Tag: Riley Leonard

Duke seeks first ever win over Florida State in ACC game of the week

The Seminoles and Blue Devils are two of the last three ACC teams without a conference loss with title game positioning on the line.

We’re only four weeks into conference play in the ACC, but the standings seem to already be settling in. After Clemson‘s losses and Louisville’s upset defeat at the hands of Pittsburgh last weekend, there seem to be three teams with their eyes on the conference title game.

Florida State offered a statement 41-3 victory over Syracuse last weekend, a warning shot to the rest of the conference that the path to any trophies runs through the Seminoles.

But North Carolina took down Miami comfortably behind three Tez Walker receiving touchdowns. The Tar Heels only have one more ranked matchup ahead of them on the schedule, a date with Duke in four weeks.

Where do the Blue Devils fit in in all this? They remain unblemished through two conference games, but they’re traveling to Florida to play the Seminoles, a team they’ve never beaten in 19 tries. When you take a closer look at that record, however, the two haven’t clashed since Mike Elko took over the Duke program. Can he do something none of his predecessors accomplished?

Here are the games to watch in the ACC this week, from the contenders to those fighting for a bowl game.

Duke QB Riley Leonard unlikely to play against N.C. State

Duke QB Riley Leonard is doubtful to play against N.C. State, with Henry Belin IV set to start if he can’t get on the field.

Duke Blue Devils quarterback Riley Leonard is doubtful to play on Saturday night against N.C. State, according to a morning report from ESPN’s Pete Thamel.

The junior quarterback is still recovering from a high ankle sprain he suffered during Duke’s heartbreaking loss to Notre Dame.

Leonard has been the engine of the Duke offense this season. He’s thrown for 912 yards and three touchdowns, and he’s also Duke’s leading rusher with 326 yards and four more touchdowns on the ground. The quarterback has accounted for 61.1% of the Blue Devils’ offensive output.

Thamel reported Leonard is not wearing a boot and no longer wearing crutches, and he should be available soon. Duke plays Florida State and Louisville in their next two games after the Wolfpack.

Henry Belin IV is set to start if Leonard doesn’t find a miracle before the 8:00 p.m. ET kickoff. The freshman has thrown just eight passes in relief this season, but he completed all eight of them for 118 yards and a touchdown.

2024 NFL draft stock watch after CFB Week 5: Who’s up and who is trending down?

2024 NFL draft stock watch after CFB Week 5: Who’s up and who is trending down?

Another exciting and interesting weekend of college football wrapped for the potential prospects for the 2024 NFL draft. Over a month into the college season, we’re starting to see who is consistently performing and who is more variable from week to week.

It’s a season-long process evaluating players, of course. But there are great weeks and down weeks for (almost) every prospect along the way. Here’s who helped themselves in Week 5 and who didn’t have a great showing over the final days of September.

 

 

How social media reacted to Notre Dame-Duke: Blue Devils side

Heartbreaking night in Durham.

It looked like Duke was going to pull off the upset of Notre Dame in the final minute. But one long [autotag]Sam Hartman[/autotag] first-down run and one [autotag]Audric Estime[/autotag] touchdown run later, the Blue Devils found themselves behind, 21-14.

Already faced with a long shot of scoring a touchdown after starting their final possession deep in their own territory, the Blue Devils’ chances were snuffed out. Riley Leonard was strip-sacked by [autotag]Howard Cross[/autotag], and [autotag]Marist Liufau[/autotag] recovered the fumble. The raucous crowd that had been in Durham all day was silenced.

More concerning was that Leonard injured his leg on the strip-sack and came off the field without putting any weight on the leg. Hartman even left his ABC postgame interview to check on him. The injury undoubtedly was one of many things on Blue Devils fans’ minds as they wondered what could have been.

Here are some of the reactions to the game by Blue Devils fans on social media:

Notre Dame’s Sam Hartman classily waited for Duke QB Riley Leonard to exit medical tent after late injury

The epitome of sportsmanship.

No. 11 Notre Dame topped No. 17 Duke, 21-14, on the road in Durham, North Carolina on Saturday night in a tense game that came down to the wire.

