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Duke opens as a 2.5 points favorite:

http://www.vegasinsider.com/college-foo ... las-vegas/

This is a winnable game but the offense needs to get fixed in a hurry.

We need to make a statement. If we win by a FG, I'm not going to be happy.

This game has been bet in the wrong direction. Virginia is now a 2.5 point favorite on most sites.

Virginia has looked solid so far this year. Winning by 20 points on the road against Boise State was impressive.

We have not played well in recent years in Charlottesville. After what I have seen the last three weeks from our offense, I really don't feel good heading into this game.

wolfpackdevil wrote:We have not played well in recent years in Charlottesville.

Coach Cutcliffe is 6-3 against Virginia but Virginia has won the last two games. I agree the offense has to play better. Run the damn ball!

It's "run the ball" or basketball time for Duke, according to Ben Swain:

http://www.wralsportsfan.com/it-s-run-t ... /16991474/

Only twice did Duke have possessions where it involved their running backs on consecutive plays. Brittain Brown had consecutive runs of 7, 8, 8 and 11 yards on Duke’s first possession of the second quarter, and Shaun Wilson had back to back runs of 11 and 13 yards in Duke’s first drive of the second half. Both drives crossed midfield. Neither ended in points. Both ended after negative plays in the passing game.

Duke has a “face of the program” quarterback, and while that’s the identity that Cutcliffe and staff would like to have, it’s time to come to terms with Duke being a defense and running game first football team.

As I said above, run the damn ball!

I would not want to be Virginia this week. I never want to face a team coming off a disappointing loss, and especially not a good team. I DO think that Duke is a good team, and one that is better than showed up against Miami.
If I were a Wahoo fan, I'd be nervous about my guys facing off against some pissed off Blue Devils looking to prove themselves.
But I'm not a Wahoo fan, and I think we leave Charlottesville 13 point victors. (I also think that Jones has a good day.)

30-17 Duke

CameronBornAndBred wrote:(I also think that Jones has a good day.)

30-17 Duke

Duke Virginia games have been high scoring games in past years but both teams feature improved defenses. The over/under is 53.5 points and I'm going to take the under:

Duke 28, Virginia 17

Hopefully, Duke's receivers catch the ball when we pass. I'm confident Jones will deliver it and the staff will emphasize spreading the ball around. Jones has a tendency to lock in on T.J. Rahming. Moreover, hopefully, Duke runs the ball twice as much as they pass. The key will be to get out to an early lead and into a comfort zone. We cannot get behind early. The OL is better at run blocking than pass blocking and Shaun Wilson and Brittain Brown are our best offensive players.

UVA has not seen a defense like ours yet this season. I think our front 6 will give their QB trouble and our offense does just enough to win. There are no style points in road ACC games. Just like basketball.

Duke 21
UVA 13

A Tweet from Adam Rowe indicates the Duke Injury Report is basically empty. I take that to mean we have Will Taylor listed as out for the season and no one else.

Uniform combination: Blue Helmet, White Jersey, Blue Pants

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DLYSIXzXkAEfF0x.jpg

Bob Green wrote:Uniform combination: Blue Helmet, White Jersey, Blue Pants

Looks like a winner to me.

More game thoughts - this is a huge game coming on the heels of the loss to Miami so it has been on my mind more than normal this week.

There is lots of discussion (consternation) everywhere about Duke's offense but I've been thinking about the defense this afternoon. As Sam Murray stated above, Virginia has not seen a defense like Duke yet this year. It is up to the defense to set the game tone. Virginia likes to pass and with the nation's #6 rush defense coming to town I expect they will pass a lot. QB Benkert is talented but he isn't mobile so the DL needs to pressure him constantly. Knowles needs to mix in blitzes. Sacks, knockdowns and hurries will be important numbers. He needs to be out of his comfort zone early and often.

Special teams have been less than spectacular, especially punt returns. Word is T.J. Rahming will be back returning punts full time. He needs to make something happen. Ditto for Wilson and kick returns. Special teams need to find a way to come up with an explosive play or two.

The offense needs to click like it did against Northwestern. The biggest thing is they have to finish. Our red zone efficiency is one of the worst in the nation. The offense has moved the ball but they need to sustain drives and score touchdowns. Duke has scored 11 rushing TDs and 7 passing with a lot of them being long plays. Explosives are great but the offense needs to improve on moving the ball into the red zone and finishing drives with a TD.

Long TDs: Wilson 50 and 65 yard run; Brown 39 yard run; Young 54 yard reception; Taylor 52 yard reception.

That truly sucked. Our offense truly sucked. We are lucky that we didn't get blown out. Thanks to the D for sticking with it while tired.
Good lord. We will struggle to get to 6 this year if that continues.

CameronBornAndBred wrote:That truly sucked. Our offense truly sucked. We are lucky that we didn't get blown out. Thanks to the D for sticking with it while tired.
Good lord. We will struggle to get to 6 this year if that continues.

So true. Still believe we can get to 6. On a side note, today will probably be the last time I follow the game OY. 95% of the posters do nothing but moan and bitch. When Duke does something good, mostly crickets. Oh well. On to the next one. AW.

PS. Go Irish!

One of the most frustrating games I've watched in recent memory. Embarrassing performance by the offense and even more embarrassing play-calling. The fact that Wilson and Brown combined for only 17 carries is beyond me. The Touchdown drive in the second quarter was the only offensive drive of the entire game that felt positive.

Jim Knowles and that defense deserves so much better than what they are getting from the other side of the ball. My eyes thought we were the better and more talented team today.

Instead of being 5-1, we are looking at most likely falling to 4-3. There's nothing to give me hope that our offense can score against the defense we will see in Wallace-Wade next week. e.

Under Cut, we are usually the less-talented team that finds away to win games due to IQ and coaching. Today was the exact opposite.

It was painful to watch.

wolfpackdevil wrote:One of the most frustrating games I've watched in recent memory. Embarrassing performance by the offense and even more embarrassing play-calling. The fact that Wilson and Brown combined for only 17 carries is beyond me. The Touchdown drive in the second quarter was the only offensive drive of the entire game that felt positive.

Coach Cutcliffe appears to be a very stubborn man. He stubbornly insists on sticking with a passing offense when this team is obviously a much better running team.

14-42 for 124 yards is atrocious. 2.95 yards per attempt.

Bob Green wrote:.
14-42 for 124 yards is atrocious. 2.95 yards per attempt.

Good thing he's a quarterback's coach.