Week 2: Northwestern at Duke

It’s not often one gets to read in print, ‘Duke and Northwestern face off in a battle of undefeateds,’ but heading into this particular Saturday it can be said. The Blue Devils’ win came against James Madison in a 31-7 romp. If one didn’t know any better they’d think Duke had a well-balanced team, with senior running back Clifford Harris piling up almost 100 yards on the ground and quarterback Thaddeus Lewis completing 60 percent of his passes for two scores and no interceptions. But Duke also allowed James Madison 188 yards rushing – a noteworthy fact in a game decided by 24 points. As a unit, James Madison averaged 5.1 yards per carry and had a number of runs of more than 10 yards.

That information suggests big things await Northwestern back Tyrell Sutton, who could not be stopped ion his team’s 30-10 win over Syracuse. Sutton gained 144 yards at 6.9 yards per attempt. The Wildcats made it a priority not to put so much pressure on C.J. Bacher and the passing game this year, and this week it appears Duke will allow them to keep the ball on the ground.

Notes:

It’s fair to point out that not only Sutton had big numbers last week. The other four Wildcats to carry the ball all averaged 4.8 yards or better per attempt. Northwestern will continue to use its primary backup, Omar Conteh, to lighten Sutton’s workload this week.

The Blue Devils have trouble closing out tight games. Over the past seven years they’ve won just three games decided by seven or fewer points. One of those wins came last year, however, when Duke scored 13 second quarter points to defeat the Wildcats 20-14.

Key Player (Wildcats) – Tyrell Sutton, RB

The Big Ten is full of great running backs, but Sutton is all too often forgotten about. Another huge week could place him atop the leaderboard in rushing.

Key Player (Blue Devils) – Eron Riley, WR

Riley’s nine touchdowns easily led all Duke receivers last year. Against James Madison he hauled in two to start 2008 strong. If there is a player the Wildcats need to key on it’s Riley.

Northwestern by 21