Game Notes: Northwestern

DURHAM – No. 21 Duke concludes a three-game home stand to begin the season when it hosts Northwestern at Brooks Field at Wallace Wade Stadium on Saturday.

Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m., and the game will be broadcast live on ACC Network.

The Blue Devils lead the all-time series 12-10, and have strung together four consecutive victories over the Wildcats heading into Saturday's contest. During the last meeting a year ago, Duke safety Jaylen Stinson forced a fumble at the 1-yard line that was recovered by the Blue Devils in the end zone to halt Northwestern's final drive and claim a 31-23 victory at Ryan Field.

In Duke's last outing against Lafayette, the Blue Devils scored the game's final 35 points en route to a 42-7 win at Brooks Field at Wallace Wade Stadium. The Blue Devils set a single-game program record with their .952 completion percentage (20-of-21), with the lone incompletion coming as Duke spiked the ball to stop the clock (team attempt) in closing seconds of the first half. Riley Leonard finished the night 12-of-12 passing for 136 yards and one touchdown, while Henry Belin IV was 8-of-8 through the air for 118 yards and one score.

Duke forced Lafayette into two turnovers during its last game, while the Blue Devils relinquished one. Under Mike Elko, Duke has won the turnover battle in 10 of its 15 games and has scored 94 points off those turnovers (12 touchdowns, three field goals and one two-point conversion).

Saturday's ACC Network broadcast will feature Chris Cotter, Mark Herzlich and Sherree Burruss on the call. The game can also be heard on the Blue Devil Sports Network from LEARFIELD through the Varsity app or goduke.com.

HOW TO FOLLOW
[21] Duke (2-0) vs. Northwestern (1-1)
Saturday, September 16, 2023 • 3:30 PM
Durham, N.C. • Brooks Field at Wallace Wade Stadium

TELEVISION • ACCN
RADIO • Blue Devils Sports Network from LEARFIELD
GAME NOTES • Duke Notes • Northwestern Notes
LIVE STATS • GoDuke.com
TWITTER • @DukeFOOTBALL

GAME NOTES
With the victory over Lafayette last Saturday, Duke head coach Mike Elko is 11-4 (.733) through the first 15 games of his tenure with the Blue Devils, marking the best 15-game start to a head coaching stint in school history.

Saturday's game will mark the 23rd on the gridiron between the two schools with the series currently in Duke's favor at 12-10. The Blue Devils are trying to make it five straight over their Big Ten foe, having won in 2017, 2018, 2021, and most recently last season.

DEFENDING BROOKS FIELD AT WALLACE WADE STADIUM
In non-conference regular season games held at Brooks Field at Wallace Wade Stadium, Duke is 18-2 (.900) in its last 10 seasons. The Blue Devils' last out-of-conference regular season loss at home came against No. 15 Notre Dame in 2019. Prior to that the last time Duke dropped a non-conference game at home was in 2015 in a contest with No. 23 Northwestern. Duke is undefeated (6-0) at home over the last two seasons against out-of-conference foes.

HALFTIME ADJUSTMENTS
For the first time under head coach Mike Elko, Duke came back to win a game after trailing at halftime. The Blue Devils were 0-3 heading into their game against No. 9 Clemson and were trailing at the break 7-6 but went on to outscore the Tigers 22-0 in the second half to secure the win. Additionally, the Blue Devils are 2-0 this season and 10-0 overall under Elko leading after the third quarter.

MANNING PASSING ACADEMY
From June 22-25, quarterback Riley Leonard attended the Manning Passing Academy, which was held at Nicholls State University in Thibodaux, La.

SCORING FIRST
Under head coach Mike Elko, Duke is 2-0 this season and 9-0 overall when scoring first. In seven of those nine games, the Blue Devils registered a touchdown to begin the scoring and six were on the opening drive.

WINS AGAINST CURRENT FPI TOP-30
Duke is one of five schools this season to have a win over a current Football Power Index top-30 opponent. The Blue Devils join Florida State, Miami, Texas and Utah.

AVERAGE PER PLAY
Duke is sixth in the ACC this season with a 6.84 total offensive average per play mark. Against Lafayette during their last outing, the Blue Devils finished with a 7.80 average gain per play mark.

WATERS LEADING THE RUSHING CHARGE
Graduate Jordan Waters leads the team with 22 rushes for 175 yards with three touchdowns. His 7.95 yards per rush rank second in the ACC, while his rushing yards and rushing yards per game (87.50) place him fourth in the league.

The Fairmont, N.C., native recorded his first career 100-yard rushing game against Lafayette after he rolled up 112 yards on 11 carries with his third career two-touchdown performance.

SACKS AND TACKLES FOR LOSS ALLOWED
Duke's offensive line finished 2022 ranked first in the ACC in tackles for loss allowed (3.92) and sacks allowed (1.31), while ranking eighth and 27th nationally in those categories, respectively. In just two games of 2023, the Blue Devils are first and 11th nationally in sacks and tackles for loss allowed, respectively. Duke has yet to relinquish a sack, while it is only allowing 3.50 tackles for loss per outing.

PASSES HAD INTERCEPTED
Duke is tied with Pittsburgh as the only two schools in the ACC that have yet to throw an interception on the year. That mark ranks the Blue Devils tied for first nationally with 28 other schools.

POINTS OFF TURNOVERS
Throughout Duke's 15 games under head coach Mike Elko, it has scored 94 points off of 31 opponent turnovers. Duke scored an impressive 31 points off of eight Miami turnovers on Oct. 22, 2022.

STOUT DEFENSE
In just two games of 2023, the Blue Devils defense has allowed only two scores in five offensive red zone possessions. That mark ranks them second in the ACC. Additionally, Duke shut out Clemson and Lafayette in the second half, marking its third second-half shutout under head coach Mike Elko (Virginia Tech - November 12, 2022).

SCORING DEFENSE & TOTAL DEFENSE
Duke ranks second in the ACC and eighth nationally in scoring defense, allowing just 7.0 points per contest. The Blue Devils have relinquished just two touchdowns on the year and have yet to give up points in the second half. Additionally, the Blue Devils rank fourth in the ACC and 52nd nationally in total defense, allowing just 317.5 yards per game.

FOURTH DOWN DEFENSE
The Blue Devils' fourth down defense in 2022 limited opponents to just 11-of-26 attempts. Duke's conversion percentage allowed of .423 ranked 26th in the country. The Blue Devils have held their opening two opponents to just 1-of-4 on fourth down, and 2-of-5 in the red zone, marks that rank them fifth and second in the ACC, respectively.

NET PUNTING
Duke ranks first in the ACC and third nationally with a 49.00 net punting average per game.

LIMITING PUNT RETURNS
The Blue Devils held opponents to just 74 punt return yards last season. An average of just 5.69 yards per return. The longest return Duke allowed was a 16-yarder against Kansas. Duke's opponent yards per return ranked 37th nationally, and placed fifth in the ACC behind Virginia Tech (2.91), Miami (3.80), Pittsburgh (4.83) and Louisville (5.52).

In Duke's opening two games, the Blue Devils have only relinquished three punt return yards for an average of 1.50 yards per return.

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