Tuesday, September 5, 2017

Duke Battles Northwestern in Week 2 Action

Now in its 105th season of football, Duke hosts Northwestern on September 9 at 12 noon.  The Blue Devils are 1-0 following their season-opening 60-7 win over N.C. Central.  The Wildcats are 1-0 after downing Nevada, 31-20.

Saturday’s game will mark the 19th on the gridiron between Duke and Northwestern, with the Wildcats leading the series, 10-8.  Northwestern has won three straight, including last year’s 24-13 decision in Evanston.  The series dates back to 1985.  After Duke won seven of the first nine meetings, Northwestern has won eight of the last nine.

Now in his 10th season as Duke’s head coach, David Cutcliffe is 53-61 with the Blue Devils and 97-90 overall.  Cutcliffe earned ACC Coach of the Year honors in both 2012 & 2013. Duke owns an all-time record of 497- 511-31 in 104 seasons. Dating back to the 2013 season, the Blue Devils are 29-16 in their last 45 regular season games.

The Blue Devils enter the Northwestern tilt having won 19 of their last 25 games against non-ACC opponents. Under head coach David Cutcliffe, the Blue Devils are 30-5 when allowing 20 points or less.

Last week, RB Brittain Brown (10- 120) was one of four freshmen nationally to rush for 120+ yards, joining Ohio State’s J.K. Dobbins (29-181), Connecticut’s Nate Hopkins (20-130) and Arkansas’ Chase Hayden (14-120).

A total of 10 true freshmen played in Duke’s season-opening triumph over N.C. Central: S Michael Carter II, OG Rakavius Chambers, DE Victor Dimukeje, K Jack Driggers, TE Noah Gray, DE Drew Jordan, RB Deon Jackson, DT Axel Nyembwe, DT Derrick Tangelo and S Marquis Waters.


Duke QB Daniel Jones enters the Northwestern contest with an active streak of 198 consecutive pass attempts without an interception.  The streak is currently the longest nationally and stands as the second best stretch in school history.  Thaddeus Lewis owns the Duke standard with 206 straight throws without an interception spanning the 2006-07 seasons.