2023 Duke Blue Devils football team

2023 Duke Blue Devils football
2023 Duke Blue Devils football
Birmingham Bowl champion
Birmingham Bowl, W 17–10 vs. Troy
Conference	Atlantic Coast Conference
Record	8–5 (4–4 ACC)
Head coach	Mike Elko (2nd season; regular season); Trooper Taylor (interim, bowl game);
Offensive coordinator	Kevin Johns (2nd season)
Offensive scheme	Multiple
Co-defensive coordinator	Tyler Santucci (1st season)
Co-defensive coordinator	Lyle Hemphill (1st season)
Base defense	4–2–5
Home stadium	Wallace Wade Stadium
	Seasons ← 2022 2024 →

The 2023 Duke Blue Devils football team represented Duke University in the 2023 NCAA Division I FBS football season as a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). The Blue Devils were led by head coach Mike Elko, in his second year, and played their home games at Wallace Wade Stadium in Durham, North Carolina.

2023 Atlantic Coast Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 6 Florida State y$	8	–	0	13	–	1
No. 19 Louisville y	7	–	1	10	–	4
No. 21 NC State	6	–	2	9	–	4
Georgia Tech	5	–	3	7	–	6
Virginia Tech	5	–	3	7	–	6
North Carolina	4	–	4	8	–	5
No. 20 Clemson	4	–	4	9	–	4
Duke	4	–	4	8	–	5
Miami (FL)	3	–	5	7	–	6
Boston College	3	–	5	7	–	6
Syracuse	2	–	6	6	–	7
Virginia	2	–	6	3	–	9
Pittsburgh	2	–	6	3	–	9
Wake Forest	1	–	7	4	–	8
Championship: Florida State 16, Louisville 6
$ – Conference champion y – Championship game participant Rankings from AP Poll

Schedule edit

Duke and the ACC announced the 2023 football schedule on January 30, 2023.^[1]^[2] The 2023 season will be the conference's first season since 2004, that its scheduling format just includes one division. The new format sets Duke with three set conference opponents, while playing the remaining ten teams twice (home and away) in a four–year cycle. The Blue Devils three set conference opponents for the next four years are: NC State, North Carolina, and Wake Forest.^[3]^[4] As such, this is the first season since 1932 that the Blue Devils didn't play rival Georgia Tech.

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 4	8:00 p.m.	No. 9 Clemson		Wallace Wade Stadium Durham, NC	ESPN	W 28–7	31,638
September 9	6:00 p.m.	Lafayette*	No. 21	Wallace Wade Stadium Durham, NC	ACCNX/ESPN+	W 42–7	17,481
September 16	3:30 p.m.	Northwestern*	No. 21	Wallace Wade Stadium Durham, NC	ACCN	W 38–14	18,141
September 23	3:30 p.m.	at UConn*	No. 18	Rentschler Field East Hartford, CT	CBSSN	W 41–7	29,033
September 30	7:30 p.m.	No. 11 Notre Dame*	No. 17	Wallace Wade Stadium Durham, NC (College GameDay)	ABC	L 14–21	40,768
October 14	8:00 p.m.	NC State	No. 17	Wallace Wade Stadium Durham, NC (rivalry)	ACCN	W 24–3	31,833
October 21	7:30 p.m.	at No. 4 Florida State	No. 16	Doak Campbell Stadium Tallahassee, FL	ABC	L 20–38	79,560
October 28	3:30 p.m.	at No. 18 Louisville	No. 20	L&N Stadium Louisville, KY	ESPN	L 0–23	52,319
November 2	7:30 p.m.	Wake Forest		Wallace Wade Stadium Durham, NC (rivalry)	ESPN	W 24–21	18,277
November 11	8:00 pm	at No. 24 North Carolina		Kenan Memorial Stadium Chapel Hill, NC (Victory Bell)	ACCN	L 45–47 ^2OT	50,500
November 18	3:00 p.m.	at Virginia		Scott Stadium Charlottesville, VA	The CW	L 27–30	36,400
November 25	12:00 p.m.	Pittsburgh		Wallace Wade Stadium Durham, NC	ACCN	W 30–19	17,639
December 23	12:00 p.m.	vs. Troy		Protective Stadium Birmingham, AL (Birmingham Bowl)	ABC	W 17–10	20,023
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll (and CFP Rankings, after October 31) - Released prior to game All times are in Eastern time

^[5]^[6]