Fighting Irish running back Auric Estime gave his team the lead with a 30-yard touchdown run late in the fourth quarter, and with quarterback Sam Hartman leading a good two-point conversion, Notre Dame took a seven-point lead. Duke had just 31 seconds to try to make something happen, and unfortunately, it was an awful ending for the Blue Devils.

On second-and-five from their own 30-yard line, Duke quarterback Riley Leonard was sacked and fumbled the ball, which Notre Dame recovered and effectively ended the game. But Leonard went down extremely awkwardly and looked to be in horrible pain on the ground afterward.

Leonard was in Duke’s medical tent when the game ended, and Hartman waited to celebrate and hung around for him to exit. Eventually, Leonard came out on crutches, seemingly not putting any weight on his right ankle, and the two quarterbacks shared a brief moment together.

A classy moment and the epitome of sportsmanship.

Notre Dame defensive lineman Jordan Botelho ejected for targeting

Oof.

Notre Dame has had a tough time with Duke in the second half, and it just got even tougher. Defensive lineman [autotag]Jordan Botelho[/autotag] has been ejected after called for targeting against Blue Devils quarterback Riley Leonard deep in Irish territory. Naturally, this means Botelho will not be eligible for the first half of the next game against Louisville.

The Blue Devils quickly made the targeting call hurt as Leonard hit Jordan Moore for the game-tying touchdown. They then took a 14-13 lead on the point-after kick, and the Irish have an uphill battle ahead of them. Durham is up for grabs right now as the home team might be on the verge of another upset victory that would merit storming the field.

The Irish have time to stop the celebration, but they haven’t shown much indication that they’ll snap out of their funk. If that doesn’t happen, forget about a national championship this year.

Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes, and opinions.

Follow Geoffrey on Twitter: @gfclark89

Know your foe, Duke: Which Blue Devils could give Notre Dame problems

The Irish face off against a very good Duke team

For the second weekend in a row, [autotag]Notre Dame football[/autotag] will face off against another ranked team in [autotag]Duke[/autotag].

We know it’s a big game, ESPN College GameDay will be in attendance, as the Irish hit the road for this contest. Not many expected the Blue Devils to be undefeated and ranked to face Notre Dame when the season started, but here were are.

Duke has been surprisingly good on defense, their most points given up this season has been 14 to, check notes, Northwestern. The Mildcats won’t have nearly the firepower that the Irish bring, but holding Clemson down in the season opener was impressive.

Here are five Blue Devils that could give Notre Dame problems on Saturday evening.

What the experts are predicting: Notre Dame at Duke

Do the Irish bounce back?

As disappointing as Notre Dame’s loss to Ohio State was, the time to dwell on it has passed. If it hasn’t for the Irish, they’ll be in trouble against Duke, and that will mean the end of any College Football Playoff hopes. Their job is to not let that happen. If they’re mentally strong enough, they won’t.

Let’s see if any experts agree that the Irish will be able to move past their last game:

Duke statistical leaders through four games

Does anyone on this list worry you?

There are few programs college football fans are buying more stock in right now than Duke. Maybe the only program that has turned more heads is the Deion Sanders-led Colorado. ESPN decided that there’s enough interest in the Blue Devils that the next episode of “College GameDay” will be broadcast from Durham. For once, people on Duke’s campus are excited and not about men’s basketball.

It is there that Notre Dame will play this weekend coming off the toughest of losses to Ohio State. The Irish will be facing a team trying to prove it’s for real and belongs with the best of college football. Plus, a raucous crowd at Wallace Wade Stadium likely will be waiting for them. Only they will be able to put a damper on the celebratory mood.

Here are the players who have gotten it done for the Blue Devils so far and will look to continue to do so against the Irish:

Five quarterbacks vying for ACC QBR crown

Five ACC quarterbacks sit between 83 and 90 for their QBR this season, including superstars Jordan Travis and Drake Maye.

Heading into the 2023 season, the ACC teased a level of quarterback talent matched only by the Pac-12.

North Carolina‘s Drake Maye is a consensus top-2 prospect. Clemson‘s Cade Klubnik, an elite high school prospect, showed promise at the end of 2022. Florida State’s Jordan Travis generated some Heisman buzz.

Sure enough, the conference has highlighted elite quarterback play left and right this season. Are the best passers who we expect?

Here’s our Week 3 recap of the ACC’s QBR standings.