Duke quarterback Chase Brice is quickly taking ‘ownership’ of his offense. Here’s how.
Being the quarterback guru that he is, Duke coach David Cutcliffe surely analyzed every facet of Chase Brice’s play against Notre Dame.
Release time on throws, pre-snap reads, defense recognition, communication, pass progressions ... Cutcliffe assessed all of that in breaking down Brice’s execution in the 27-13 loss Saturday to open the 2020 football season.
It was Brice’s first start at Duke. It was the transfer’s first start in college after two years as a backup at Clemson. That had to be taken into account by Cutcliffe, and was.
“I think right now he’s beginning to feel ownership of the offense and that’s what you have to do as the quarterback,” Cutcliffe said Monday. “It’s got to become yours. You’ve got to become the owner and I think he’s well on his way to becoming that.”
And what does “ownership” mean to a player, to a quarterback? Brice, a redshirt junior, had to give that some thought Tuesday before answering.
“Obviously I think it starts with leadership,” he said during a media call. “For me to be the starter here I have to take a larger role in that, and being more vocal. Leading in every category, on and off the field.
“And then taking ownership of the plan for whoever we’re playing that week. Film room, film study, notes, communicating with the coaches, communicating with my teammates and things like that, I think that’s a huge part of taking ownership.”
How did Chase Brice do against Notre Dame?
Against the Irish on Sept. 12, Brice was 20-of-37 passing for 259 yards. Seven players caught passes as Cutcliffe, who is calling the plays this season, mixed it up. Sophomore receiver Eli Pancol had a 55-yard catch-and-run for Duke’s most explosive offensive play of the game.
Brice made good use of tight end Noah Gray, who had five catches. Cutcliffe had Gray line up in the backfield at times and one third-quarter play helped set up Duke’s first touchdown of the season.
As Brice faked a pitch to running back Mataeo Durant to his left, drawing five Irish defenders, Gray shot through a gap out of the backfield and down the left sideline. Brice’s pass was a little underthrown but Gray reached the Notre Dame 5 before falling out of bounds — a well-conceived, executed 19-yard play.
On third and goal from the 2, Brice followed the blocks of center Will Taylor and guards Maurice McIntyre and Jacob Monk into the end zone. At 6-3 and 235 pounds, Brice had the size to power in for the score.
Brice had a fumble late in the fourth quarter, when the ball slipped out of his hands attempting to pass, but Cutcliffe was generally pleased,
“He played like a quarterback,” Cutcliffe said. “I thought he made made throws that are just big-time throws and he made some great decisions out there.”
Preparing for Boston College
Duke had a strong start to the game, with 151 yards to the Notre Dame’s 7 in the first quarter, in taking a 3-0 lead. But the Irish limited the Blue Devils’ running game and began to put more defensive pressure on Brice, who maintained his poise and was vocally encouraging.
“Chase was running up to the defensive guys when we looked tired and telling us to run off the field and keep our heads up,” senior defensive tackle Derrick Tangelo said Tuesday in a media call. “It’s a team thing.”
Duke plays its home opener this week with a noon game against Boston College. For Brice, his game preparation will be dealing with defensive what-ifs — the Eagles have a new coaching staff, did not have a spring game and did not play last week.
But for Duke, for Brice, it’s more about getting in the video work, cleaning things up from the opener and making corrections in practice.
“It was pretty tough to watch the film, looking at the mistakes I made and different decisions after the fact,” Brice said. “But there’s a lot I can grow on and build on the rest of the season and especially going into week two against Boston College. ...
“On the road, at Notre Dame, that’s a tough first game but that’s the draw we got. But we’re going to build so much off what we saw on film. We can play with anybody who lines up in front of us and I think people saw that.”
Boston College at Duke
When: Noon, Saturday
Where: Wallace Wade Stadium, Durham
Watch: RSN