Roster edit

2023 Duke Blue Devils football team roster

Players

Coaches

Offense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
WR	`5`	Jalon Calhoun	Sr
QB	`13`	Riley Leonard	Jr
RB	`23`	Terry Moore	So
OL	`62`	Graham Barton	Sr

Defense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
DT	`90`	DeWayne Carter	Jr
DE	`94`	R.J. Oben	Sr

Special teams

Pos.	#	Name	Class

Head coach

Mike Elko

Coordinators/assistant coaches

Kevin Johns (Offensive coordinator)
Tyler Santucci (Co-defensive coordinator)
Lyle Hemphill (Co-defensive coordinator)
Rich Skrosky (Senior analyst)

Legend

(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible

Injured
Redshirt

Roster

Game summaries edit

vs. No. 9 Clemson edit

Pregame line	Over/under
CLEM -12.5	54

No. 9 Clemson Tigers (0-0) at Duke Blue Devils (0-0) - Game summary

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 9 Clemson	0	7	0	0	7
Duke	3	3	7	15	28

at Wallace Wade Stadium

Date: September 2
Game time: 8:00 p.m. EST/5:00 p.m. PST
Game weather: Clear • Temperature: 83 °F (28 °C) • Wind: 5 mph SE
Game attendance: 31,638
Referee: Marcus Woods
TV announcers (ESPN): Dave Pasch (play-by-play), Dusty Dvoracek (analyst), and Tom Luginbill (sideline)

Game information

First quarter

9:19 DUKE - Todd Pelino 22-yard field goal - 3-0 Duke, Drive: 10 plays, 57 yards, 3:26

Second quarter

14:19 DUKE - Todd Pelino 42-yard field goal - 6-0 Duke, Drive: 7 plays, 40 yards, 3:34
10:09 CLEM - Will Shipley 2-yard pass from Cade Klubnik (Robert Gunn III kick) - 7-6 Clemson, Drive: 5 plays, 18 yards, 2:12

Third quarter

12:40 DUKE - Riley Leonard 44-yard run (Todd Pelino kick) - 13-7 Duke, Drive: 5 plays, 75 yards, 2:20

Fourth quarter

10:33 DUKE - Jaquez Moore 9-yard run (Riley Leonard two-point pass complete to Jalon Calhoun) - 21-7 Duke, Drive: 6 plays, 33 yards, 3:53
3:15 DUKE - Jordan Waters 36-yard run (Todd Pelino kick) - 28-7 Duke, Drive: 4 plays, 49 yards, 1:46

Statistics	No. 9 Clemson	Duke
First downs	29	17
Plays–yards	83–422	64–374
Rushes–yards	40–213	30–199
Passing yards	209	175
Passing: comp–att–int	27–43–1	17–34–0
Time of possession	33:33	26:27

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
No. 9 Clemson	Passing	Cade Klubnik	27/43, 209 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT
	Rushing	Will Shipley	17 carries, 114 yards
	Receiving	Antonio Williams	7 receptions, 56 yards
Duke	Passing	Riley Leonard	17/33, 175 yards
	Rushing	Riley Leonard	8 carries, 98 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Jordan Waters	3 receptions, 46 yards

vs. Lafayette edit

Pregame line	Over/under
DUKE -42.5	49

Lafayette Leopards (1-0) vs. No. 21 Duke Blue Devils (1-0) - Game summary

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Lafayette	7	0	0	0	7
No. 21 Duke	7	14	14	7	42

at Wallace Wade Stadium

Date: September 9
Game time: 6:00 p.m. EST/3:00 p.m. PST
Game weather: Sunny • Temperature: 78 °F (26 °C) • Wind: 5 mph NW
Game attendance: 17,481
Referee: Mike Roche
TV announcers (ACC Network): Lowell Galindo (play-by-play) and Charles Arbuckle (analyst)

Game information

First quarter

11:31 DUKE - Jalon Calhoun 16-yard pass from Riley Leonard (Todd Pelino kick) - 7-0 Duke, Drive: 8 plays, 68 yards, 3:26
4:11 LAF - Chris Carasia 12-yard pass from Dean DeNobile (Jack Simonetta kick) - 7-7, Drive: 13 plays, 75 yards, 7:20

Second quarter

12:45 DUKE - Jordan Waters 5-yard run (Todd Pelino kick) - 14-7 Duke, Drive: 9 plays, 70 yards, 4:27
1:17 DUKE - Jordan Waters 16-yard run (Todd Pelino kick) - 21-7 Duke, Drive: 9 plays, 76 yards, 1:17

