If you listen to the preseason predictions, Duke and head coach Manny Diaz might as well pack it up instead of trying to repeat as ACC champions. The Blue Devils were picked to finish 10th in the conference at ACC media days, while some are questioning whether they can get back to the heights of a nine-win season that they have achieved in the last two years.
In ESPN’s preseason ranking of all 138 FBS teams, writer David Hale joined the pundits in predicting that Duke will fall back a bit this season, putting the Blue Devils all the way down in Tier 11 alongside rival programs such as Wake Forest and Georgia Tech, as well as Kansas and Arizona State, among others.
The main stat Hale brings up is last year’s struggles on pass defense, noting that the Blue Devils allowed 5.86 yards per dropback when pressuring the opposing QB last season, which ranked 131st out of 136 teams.
And, of course, no article about Duke football would go without mentioning the fact that Diaz and his coaching staff must find a replacement for quarterback Darian Mensah, who entered the transfer portal at the last moment this offseason and is now the starter at ACC rival Miami.
The game is played on the field, though, so Diaz and his team will have their chance to prove these doubters wrong.
This article originally appeared on Duke Wire: ESPN's David Hale not high on Duke repeating same success as last year