2024 NCAAF Cheat Sheet: Duke Blue Devils Stats & Odds
Top Receiver, Tackler Return To Top 2024 Duke Blue Devils Stats
A New Coach and Quarterback Arrive For the Duke Blue Devils
When looking at the potential 2024 Duke Blue Devils stats, there is a tough act to follow after Duke won bowl games in back-to-back seasons for the second time in the program’s history.
Duke won six of its seven home games in 2023 compared to a 1-4 record on the road. The Blue Devils were also 6-1 outright as a favorite. It is unlikely that Duke will be favored quite as often during the 2024 season.
The Blue Devils covered just two of the five games following a loss. Duke saw four of its five road games go over the total.
Just one of the Blue Devils’ seven games as a favorite landed under the total. Will that trend continue in 2024?
Only Penn State are the only FBS teams to allow fewer plays from scrimmage of 40 yards or more. New head coach Manny Diaz spent last season as the defensive coordinator at Penn State so perhaps there will be more strong defensive showings for Duke in 2024.
At A Glance
| Odds to Win | Opening Odds | Current Odds |
| Championship | +80000 | +50000 |
| Conference | +11000 | +10000 |
| Regular Season Win Total | 4.5 (o +144, u -178) | 5.5 (o +120, u Even) |
| To Make Playoffs | Yes N/A, No N/A | Yes N/A, No N/A |
Can Incoming Transfers Help Overcome Those Who Headed Elsewhere?
After two seasons in Durham, head coach Mike Elko left to take over at Texas A&M. The Blue Devils turned to former Miami head coach Manny Diaz.
Diaz had mixed results in his three seasons at Miami with the Hurricanes going 3-5 against ranked teams.
There won’t be as much pressure on him at Duke as football season is often looked at as the time before the college basketball season gets underway.
After bringing in nine transfers in Elko’s final season, the number jumped to 18 this year and that is a number to consider when looking at the 2024 Duke Blue Devils stats.
Losing quarterback Riley Leonard and edge rusher to Notre Dame, leading rusher Jordan Waters to North Carolina State, sack leader Aeneas Peebles to Oregon is not ideal.
Texas quarterback Maalik Murphy, Liberty defensive lineman Kendy Charles, Princeton linebacker Ozzie Nicholas, and Old Dominion Javon Harvey are among the top incoming transfers.
Receiver college football betting lines.
Championship Odds: When Does Basketball Season Start?
Diaz’s Miami teams underperformed and he was basically run out of town. The pressure won’t be quite as intense at Duke when it comes to the 2024 Duke Blue Devils stats.
Even if the roster had been kept intact, there would have been issues for Duke with a new quarterback and some key defensive players moving on. Getting Freeman back is a big deal for the Duke defense.
Duke finished seventh in the ACC in total defense (eighth in conference play) but even with Leonard, the Blue Devils were 12th out of 14 teams in total offense so there is some work to do on both sides of the ball.
Conference Odds: Diaz, Blue Devils Face An Uphill Struggle
The fact that Duke is a 3-point underdog at home against North Carolina in the ACC opener speaks volumes about where the expectations are for this Duke team.
After meeting UNC and Georgia Tech, things get real when ACC preseason favorite Florida State comes to town. That game is preceded by a bye week so perhaps that is good news.
The four-game stretch against Florida State, SMU, Miami, and North Carolina State could make or break the season for the Blue Devils.
Regular Season Wins: Getting to Five Wins Might Be a Tall Task
Assuming that Duke enters ACC play at 4-0 thanks to the weak non-conference slate, the Blue Devils could be looking good to go to deliver on the college football picks over the expected win total of 5.5 during the regular season.
If the Blue Devils stumble in one of the non-league games or the first two ACC games, it could be a different story with the difficulty increasing after the early-October trip to face Georgia Tech.
To Make Playoffs: Eyeing a Bowl Bid Is A Reasonable Goal
Duke has won its last four bowl games after beating UCF in 2022 and Troy in 2023.
If Leonard had stuck around, there might have been loftier expectations but with the loss of some key outgoing transfers, winning a bowl game for the third season in a row would be an accomplishment worth celebrating since it has never happened at Duke.
There were eight one-score games lost by Miami when Diaz was coaching there and that is one trend that Duke fans hope stays in Coral Gables.
Side Bets
If Leonard had stuck around, Duke would have had a Heisman Trophy contender worth scrutinizing. Maalik Murphy, his replacement, is well back at +20000 in the Heisman Trophy odds.
When analyzing the NCAAF stats, five of Duke’s last eight games in 2023 had totals under 50 with the Blue Devils struggling to finish over in those matchups so keep that in mind when looking at the totals in the early portion of the 2024 season.
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