Third quarter

7:52 DUKE - Jaquez Moore 39-yard run (Todd Pelino kick) - 28-7 Duke, Drive: 8 plays, 84 yards, 3:48
1:50 DUKE - Henry Belin IV 1-yard run (Todd Pelino kick) - 35-7 Duke, Drive: 4 plays, 60 yards, 2:13

Fourth quarter

13:45 DUKE - Jordan Moore 5-yard pass from Henry Belin IV (Todd Pelino kick) - 42-7 Duke, Drive: 5 plays, 53 yards, 2:17

Statistics	Lafayette	No. 21 Duke
First downs	14	28
Plays–yards	51–213	66–515
Rushes–yards	33–126	45–261
Passing yards	87	254
Passing: comp–att–int	9–18–2	20–21–0
Time of possession	27:19	32:41

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Lafayette	Passing	Dean DeNobile	9/17, 87 yards, 1 TD, 2 INT
	Rushing	Jamar Curtis	10 carries, 40 yards
	Receiving	Elijah Steward	4 receptions, 37 yards
No. 21 Duke	Passing	Riley Leonard	12/12, 136 yards, 1 TD
	Rushing	Jordan Waters	11 carries, 112 yards, 2 TD
	Receiving	Jordan Moore	4 receptions, 84 yards, 1 TD

vs. Northwestern edit

Pregame line	Over/under
DUKE -17.0	48

Northwestern Wildcats (1-1) at No. 21 Duke Blue Devils (2-0) - Game summary

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Northwestern	0	7	0	7	14
No. 21 Duke	7	10	14	7	38

at Wallace Wade Stadium

Date: September 16
Game time: 3:30 p.m. EST/12:30 p.m. PST
Game weather: Sunny • Temperature: 82 °F (28 °C) • Wind: 3 mph NE
Game attendance: 18,141
Referee: Mark Kluczynski
TV announcers (ACC Network): Chris Cotter (play-by-play), Mark Herzlich (analyst), and Sherree Burruss (sideline)

Game information

First quarter

11:06 DUKE - Jordan Waters 24-yard run (Todd Pelino kick) - 7-0 Duke, Drive: 6 plays, 56 yards, 2:36

Second quarter

14:19 DUKE - Jordan Waters 2-yard run (Todd Pelino kick) - 14-0 Duke, Drive: 8 plays, 89 yards, 4:12
9:06 DUKE - Todd Pelino 35-yard field goal - 17-0 Duke, Drive: 7 plays, 56 yards, 3:50
0:34 NW - A.J. Henning 14-yard pass from Ben Bryant (Jack Olsen kick) - 17-7 Duke, Drive: 15 plays, 73 yards, 8:26

Third quarter

10:01 DUKE - Riley Leonard 3-yard run (Todd Pelino kick) - 24-7 Duke, Drive: 9 plays, 80 yards, 4:55
3:08 DUKE - Riley Leonard 2-yard run (Todd Pelino kick) - 31-7 Duke, Drive: 12 plays, 94 yards, 5:27

Fourth quarter

6:32 DUKE - Peyton Jones 15-yard run (Todd Pelino kick) - 38-7 Duke, Drive: 4 plays, 26 yards, 2:20
1:27 NW - Brendan Sullivan 10-yard run (Jack Olsen kick) - 38-14 Duke, Drive: 13 plays, 71 yards, 5:01

Statistics	Northwestern	No. 21 Duke
First downs	19	25
Plays–yards	70–267	60–487
Rushes–yards	30–104	40–268
Passing yards	163	219
Passing: comp–att–int	22–40–1	15–20–0
Time of possession	28:54	31:06

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Northwestern	Passing	Ben Bryant	17/34, 123 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT
	Rushing	Cam Porter	10 carries, 49 yards
	Receiving	Cam Johnson	5 receptions, 45 yards
No. 21 Duke	Passing	Riley Leonard	15/20, 219 yards
	Rushing	Riley Leonard	13 carries, 97 yards, 2 TD
	Receiving	Jalon Calhoun	5 receptions, 112 yards

at UConn edit

Pregame line	Over/under
DUKE -22.0	45

No. 18 Duke Blue Devils (3-0) at UConn Huskies (0-3) - Game summary

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 18 Duke	7	20	14	0	41
UConn	0	0	0	7	7

at Pratt & Whitney Stadium

Date: September 23
Game time: 3:30 p.m. EST/12:30 p.m. PST
Game weather: Rainy • Temperature: 61 °F (16 °C) • Wind: 12 mph NE
Game attendance: 29,038
Referee: Jerry Magalanes
TV announcers (CBS): Chris Lewis (play-by-play), Robert Turbin (analyst), and Keiana Martin (sideline)

