Strong final Saturday gives Duke hope for better seasons to come
David Cutcliffe abhors using the word frustrated when talking about a team on a slide.
His Duke Blue Devils had every reason to be frustrated over the last six weeks as they rode a five-game losing streak into Saturday’s regular-season finale against Miami.
But, Cutcliffe is fond of saying, being frustrated means accepting there is no answer to what’s going wrong.
Duke practiced this week knowing the game with Miami would be its final home game. The players and coaches knew they couldn’t have a winning season.
They knew their chances of making a bowl game, even with a 5-7 record, were slim.
Yet rather than give in to frustration, the Blue Devils found an answer.
The best day of defense Duke has turned in since September and the offense finding its way after misfiring so many times during the losing streak allowed the Blue Devils to beat Miami 27-17.
“Everybody has seen a team when things go bad check out and make things worse,” Cutcliffe said. “With really no real opportunity to play in a bowl game, it didn’t matter. That’s not what that effort was about. That effort was about pride. It was about the program. We talked about it all week long.”
The losing streak is done, tossed aside because the Blue Devils (5-7 overall, 3-5 ACC) posted their first victory of the season that included a fourth-quarter comeback.
The Blue Devils had two earlier fourth-quarter rallies this season, only to see late leads disappear in a 33-30 loss to Pittsburgh on Oct. 5 and a 39-27 loss at Wake Forest on Nov. 23.
Duke, as its fans painfully remember, was in position to flip a game in the fourth quarter at North Carolina before running back Deon Jackson was instructed to throw a pass from the Tar Heels 2 with less than a minute to play.
It was intercepted, allowing UNC to escape with 20-17 win.
Had Duke finished just one of those games, the Blue Devils would be heading to a bowl game for the seven time in eight seasons.
Yet, they aren’t because either the defense couldn’t protect the lead -- as was the case against Pitt and Wake Forest -- or the offense couldn’t punch in the winning score at Chapel Hill.
Those kinds of losses can lead to frustration. The Blue Devils experienced plenty of angst about them, but Cutcliffe successfully steered his team away from frustration.
Because of that, they found a way to come together for a solid week of practice leading into the Miami game. That work paid off and Duke heads into the offseason on a positive note.
“I’m going to be most thankful when it comes to Duke football to those seniors,” Cutcliffe said. “Conversations with them all week, their willingness to stay the course with phenomenal effort is a huge, huge statement about our program. They’ve left us in a lot better place than we could have been coming back in January.”
While its just the second time in eight seasons Duke will spend December watching other teams play in bowl games rather than playing in one, ending the season with the win over Miami shows some program growth.
The 2016 team lost its final two games to miss a bowl and finish 4-8. Even the 2012 team that ended Duke’s 18-year bowl drought lost its final five games, including the Belk Bowl to Cincinnati, to land at 6-7.
In 2011, Duke started 3-2 before losing its final seven games for a 3-9 mark.
On all those occasions, the Blue Devils carried a losing streak into the following season.
The 2020 Duke team won’t have that problem as it seeks to return the program to the winning seasons and bowl games that have become regular occurrences over this decade.
“We can build on this,” Cutcliffe said. “We’re not going to like the year but we are going to like the finish. And it’s OK to like the finish.”
Now, of course, Duke has to actually build on it.
The Blue Devils will return seven starters on offense next season. The biggest need is to find a new quarterback since Quentin Harris is done after throwing for 16 touchdowns but 11 interceptions as a redshirt senior. Reserves Chris Katrenick and Gunnar Holmberg are in the fold but Holmberg missed prime growth this season when he suffered a season-ending knee injury in August. Duke may have to dip into the transfer pool.
But, even with that looming uncertainty, reserve receivers Jake Bobo, Eli Pancol and Darrell Harding, Jr., are ready to replace departing starting receivers Scott Bracey and Aaron Young.
Four starting offensive linemen and running backs Deon Jackson and Mataeo Durant will be back.
On defense, Duke loses five senior starters, including its top two tacklers in linebacker Koby Quansah and safety Dylan Singleton.
But defensive end Chris Rumph, who recorded 3.5 sacks against Miami to close his redshirt sophomore season with 6.5 for the season, is in position for an even larger role next season. Sack leader Victor Dimukeje (8.5) is back for his senior season.
So Duke has solid parts as it seeks to flush this forgettable losing season and focus on better days in the new decade.
Because Duke’s departing seniors decided to turn in a solid final effort on Saturday, rather than turning their attention to their post-Duke lives a week early, the returning Blue Devils start with that small yet important advantage.
“Adversity is a gift,” Cutcliffe said. “But it’s one where it’s wrapped that you can’t get in it quickly. People forget that. So a lot of people quit trying to open that gift. But if you stay after it long enough, it may be one of the best gifts you’ve ever had. That’s where we are right now.
This story was originally published November 30, 2019 at 10:11 PM.