CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

2018 Duke

8–⁠5 (3–⁠5 Atlantic Coast Conference), coached by David Cutcliffe.

Schedule and results

Duke in 2018, game by game: won vs. Army 34–14; won at Northwestern 21–7; won at Baylor 40–27; won vs. North Carolina Central 55–13; lost vs. Virginia Tech 14–31; won at Georgia Tech 28–14; lost vs. Virginia 14–28; lost at Pittsburgh 45–54; won at Miami 20–12; won vs. North Carolina 42–35; lost at No. 2 Clemson 6–35; lost vs. Wake Forest 7–59; won vs. Temple 56–27+42−52Won 34–14 vs. Army+20ArmyWon 21–7 at Northwestern+14NorthwesternWon 40–27 at Baylor+13BaylorWon 55–13 vs. North Carolina Central+42North Carolina …Lost 14–31 vs. Virginia Tech-17Virginia TechWon 28–14 at Georgia Tech+14Georgia TechLost 14–28 vs. Virginia-14VirginiaLost 45–54 at Pittsburgh-9PittsburghWon 20–12 at Miami+8MiamiWon 42–35 vs. North Carolina+7North CarolinaLost 6–35 at No. 2 Clemson-29No. 2 ClemsonLost 7–59 vs. Wake Forest-52Wake ForestWon 56–27 vs. Temple+29Temple
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Aug 31vsArmyW 34–⁠1455%
Sep 8atNorthwesternW 21–⁠735%
Sep 15atBaylorW 40–⁠2762%
Sep 22vsNorth Carolina CentralW 55–⁠1388%
Sep 29vsVirginia TechL 14–⁠3164%
Oct 13atGeorgia TechW 28–⁠1448%
Oct 20vsVirginiaL 14–⁠2870%
Oct 27atPittsburghL 45–⁠5453%
Nov 3atMiamiW 20–⁠1234%
Nov 10vsNorth CarolinaW 42–⁠3581%
Nov 17at2ClemsonL 6–⁠3515%
Nov 24vsWake ForestL 7–⁠5971%
Dec 27Bowls & playoffvsTempleIndependence BowlW 56–⁠2736%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Beat Temple 56–⁠27 in the Independence Bowl; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 10th in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

In program history: The 34th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 108 on file).

AP poll, week by week

  1. Wk 5: 22
Record
8–⁠5
Conference
3–⁠5 tied for 10th in Atlantic Coast Conference
AP final
Unranked peak No. 22
Points
382–⁠356
Coach
David Cutcliffe
Elo
1573 +30 this season
SP+ rating
5.0 No. 51 of 130; offense No. 52, defense No. 46, special teams No. 87
SRS
5.4 No. 44 of 130 in FBS
Returning
85% of last season’s EPA, No. 16 of 130
Recruiting class
No. 63 roster talent No. 39 in FBS
Offensive coordinator
Zac Roper
Defensive coordinators
Ben Albert and Matt Guerrieri
Captains
Joe Giles-Harris, Ben Humphreys, Daniel Jones and Johnathan Lloyd
Most valuable player
Daniel Jones
Offense
Multiple
Defense
4–⁠2–⁠5

How good, play by play

  • Offense84th of 130
  • Defense60th of 130
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted70th of 130
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted54th of 130
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.0741%1.2184th of 130
Defense0.1041%1.3060th of 130
Opponent-adjusted0.09 off
0.08 def		43% off
40% def		—70th off
54th 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
Offense3.7own 3217% allowed
Defense3.6own 2715% caused

CORE rating -1.8, 80th of 130 (offense -3.1, defense -1.3).

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. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.

Leaders

Passing yardsDaniel Jones QB2,674 yds
Passing touchdownsDaniel Jones QB22 TD
Rushing yardsDeon Jackson RB847 yds
Rushing touchdownsDeon Jackson RB7 TD
Receiving yardsT.J. Rahming WR811 yds
Receiving touchdownsT.J. Rahming WR8 TD
TacklesJoe Giles-Harris LB81 tkl
SacksVictor Dimukeje DE3.5 sacks
InterceptionsBrandon Feamster S1 INT

Top recruits in the 2018 class

Tahj Rice SDE★★★★No. 319
Gunnar Holmberg PRO★★★No. 557
Nate Thompson S★★★No. 585
Casey Holman OT★★★No. 603
Rocky Shelton OLB★★★No. 683

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

The 2018 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks13.00.874
Running backs13.00.837
Receivers43.00.849
Offensive line33.00.848
Defensive line23.50.871
Linebackers23.00.866
Defensive backs33.00.865
Whole class163.10.857

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.

Drafted in 2019

The 2019 draft
Rd 1Daniel Jones QBNew York Giants

Roster 97

The 2018 roster

97 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2018 line; 68 have a stat line. See the roster

2018 Atlantic Coast Conference standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
Clemson8–⁠015–⁠01
Syracuse6–⁠210–⁠315
Pittsburgh6–⁠27–⁠7
NC State5–⁠39–⁠4
Georgia Tech5–⁠37–⁠6
Virginia4–⁠48–⁠5
Boston College4–⁠47–⁠5
Miami4–⁠47–⁠6
Virginia Tech4–⁠46–⁠7
Duke3–⁠58–⁠5
Wake Forest3–⁠57–⁠6
Florida State3–⁠55–⁠7
North Carolina1–⁠72–⁠9
Louisville0–⁠82–⁠10

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