Duke Running Backs Secret to Blue Devils Success? - SCACCHoops.com

Duke Running Backs Secret to Blue Devils Success?

by Duke Sports Blog

Posted: 10/21/2013 11:42:15 AM


At 5-2 and just one win away from bowl eligibility for the second consecutive year, a lot of attention has been paid to the play of Duke’s quarterback and the defense as a whole.

The wins which are starting to come in greater number, 11 in the last year and a half, seem to always be attributed to the play of the

Duke running back Shaquille Powell has stepped up his play  as part of the Blue Devils stable of running backs.

Duke running back Shaquille Powell has stepped up his play as part of the Blue Devils stable of running backs.

Blue Devils quarterback(s) or the play of its defense. It makes sense in a pass-oriented offense like Duke’s  and when you consider that when the Duke defense plays well, the Blue Devils have a better chance of coming out on top. But when you start to look at the numbers their is a hidden gem in Duke’s recent success: The running game.

Duke boasts a stable of running backs, lead by sophomore Jela Duncan, junior Josh Snead, senior Juwan Thompson, and sophomore Shaquille Powell. The quartet of backs refers to themselves as the “stable” and they have cumulatively succeeded in making the Blue Devils running attack, often one of the worst in the ACC and country, significantly more potent.

With a more versatile running attack opposing defenses have to focus on not just the quarterback and receivers but they have to be able to keep an eye on the Duke running backs who come in waves.

Duncan is the leading rusher at 334 yards on 64 carries and three rushing scores. Snead is close behind at 333 yards and 53 carries and has shown the explosive big run potential many where hoping to see since he was a freshman. It also helps that backup quarterback Brandon Connette who has rushed 69 times for 233 yards can be your third best rusher on the team. Connette also leads the team in rushing touchdowns at 7. That running potential at quarterback has certainly kept opposing defenses on their toes.

Head coach David Cutcliffe attributed the selfless play of the backs as well as the play of the offensive line for the improved success of the running game. Duke currently ranks 52nd in the nation in rushing yards at 182 per game, a significant improvement over any other year in Cutcliffe’s tenure.

“Our running backs are very unselfish. We’ve got four of them that can play,” Cutcliffe said. “What I like right now is they are all running with authority. They are all capable of brea,ing runs. They are all very appreciative of that offensive front that is blocking as well as it is blocking.”

Cutcliffe gave a lot of credit to the offensive line and attributed a lot of the running game’s success to their success. He also said he was excited about the challenges ahead especially the Blue Devils upcoming game with Virginia Tech, a team he considers to have the best defense in the country.

“When you are veteran in both lines, it is one reason you can become optimistic because that’s not childs play up there,” Cutcliffe said. “I can’t say enough of what those offensive linemen are doing. Those tests are going to get bigger and tougher. That’s exciting to me, how we are going to take these challenges on.”

Duke will definitely need the running attack against Virginia Tech to take pressure off of quarterback Anthony Boone. The Blue Devils head to Blacksburg for the second time in a row due to the addition of Syracuse and Pitt to the conference.

Last year Duke took a 20-0 lead before giving up 41 unanswered points. The will be looking to avoid that let down again but given how good the Hokies have been on defense that will be an immense challenge.

 

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