Could be a big year as Coach Cutcliffe continues to upgrade talent and recruits are seeing on-the-field results
Off to a good start, and in an area of need -- defensive line.
The first verbal was Zach Morris, a DE from Georgia, and today there is news of a verbal from Brandon Boyce, a DT from Florida.
This is great news. D line is definitely a position of need and is the one area that Cut has been unable to significantly upgrade since his arrival. The Duke football future is indeed bright.
"This is the best of all possible worlds."
Dr. Pangloss - Candide
Very good news, hope we show something Tuesday night to open up the eyes of more young men too!
Actually, Roof had better success than Cut in recruiting Dlinemen - V.O. and A.O. come to mind.
"This is the best of all possible worlds."
Dr. Pangloss - Candide
Jordan Hayes, a 6'1" Safety prospect from Loganville, GA now shows as a Duke commit on the scout.com list for the football signing class of 2015.
Perhaps Duke's appearance in the GA Dome for the Chick-Fil-A bowl helped this Georgia native decide?
The 2015 recruiting class will tell us what kind of impact Coach Cut and the 2013 Blue Devils made on the college football landscape. That is the year Duke needs to force its way into the top 25 recruiting classes nationally. I love this staff's focus on North Carolina players and other very good (though perhaps not "great") players in SEC territory looking for more playing time early in their careers.
The key, in my mind, is recruiting the most talented big men possible to fill the offensive and defensive lines with talent. It all starts up front.
What an exciting time to be a Duke football fan...
Just a note about Boyce ... he was just selected first-team 4-A all-state DT in Florida. That's a pretty significant accomplishment, especially for a junior (4-A is the second largest classification in Florida). BTW -- WR Chris Taylor, a member of this year's recruiting class, also made the 4-A first-team (as a senior).
The thing about these early recruits is that because they commit so early, they may not have glittering offer sheets, but with Cut and company expecting a stellar recruiting class, you know he's not handing out early commitments to marginal prospects.
Two top-flight DL prospects (one a DT and one a DE) so far is impressive for a team that had trouble getting top-flight DL signees. Adding another great safety is nice, but that's a position where Cut has recruited consistently well. The program is currently loaded with good young players at safety -- All-ACC soph Jeremy Cash, veteran soph Dwayne Norman, redshirt freshmen Devon Edwards and Corbin McCarthy, true freshman Deondre Singleton and at least four promising redshirt freshmen.
Not to downplay Boyce's accomplishments, being named to the AP All-State team in Florida at any level is a great honor, but I don't believe that 4-A is the second largest classification in Florida. Starts at 8-A according to the All-State teams.
He is, however, transferring to St. Thomas Aquinas (Fort Lauderdale) after this season, which is a traditional South Florida powerhouse in the 7-A Classification.
Not an article about Duke, and we are only mentioned briefly, but it is a good mention.
http://www.charlotteobserver.com/201...l#.UtQu9NJdXTpClark said Duke’s success this season didn’t have a major impact on this year’s recruiting class, but he expects the Blue Devils to have a big impact in the class of 2015. Reggie Gallaspy of Southern Guilford, a four-star running back, recently listed Duke as his top choice.
Q "Why do you like Duke, you didn't even go there." A "Because my art school didn't have a basketball team."
BTTT!
Some local 2015 targets:
http://www.newsobserver.com/2014/01/...l-running.html
[redacted] them and the horses they rode in on.
From ESPN: Cutcliffe opines on recruiting nationally.
QB Quentin Harris to Duke per his Twitter:
http://duke.scout.com/a.z?s=167&p=8&c=1&nid=6326650Quentin Harris @KidQupid_23 · 57m
I am very honored and blessed to say that I will be committing to the Duke Blue Devils Football Program! #DukeGang15 pic.twitter.com/H45LJqrMmq
Bob Green
Sage Grouse
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'When I got on the bus for my first road game at Duke, I saw that every player was carrying textbooks or laptops. I coached in the SEC for 25 years, and I had never seen that before, not even once.' - David Cutcliffe to Duke alumni in Washington, DC, June 2013
Also interesting that we have only 4 commitments for this class so far. I think many programs already have north of 15.
Is there a strategy in place, or are we pursuing a direction someone can explain? Not being snarky....just curious.