Duke Football: Can the Blue Devils rebound in 2022?

How will Duke football fare in 2022?

Duke is a football team in critical need of revitalization within its program. They are essentially a year or two later in the process. This 2022 College Football season will not be light on the Blue Devils as they lack elite talent on both sides of the field. The process of rebuilding needs to be slow and productive.

• Game 1: Temple (W) – The Owls are also undergoing a serious rebuilding process with their program as the Blue Devils have the edge in talent.
• Game 2: at Northwestern (L) – Duke got the win last year, but Northwestern head coach Pat Fitzgerald will not forget that game, especially since this matchup will be in their stadium.
• Game 3: North Carolina A&T (W) – Duke finds some redeeming qualities after their first season loss.
• Game 4: at Kansas (L) – Kansas will not be a push-over to the rest of College Football after showing some signs of life in 2021.
• Game 5: Virginia (L) – The Cavaliers return an offense, especially quarterback Brennan Armstrong, that ranked second in the nation last year. That alone is a huge mismatch.
• Game 6: at Georgia Tech (W) – Duke is finding themselves rising while Georgia Tech continues to decline. Duke may pull off their only win in conference play here.
• Game 7: North Carolina (L) – The Blue Devils will get no mercy from their rival, who looks more efficient on the field side.
• Game 8: at Miami (L) – Miami has an NFL-ready quarterback in Tyler Van Dyke, someone the Blue Devils will not be able to contain.
• Game 9: at Boston College (L) – There is a chance that the Blue Devils could develop a good rushing performance against this weaker rush defense of the Eagles. Duke’s defense may let the team down again against a talented dual-threat quarterback.
• Game 10: Virginia Tech (L) – The Hokies are more talented as a new coaching staff will lead them with fiery ambitions.
• Game 11: at Pittsburgh (L) – The Blue Devils’ inability to defend against the passing game continues to be a nightmare.
• Game 12: Wake Forest (L) – Just as it has been all season, the opposing team’s passing game, led by quarterback Sam Hartman, will be too much for the Blue Devils.

Prediction: 3-9, 1-7 ACC

There is hope for the Duke Blue Devils in the future, but that doesn’t mean that hope will bring instant wins. The other teams in the ACC have too much elite talent and established systems.

Duke football will face five opponents this 2022 season with some pro-ready, established passing offense. The secondary is too inexperienced for the Blue Devils to potentially create some upsets.

They will have to grind their way to a potential breakthrough season where they show progress more than anything.

That progression can be shown with a big win over Georgia Tech and maybe against Kansas and Northwestern. A dream scenario is for them to have five wins this season due to a weak non-conference schedule. Coach Elko has to have his tea ready for the long-haul starting this Fall.