INSIDE SLANT
Coach David Cutcliffe likes what he sees as he approaches his second season at Duke.
Though there were few bodies available for spring practice -- 57 total -- because of departures and injuries, there were more actual "football" players among them, Cutcliffe said.
"This time a year ago, only eight players were ready to play defense to some degree of effectiveness in the ACC and seven on offense," he said, not naming names. "Now we're in double digits in both categories."
Cutcliffe also praised the approach of his players to the spring after they wound up drills. The Blue Devils reached both their main goals of the spring, he said.
"The biggest thing we were going into was to take our competitiveness up a notch, learning how to compete, just absolutely, fiercely compete," Cutcliffe said. "And the other thing was to build our depth. I think we have accomplished both of those this spring."
The offense also is in capable hands. Both quarterbacks, starter Thaddeus Lewis and backup Sean Renfree, threw for more than 200 yards in the spring game, and Lewis topped 250.
"The passing game is something we have elevated," Cutcliffe said. "We are stretching the field better. There were some nice plays made. I thought the quarterbacks both had a good day.
"I also thought we ran the ball well. It was encouraging to see the second offense execute as well as they did."
NOTES, QUOTES
--Coach David Cutcliffe said he had an extensive talk with Greg Paulus when Paulus expressed an interest in playing football, but told Paulus his opportunity at Duke would be at receiver, not at quarterback. The bottom line is that there was no way Paulus, who is out of eligibility for the Blue Devils in basketball, was going to be able to get in playing time at quarterback in the fall with senior starter Thaddeus Lewis returning and redshirt freshman Sean Renfree emerging as a solid backup. Thus Paulus began looking elsewhere.
--Defensive tackle Vince Oghobaase, who missed the final weeks of the spring after sustaining a stress fracture in his foot, "looks great," Cutcliffe said. "He's healed quickly. We're really taking advantage of the time off the field, and he's really killing it in the weight room. This is the best he has looked physically since I've been around him."
SPRING MOVERS:
QB Sean Renfree -- The redshirt freshman firmly validated Cutcliffe's decision to move senior Zack Asack to safety with his performance in the spring, finishing by throwing for 210 yards in the White team's win in the spring game. Renfree will be a solid backup to starter Thaddeus Lewis.
WR Donovan Varner -- Varner had 21 catches as a freshman last year and was the leading receiver in the spring game with six receptions for 116 yards. He and Johnny Williams give the Blue Devils a pair of young targets for Lewis and Renfree.
RB Re'quan Boyette -- After missing all of 2008 with a knee injury, Boyette returned and showed his old explosiveness at the running back position. Boyette had a 55-yard run in one of Duke's early scrimmages. He looks to give the Blue Devils a big-play guy at the position.
LB Abraham Kromah -- A junior who hasn't done little in the previous two years, Kromah outshone returning veteran Vincent Rey in many of Duke's spring scrimmages. Kromah had only 13 tackles all of last year.
QUOTE TO NOTE: "Last year there was a lot of learning about how to practice, about what the system was, and memorization. We have a pretty good base now of who we are and what we do. I think we have finally learned more about how to compete." -- Coach David Cutcliffe, assessing his team's progress in his second spring.
STRATEGY AND PERSONNEL
2009 OUTLOOK: Duke won four games in 2008, as many as it had won in the previous four years combined, and won its first ACC game since 2004. The Blue Devils finished by losing their last five games, but that hasn't dimmed the enthusiasm for 2009.
The Blue Devils lose 10 starters, including three in their offensive line, but with QB Thaddeus Lewis and RB Re'quan Boyette returning, they have some firepower back on offense.
SCOUTING THE OFFENSE: QB Thaddeus Lewis is one of the more productive returning quarterbacks in the league after producing an average of 206 yards a game in 2008. With the departure of WR Eron Riley, he'll be looking for a new favorite target, a role that could go to sophomores Johnny Williams and Donovan Varner. Re'quan Boyette's return makes the running back spot solid. The question will be up front. If the Blue Devils can find capable replacements for three lost starters, they should have a more productive season than a year ago.
SCOUTING THE DEFENSE: Duke loses its leading tackler (LB Michael Tauiliili) from three of the last four years but gets back the No. 2 guy in Vincent Rey and one of the league's top defenders up front in DT Vince Oghobaase. DE Ayanga Okpokowuruk also is solid up front. The Blue Devils made a major improvement in 2008 when they held opponents to 357 yards a game after giving up an average of 424 the year before. To duplicate that, they need to come up with solid replacements for two lost starters in the line, two linebackers and two defensive backs.
SCOUTING THE SPECIAL TEAMS: The Blue Devils showed significant improvement in the kicking game when PK Nick Maggio came on to go 11 of 14 on field goals and P Kevin Jones averaged nearly 41 yards a punt. Both return. Jabari Marshall is gone, but Jay Hollingsworth, who was limited for most of the spring after pulling a hamstring early, is back to return kickoffs. Leon Wright, Lee Butler and Donovan Varner are candidates to return punts.
ROSTER REPORT:
--Sophomore Patrick Kurunwune moved from linebacker to running back to give the Blue Devils more punch at the position. He had 66 yards on just 13 carries in the spring game.
--In addition to Zack Asack's move from quarterback to safety, junior Jeremy Ringfield moved from wide receiver to defensive end and sophomore Chris Hazlton moved inside from defensive end to defensive tackle in an attempt to get more pressure on the quarterback from up front.
--Junior LB Adam Banks led all tacklers with eight stops in the spring game in making a bid to fill one of the two vacancies at the position.
Previous Report: 05/15/2009
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