his career. Duke has 29 players all-time with 50 or more blocks, including two other current Blue Devils Gerald Henderson (60) and David McClure (50).
Duke is ranked No. 1 for the first time since the final AP poll of the 2005-06 season. Under Mike Krzyzewski, the Blue Devils have been ranked No. 1 in the AP poll 93 times. Since 1990, Duke has held the top spot in the country for 80 weeks, more than any other school in the nation.
Junior Jon Scheyer ranks fourth in the ACC in free throw percentage (.854, 88-of-103). He has made 16 consecutive free throws and now ranks fifth all-time in the league history in free throw percentage (.864, 323-of-374).
Junior Gerald Henderson is leading the ACC with a .595 (47-of-79) field goal percentage in conference play. He also ranks seventh in scoring at 19.7 ppg., 11th in rebounds at 7.2 rpg. and second in steals at 2.7 spg. in ACC contests.
Duke is 471-54 under Coach K when outrebounding the opposition. The Blue Devils have outrebounded their opponents 15 times this season, posting a 14-1 record in those games.
[private]I sat down with Duke Senior leader Michael Tauiliili this afternoon. Here are his 
thoughts -
Do you guys talk about as a team that you haven't won an ACC game in your career?
Definitely. Not because we haven't won one in awhile, but because it's an ACC game. When you get into the conference everybody has aspirations. We are all aware that we haven't won an ACC game since we've been here. Looking back on it, I am a firm believer that everything happens for a reason and we are all working to win our first ACC game.
Is it a mental barrier?
Not at all. The past is the past and we are all focused mainly on the present and the future. We have to go one game at a time. Coach always says we have to prepare for Saturday and this is only Tuesday. That's what we are worried about, having a great day on Tuesday and then Wednesday and then Thursday.
Has coach said to treat this week like another game?
We are all aware that we haven't won one but he doesn't harp on it, but he has mentioned it. What he has harped on is that we are in the conference now.
Do you think as a team you can carry over the momentum of starting 2-1 past the bye week?
Definitely. We've had the taste of success and coach makes sure we know how to deal with that. We stay hungry and prepare at full speed in practice and not take any plays off. We are definitely taking that momentum into the ACC. I think people know that they can't come in here and chalk it up as a "W" anymore and we are going to prepare as hard as any other game. I just can't wait to go out there at 12:00 on Saturday. Now, it's full fledged into the game week.
If I might go back to the Navy game ... you guys came out in the second half and dominated. What was said in the locker room or what do you attribute that to?
It was definitely the coaches. It's amazing to see how quickly they can make the adjustments on the chalk board. Basically what was said is this is what they are doing to us and this is what we're going to change.
Last year's team didn't really make good adjustments, but so far this season Duke has outscored each opponent in the second half -
This coaching staff - we've got great guys on the sidelines and up in the booth. The linebackers are always on the headphones with Coach Collins and we tell each other what we are seeing. After the game against Navy, Coach Matt pointed out what coaches could see to change and adjust and that we are all in this together. We are playing and they're making adjustments and making it fit together.[/private]
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