Saturday was media day at Duke and we got to talk to three coaches and four players. I’ll try to spread content out over the next week or so in a variety of contexts.
I thought I would start by sharing some thoughts from head coach Mike Elko, offensive coordinator Kevin Johns and defensive coordinator Tyler Santucci.
And also some concrete information.
You probably remember last year’s mantra G.R.I.N.D. That’s still a part of this team’s collective DNA. But this year the players talk more about being “bigger, stronger, faster.”
Echoed by the coaches. But the coaches also are focused on the benefits of familiarity. Elko has long compared building the Duke program to building a house.
“There’s a move-in day. If you build the house the right way, it’s not done until the day you move in. It starts with the foundation and you build that through the off-season. Now, there’s so many details that go into being a successful football team, whether that’s precision in the pass game, whether that’s third-down defense, whether that’s tightening up a little what we’re doing in our two-minute offense stuff.”
Elko said that practices have been more more efficient and productive in year two.
“We had to do so much work just laying the groundwork; calling a formation, how do we call a formation, where do we go when we call a formation. Now, all of this stuff is pretty routine. It’s a lot more about how to do things. Last year everything was about what to do, Now, all of the conversation is about how. ‘I know what route I’m running, how do I run it? I know what coverage I’m playing, how do I perfect my technique?’ It’s that kind of detail in year two that allows you to really elevate your product.”
“We’re still a start-up company,” Elko added. “Hopefully, success is linear. It usually isn’t in start-up companies but that’s who we are.”
We did get some player updates. Duke returns Graham Barton, Jacob Monk and Maurice McIntyre on the offensive line. Justin Pickett has been absent with a foot injury but it’s not expected to be a long-term absence. I had him penciled in as a starter but while he’s rehabbing grad-student transfers Jake Hornibrook and Scott Elliott have made a case for being on the field.
“Jake’s been phenomenal,” Johns said of the Stanford transfer. “His spring was just okay, learning the offense, the verbiage, the tempo. Everything was just new and it’s hard to play fast when you’re thinking. Now, I see a kid who’s stronger and more explosive after the summer he’s just had with David Feeley in the weight room. I see a more confident kid and he’s doing great things.”
Monk, Hornibrook and Pickett can all play multiple positions up front. Elliott is a 300-pound grad-student transfer from Harvard and has been working at center, which could send Monk back to guard, a position he’s played the last two seasons.
Johns cited Elliott’s “maturity and experience. He’s played a lot of football. He’s been a pleasant surprise for us.”
Elko confirmed that injured wide receiver Eli Pancol will miss most or all of the season. Duke still is figuring out the depth chart behind Jordan Moore, Jalon Calhoun and Sahmir Hagans, with veterans Jontavis Robertson and Malik Bowen-Sims in the mix with redshirt freshman Mehki Wall and several true freshmen.
Elko said the emphasis is on Pancol.
“What you feel for is Eli, the fact that he worked as hard as he did and that’s really what the focus is on. Just try to put our arms around Eli and make sure he’s okay.”
On the other side of the ball both Elko and Santucci went out of their way to praise defensive tackle, Aeneas Peebles, a 286-pound senior from the Raleigh suburbs
Peebles has transformed his body.
“Really excited with the progress he’s made and where he’s at right now,” Elko said.
Santucci added that the buffed Peebles “takes his shirt off at walk-throughs. He’s feeling confident. It helps you play football at a higher level.”
Other defensive players you may not have heard much of who came in for praise include defensive end Wes Williams, linebacker Nick Morris ”blue-collar work ethic” according to Santucci) and defensive back Josh Pickett (no relation to Justin).
There have also been some goings on in the special-teams room. Elko said Charlie Ham will be the kickoff guy; ”he’s a weapon; his ability to kick the ball through the end zone” while Todd Pelino will be the placekicker; “he’s having a phenomenal camp.”
Curtis Cooper and Casey Donahue are fighting it out to be the long snapper. “We feel like both are capable and we’re kind of going to let that play out through the final scrimmage and see where it goes from there.”
And running back turned safety Terry Moore is challenging Jaylen Stinson for kickoff return option no. 1. “That competition is pretty fierce,.” Elko said. Keep in mind that Stinson was preseason first-team All-ACC as a kick returner.
More later.
Thanks, Jim. Reading positive comments about the offensive line fuels my optimism!
It's good to hear about the progress the team is making. I love Coach E's comments and it's good to hear about the competition among the guys. Great read. Keep the articles coming.
By the way, your Yankees and my Cardinals are not having seasons we're used to. Still the two best baseball franchises in the history of the sport.
GoDuke!