Game information

First quarter

6:16 DUKE - Jordan Waters 1-yard run (Todd Pelino kick) - 7-0 Duke, Drive: 5 plays, 44 yards, 1:58

Second quarter

12:42 DUKE - Todd Pelino 50-yard field goal - 10-0 Duke, Drive: 13 plays, 63 yards, 6:32
12:25 DUKE - Jordan Waters 10-yard run (Todd Pelino kick) - 17-0 Duke, Drive: 1 play, 10 yards, 0:05
4:55 DUKE - Riley Leonard 3-yard run (Todd Pelino kick) - 24-0 Duke, Drive: 9 plays, 49 yards, 4:03
0:00 DUKE - Todd Pelino 40-yard field goal - 27-0 Duke, Drive: 6 plays, 38 yards, 0:34

Third quarter

7:13 DUKE - DeWayne Carter 26-yard fumble return (Todd Pelino kick) - 34-0 Duke, Drive: 2 plays, -1 yard, 0:41
3:01 DUKE - Jordan Moore 22-yard pass from Riley Leonard (Todd Pelino kick) - 41-0 Duke, Drive: 5 plays, 60 yards, 3:07

Fourth quarter

0:12 CONN - Ta'Quan Roberson 2-yard run (Noe Ruelas kick) - 41-7 Duke, Drive: 10 plays, 83 yards, 3:43

Statistics	No. 18 Duke	UConn
First downs	20	14
Plays–yards	61–328	66–203
Rushes–yards	27–80	38–89
Passing yards	248	114
Passing: comp–att–int	23–34–0	13–28–0
Time of possession	29:50	30:10

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
No. 18 Duke	Passing	Riley Leonard	23/34, 248 yards, 1 TD
	Rushing	Riley Leonard	4 carries, 30 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Jordan Moore	8 receptions, 86 yards, 1 TD
UConn	Passing	Ta'Quan Roberson	13/28, 114 yards
	Rushing	Victor Rosa	14 carries, 68 yards
	Receiving	Brett Buckman	2 receptions, 31 yards

vs. No. 11 Notre Dame edit

Pregame line	Over/under
ND -5.5	52.5

No. 11 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (4-1) at No. 17 Duke Blue Devils (4-0) - Game summary

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 11 Notre Dame	7	3	3	8	21
No. 17 Duke	0	0	7	7	14

at Wallace Wade Stadium

Date: September 30
Game time: 7:30 p.m. EST/4:30 p.m. PST
Game weather: Sunny • Temperature: 71 °F (22 °C)
Game attendance: 40,768
Referee: Riley Johnson
TV announcers (ABC): Rece Davis (play-by-play), Kirk Herbstreit (analyst), and Holly Rowe (sideline)

Game information

First quarter

11:00 ND - Audric Estimé 6-yard run (Spencer Shrader kick) - 7-0 Notre Dame, Drive: 8 plays, 82 yards, 4:00

Second quarter

14:56 ND - Spencer Shrader 35-yard field goal - 10-0 Notre Dame, Drive: 4 plays, -4 yards, 1:33

Third quarter

9:17 ND - Spencer Shrader 45-yard field goal - 13-0 Notre Dame, Drive: 10 plays, 43 yards, 4:45
3:36 DUKE - Jordan Waters 1-yard run (Todd Pelino kick) - 13-7 Notre Dame, Drive: 11 plays, 75 yards, 5:41

Fourth quarter

9:17 DUKE - Jordan Moore 3-yard pass from Riley Leonard (Todd Pelino kick) - 14-13 Duke', Drive: 8 plays, 80 yards, 4:27
0:31 ND - Audric Estimé 30-yard run (Sam Hartman two-point pass complete to Rico Flores Jr.) - 21-14 Notre Dame, Drive: 10 plays, 95 yards, 2:04

Statistics	No. 11 Notre Dame	No. 17 Duke
First downs	16	17
Plays–yards	63–381	67–323
Rushes–yards	32–159	40–189
Passing yards	222	134
Passing: comp–att–int	15–31–0	12–27–1
Time of possession	28:15	31:45

