CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

2008 Duke

4–⁠8 (1–⁠7 Atlantic Coast Conference), coached by David Cutcliffe.

Schedule and results

Duke in 2008, game by game: won vs. James Madison 31–7; lost vs. Northwestern 20–24; won vs. Navy 41–31; won vs. Virginia 31–3; lost at Georgia Tech 0–27; lost vs. Miami 31–49; won at Vanderbilt 10–7; lost at Wake Forest 30–33; lost vs. NC State 17–27; lost at Clemson 7–31; lost at Virginia Tech 3–14; lost vs. North Carolina 20–28+28−27Won 31–7 vs. James Madison+24James MadisonLost 20–24 vs. Northwestern-4NorthwesternWon 41–31 vs. Navy+10NavyWon 31–3 vs. Virginia+28VirginiaLost 0–27 at Georgia Tech-27Georgia TechLost 31–49 vs. Miami-18MiamiWon 10–7 at Vanderbilt+3VanderbiltLost 30–33 at Wake Forest-3Wake ForestLost 17–27 vs. NC State-10NC StateLost 7–31 at Clemson-24ClemsonLost 3–14 at Virginia Tech-11Virginia TechLost 20–28 vs. North Carolina-8North Carolina
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Aug 30vsJames MadisonW 31–⁠743%
Sep 6vsNorthwesternL 20–⁠2441%
Sep 13vsNavyW 41–⁠3136%
Sep 27vsVirginiaW 31–⁠340%
Oct 4atGeorgia TechL 0–⁠2724%
Oct 18vsMiamiL 31–⁠4944%
Oct 25atVanderbiltW 10–⁠724%
Nov 1atWake ForestL 30–⁠3323%
Nov 8vsNC StateL 17–⁠2758%
Nov 15atClemsonL 7–⁠3121%
Nov 22atVirginia TechL 3–⁠1413%
Nov 29vsNorth CarolinaL 20–⁠2831%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Lost to North Carolina 28–⁠20; unranked in the final AP poll; 12th in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

In program history: The 96th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 108 on file).

Record
4–⁠8
Conference
1–⁠7 12th in Atlantic Coast Conference
AP final
Unranked
Points
241–⁠281
Coach
David Cutcliffe
Elo
1350 +17 this season
SP+ rating
-6.7 No. 85 of 120; offense No. 104, defense No. 59, special teams No. 47
SRS
0.9 No. 59 of 120 in FBS
Recruiting class
No. 67
Offensive coordinators
Kurt Roper and Matt Luke
Defensive coordinators
Mike MacIntyre and Marion Hobby
Captains
Greg Akinbiyi, Re’quan Boyette, Cameron Goldberg, Eron Riley, Vincent Rey and Tielor Robinson
Most valuable player
Michael Tauiliili
Offense
Multiple
Defense
Multiple

How good, play by play

  • Offense114th of 120
  • Defense25th of 120
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted123rd of 120
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted46th of 120
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense-0.0639%0.81114th of 120
Defense-0.0137%0.9625th of 120
Opponent-adjusted-0.03 off
0.01 def		39% off
39% def		—123rd off
46th def
How these are measured

Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played.

Drives and havoc

Points per trip inside the 40Average startHavoc
Offense-0.2own 334% allowed
Defense0.0own 314% caused

A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. From CollegeFootballData.com.

Top recruits in the 2008 class

Sean Renfree PRO★★★★No. 319
Jay Hollingsworth RB★★★No. 713
Paul Asack K★★★No. 877
Trent Mackey ILB★★★No. 1172
Lee Butler ATH★★★No. 1187

247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.

The 2008 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks14.00.897
Running backs23.00.831
Receivers32.00.759
Offensive line12.00.744
Defensive line13.00.807
Linebackers13.00.823
Athletes and specialists33.00.826
Whole class122.80.807

High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.

2008 Atlantic Coast Conference standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
Virginia Tech5–⁠310–⁠415
Georgia Tech5–⁠39–⁠422
Florida State5–⁠39–⁠421
Boston College5–⁠39–⁠5
Maryland4–⁠48–⁠5
North Carolina4–⁠48–⁠5
Wake Forest4–⁠48–⁠5
Miami4–⁠47–⁠6
Clemson4–⁠47–⁠6
NC State4–⁠46–⁠7
Virginia3–⁠55–⁠7
Duke1–⁠74–⁠8

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.