No. 16 Duke travels to Doak Campbell Stadium for a game against No. 4 Florida State, hoping to make history.
In 21 tries, the Duke football team has never beaten the Seminoles. In their last meeting, December 20, 2020, FSU came away with a 56-35 victory.
It’s no secret that the Blue Devils athletic department is more known for its prowess in basketball than football. However, head coach Mike Elko’s squad is on the upswing. Duke is 5-1 and have been ranked in the top 25 for seven straight weeks, the latter a feat that the program hasn’t accomplished since 1957.
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This will be the Blue Devils’ third game against a top-25 team. Duke opened eyes around the nation in their opening week 28-7 win against then-No. 9 Clemson. In Week 5, Duke had a 14-13 lead against No. 11 Notre Dame with less than a minute to go. It took Audric Estime’s 30-yard touchdown for Notre Dame to escape with a victory and put the first blemish on the Blue Devils’ 2023 campaign.
“It’s probably a little bit different. The Clemson game was the opener, right? So, there wasn’t a ton of like, finality, to that one,” Elko told reporters during Monday’s press conference. “It was just two teams that were playing on a national stage for the first time, trying to establish themselves, and as big as the Notre Dame game was and as huge of a stage that was, that was still a non-conference opportunity. That plays a role a little bit.”
Duke played both games this season against ranked opponents at home. Elko expects a rowdy environment at Doak Campbell.
“Now you’re playing a prime-time game between two unbeaten teams in the ACC, and at the end of this, someone’s going to have a clearer path to Charlotte than the other one,” Elko said. “That’s critical, and that’s not lost on anybody in our locker room. It is an in-league, big-stage, big opportunity for our guys to go kind of rise up to and take advantage of.”
Elko’s team faces a tough challenge against the Seminoles. Florida State blasted Syracuse 41-3 last week to improve to 6-0 and 4-0 in the ACC. The overall and ACC records mark the Seminoles’ best start in each category since the 2015 season.
Head coach Mike Norvell has an eye on Duke’s defense, which has only allowed 20 or more points once this season.
“You look at the standard of good defenses,” Norvell told reporters on Monday during his weekly press conference. “This is one that you would point to. All 11 guys on their defense tackle, they can run, cover. They’re disruptive in the schemes that they present. Got really good pressure packages that challenge offenses. They just play good.”
How to Watch Florida State vs. Duke
No. 4 Florida State (6-0, 2-0) hosts No. 16 Duke (5-1, 2-0 ACC) Saturday at 7:30 p.m. ET on ABC. Chris Fowler (play-by-play), Kirk Herbstreit (analyst) and Holly Rowe (sidelines) will call the action.
Betting Info for Florida State vs. Duke
The Seminoles are favored by 14.5 points, according to Thursday’s odds on BetMGM Sportsbook. The over/under is 49.5.
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