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
No. 11 Notre Dame	Passing	Sam Hartman	15/30, 222 yards
	Rushing	Audric Estimé	18 carries, 81 yards, 2 TD
	Receiving	Mitchell Evans	6 receptions, 134 yards
No. 17 Duke	Passing	Riley Leonard	12/27, 134 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT
	Rushing	Riley Leonard	18 carries, 88 yards
	Receiving	Jordan Moore	4 receptions, 67 yards, 1 TD

vs. NC State edit

Pregame line	Over/under
DUKE –4	42.5

NC State Wolfpack (4–2) at No. 17 Duke Blue Devils (4–1) - Game summary

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Wolfpack	3	0	0	0	3
No. 17 Blue Devils	7	10	7	0	24

at Wallace Wade Stadium, Durham, NC

Date: October 14, 2023
Game time: 8:00 p.m. EST/5:00 p.m. PST
Game weather: Cloudy
Game attendance: 31,833
Referee: Mike Roche
TV announcers (ACCN): Wes Durham (play-by-play), Tim Hasselbeck (analyst), and Taylor Tannebaum (sideline)

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter

Statistics	NCSU	DUKE
First downs	18	12
Total yards	305	301
Rushing yards	112	194
Passing yards	193	107
Turnovers	1	1
Time of possession	36:56	23:04

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
NC State	Passing	MJ Morris	24–40, 193 yards, 1 INT
	Rushing	MJ Morris	14 rushes, 38 yards
	Receiving	KC Concepcion	6 receptions, 63 yards
Duke	Passing	Henry Belin IV	4–12, 107 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT
	Rushing	Jordan Waters	13 rushes, 123 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Jalon Calhoun	1 reception, 69 yards, 1 TD

Rankings edit

Ranking movements
**Legend:** ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked RV = Received votes
	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	Final
AP	RV	21	21	18	17	19	17	16	20	—	RV	—	—	—	—	RV
Coaches	RV	24	20	18	16	21	18	17	21	RV	RV	—	—	—	—	RV
CFP	Not released									—	—	—	—	—	—	Not released

Coaching staff edit

Name	Title
Mike Elko	Head coach
Tyler Santucci	Co-defensive coordinator
Lyle Hemphill	Co-defensive coordinator/Safeties coach
Harland Bower	Defensive ends coach
Adam Cushing	Run Game coordinator/offensive line coach
Zohn Burden	Pass game coordinator/wide receivers coach
Kevin Johns	Offensive coordinator/ quarterbacks coach
Patrick Dougherty	Special teams coordinator/tight ends coach
Trooper Taylor	Associate head coach/running backs coach
Ishmael Aristide	Cornerbacks coach
Jess Simpson	Associate head coach/defensive line coach

References edit

^ Wiseman, Steve (January 30, 2023). "Duke football 2023 schedule: Can't miss game. Toughest stretch. Intriguing opponent". The News & Observer. Retrieved February 2, 2023.
^ Bergin, Mark (January 30, 2023). "Here are the 2023 football schedules for NC State, North Carolina and Duke". WRAL. Retrieved February 2, 2023.
^ "ACC Announces Football Schedule Model for 2023–26" (Press release). Atlantic Coast Conference. June 28, 2022. Retrieved February 2, 2023.
^ Murphy, Brian (June 28, 2022). "ACC eliminates football divisions, adopts new schedule model in 2023". WRAL. Retrieved February 2, 2023.
^ 2023 Duke Football Schedule Announced
^ 2023 Duke Football Schedule

[1] Wiseman, Steve (January 30, 2023). "Duke football 2023 schedule: Can't miss game. Toughest stretch. Intriguing opponent". The News & Observer. Retrieved February 2, 2023.

[2] Bergin, Mark (January 30, 2023). "Here are the 2023 football schedules for NC State, North Carolina and Duke". WRAL. Retrieved February 2, 2023.

[3] "ACC Announces Football Schedule Model for 2023–26" (Press release). Atlantic Coast Conference. June 28, 2022. Retrieved February 2, 2023.

[4] Murphy, Brian (June 28, 2022). "ACC eliminates football divisions, adopts new schedule model in 2023". WRAL. Retrieved February 2, 2023.

[5] 2023 Duke Football Schedule Announced

[6] 2023 Duke Football Schedule

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