Duke took its talents to South Beach this past Saturday, and returned home with a 45-21 victory over the Miami Hurricanes. Heading into the game, the Blue Devils were 10 point underdogs; however, behind the play of Riley Leonard at the EIGHT turnovers by the defense, this team left no doubt as to who deserved the W. Here are our helmet stickers for this week:
BRIAN’S PICK: JAYLEN STINSON
My helmet sticker this week goes to Junior Safety Jaylen Stinson. Let’s be honest Duke fans, with the type of performance the defense put on Saturday against Miami, I could have closed my eyes, thrown a dart at the defensive roster, and could have bragged about whatever player the dart landed on. Stinson had a DAY for himself. First things first, he had 2 interceptions against Miami. That was the most by a Duke player in a game since Mark Gilbert in 2017 against Wake Forest. Of the 2 interceptions, his first was the most important and came at a pivotal time in the game. With 13 seconds left in the 2nd quarter, it looked as though Miami was going to score points heading into the half and have a huge burst of momentum going into the 3rd quarter. (Yes Miami did score 14 unanswered to start the 3rd quarter, but that’s beside the point) Had Miami scored on Duke there, it would have also been the second week in a row Duke would have given up points to a team right before halftime. But Stinson came up HUGE and picked off Jake Garcia on the 20 yard line to stop the drive and help Duke go into halftime up 10. While his seconnd interception was late in the game with Duke up 17, it would help drive one of the final nails in the coffin for Miami, and send the hundreds and hundreds of Canes fans home in shock.
For the season, Stinson already has 50 tackles, a career high, which places him third on the team behind Shaka Heyward and Darius Joyner. He also has a sack and a fumble recovery as well. Stinson had preseason hype coming into the first game, and he has not disappointed. Hopefully this will not be the last time I am able to give a helmet sticker to Stinson before the season ends.
JAMIE’S PICK: BRANDON JOHNSON
While watching the game yesterday, it became pretty obvious that I wanted to give my helmet sticker to someone on the defensive side of the ball this week. The defense as a whole wreaked absolute havoc in Miami. They forced EIGHT turnovers. Unreal. Brandon Johnson played a huge part in that effort, and for that he gets my helmet sticker this week. Brandon Johnson had a career best 9 tackles for Duke this week. It really seemed like he was all over the field. Johnson had 2 sacks, which came out to 16 yards lost for Miami. He’s up to 3.5 sacks on the year now, which leads the team. Johnson was also a HUGE part in the eight turnover day for the Duke defense. For the second time in his career (per Duke) he was able to get a fumble recovery and an interception in the same game. Johnson got a 28 yard pick six with about 5 minutes remaining. I also have to mention that he had a pretty good celebration in the end zone after the pick 6. He threw up the U with his hands, and then proceeded to break it over his knee. Solid celebration, Brandon. That celebration might have told the story for the rest of Miami’s season, because I think Duke may have broken them. Johnson was named the Walter Camp National FBS Player of the Week as well as the ACC Defensive Back of the Week for his gaudy stat line.
I also wanted to mention, Johnson shouted out the coaches in his post game interview for putting him in position to succeed. What a tremendous game from safety Brandon Johnson. He gets a well deserved helmet sticker. Now the bye week hits at a perfect time. Hopefully the guys get some well deserved rest. Duke will be playing for bowl eligibility next time they take the field. Amazing.
JOSH’S PICK: CHANDLER RIVERS
As has been mentioned, the defense was absolutely (Shoutout Conner Vernon on the Duke Radio Network) incredible this past Saturday at Miami. The turnover number could have easily been NINE, but Darius Joiner had a fourth down pick that was ruled incomplete; and it gave Duke better field position anyway. My helmet sticker goes to the young guy, the true freshman from Beaumont, TX, Chandler Rivers. Thinking all the way back to spring ball, we knew that Rivers was going to get on the field this year, but we were not sure how many snaps he would see. He has proven to be a valuable member of this Duke secondary. He has a knack for being around the football and never turns down an opportunity for a big hit. This past Saturday, Rivers was second on the team with six tackles, and he also finished with two passes broken up. The ACC acknowledge him as the Rookie of the Week in the conference for his performance.
As Duke continues its quest for more wins and bowl eligibility, Rivers looks to be a major part of what takes place on the defensive side of the ball.
SCOTT’S PICK: THE RB ROOM
My helmet sticker is going to maybe the deepest room for this Duke team: the Running Back room. Duke rushed 42 times for 200 yards and 4 TD’s in its 45-21 win over Miami. Jacquez Moore led team with 6 rushes for 63 yards with his longest being 31 yards. Jordan Waters had 10 rushes for 47 yards and a TD with his longest run being a 16-yard run. Terry Moore had 10 rushes for 30 yards with his long being a 9-yard run. Technically he isn’t a RB, but QB Riley Leonard rushed 14 times 61 yards and 3 TD’s with his longest being 13 yards. Though Duke has been without Jaylen Coleman since the UVA game, the other guys have been stepping up in his place, and the team hasn’t missed a beat. They have been following the “Next Man Up” mantra that Coach Mike Elko has been preaching. In 6 of the 8 games this season, Duke has out-rushed their opponents, which to me shows why they are 5-3 overall and 2–2 in the Coastal needing just one more win for bowl eligibility. This week the team has the bye week. This is a great time for all to heal, and for the team to start getting ready for trip to Chestnut Hill to play BC on Friday, November 4th, at 7 PM on ESPN2. Go Devils! #BLEEDBLUE
Photo creds: GoDuke.com