Duke visits Charlotte on 9/3/2021 at 7:00PM.
Duke and Charlotte face off in a regular season matchup. Games are on campuses and crowds are full once again! Duke had a record of 2-9 last season. Charlotte went 2-4 last season. Enough preamble… Let’s get to the preview…
Duke Team Defense Preview
Duke had 143 total defensive drives last season and they have yielded 4.97 plays per drive. Relatively speaking, Duke were not a team that allowed many plays per drive. The defense either gave up big plays quickly or induces a lot of three-and-outs, we shall find out more. Duke had a generally average defense. Nothing too special about it, but they were capable of rising up when needed. Passing plays were 45.21% of their opponents’ play calls.Their opponents ran the ball as opposed airing it out.
This was a pushover defense. Not enough push from the Defensive Line and not enough imagination from the Defensive Coordinator to cause chaos in the backfield.Opponent rushing yards attributed to their offensive line last season comes out to 3.32 yards per carry. Sorry to say this about their front seven, but the best way to make an average offensive line look good is for them to face last season ‘s horrid front seven. Running backs should look forward to this porous defense filled with poor tacklers who take terrible angles. Long breakout runs against this Defense were far too common. This was a very porous rushing defense that is incapable of preventing a situation where their safeties chase down a running back or quarterback.
This Defense had average success disrupting the flow of the opposing offense. Getting more specific, this front seven was a cause of a lot of headaches for offenses. They may be good enough to cause trouble in pass rush with just four rushers!Duke had shown themselves to be better at stopping the pass than the run last season .
Duke Team Offense Preview
Duke had 139 drives in non-garbage time minutes and they averaged 5.37 plays per drive. Relatively speaking, Duke was not a team that runs many plays per drive. The offense is either prone to faltering and struggles to notch first downs or extremely explosive, we will need to find out a bit more to get answers. Struggles to get ahead of the chains and convert on third and fourth down were common, the offense would stagnate. Passing plays were 50.80% of their play calls.Relatively speaking, this is a team that favored run/pass balance.
Duke was not doing anything particularly special as far as their ability to avoid negative yardage plays on the ground. How effective was the offensive line given what we know about their ability to prevent negative yards on rushing plays? More than you think, thanks to the Adjusted Line Yards metric. Duke would take credit for 2.56 yards per carry. So what does this mean? It means that the offensive line had been incredibly disappointing in their contribution to the ground game. When it comes to getting to that second level where linebackers have not crashed down on the line of scrimmage, they were getting stopped with ease. They were capable of busting out a long run, which was really good when the team has the ball in their own territory.
Defenses were able to impose their will on the Duke Offense last season . Front sevens of opposing defenses were causing a lot of problems. Duke was a better running team than passing team last season .
Charlotte Team Defense Preview
Charlotte had 70 defensive drives in non-garbage time minutes and they have yielded 5.44 plays per drive. Relatively speaking, Charlotte were not a team that allowed many plays per drive. The defense either gave up big plays quickly or induces a lot of three-and-outs, we shall find out more. Offensive Coordinators had no trouble with last season defense, this was one of the worst defenses in the country. The Defensive Coordinator coaching search threads onCharlottemessage boards were flights of fantasy. Charlotte opponents passed the football 44.62% of the time.Their opponents ran the ball as opposed airing it out.
Defenses want to stop offenses from getting into a 3rd Down where the options are plentiful. Unfortunately, the defense was too porous to limit those choices. How effective were opposing offensive lines given what we know about their ability to force negative yardage rushing plays? Charlotte can take credit for holding the offensive line of their opponent to 3.17 yards per carry. Their defense gave offensive lines too much control over them on the ground, too much push from the opposing offensive line. This was also a team that is allowing running backs and quarterbacks to get to the second-level in an average fashion. Long breakout runs against this Defense were far too common. This was a very porous rushing defense that is incapable of preventing a situation where their safeties chase down a running back or quarterback.
This was not a disruptive Defense and they get pushed over way too easily. Perhaps they were too vanilla with playcalling. Their front seven was simply unable to make an impact, something must change or else the problems will repeat. Charlotte had shown themselves to be better at stopping the pass than the run last season .
Charlotte Team Offense Preview
Charlotte had 71 total drives last season and they generated 5.83 plays per drive. Charlotte ran a lot of plays per drive and this could wear an opposing defense down. Struggles to get ahead of the chains and convert on third and fourth down were common, the offense would stagnate. Passing plays were 46.86% of their play calls.Relatively speaking, this is a team that favored run/pass balance.
Charlotte was not doing anything particularly special as far as their ability to avoid negative yardage plays on the ground. How effective was the offensive line given what we know about their ability to prevent negative yards on rushing plays? More than you think, thanks to the Adjusted Line Yards metric. Charlotte would take credit for 2.8 yards per carry. Generally speaking, this was an average offensive line as far as their ability to set up the running game. When it comes to getting to that second level where linebackers have not crashed down on the line of scrimmage, they were getting stopped with ease. With a relatively average explosiveness in the running game, breakout rushing plays were possible, but it was not something to count on from them.
Defenses were able to impose their will on the Charlotte Offense last season . Front sevens of opposing defenses were causing a lot of problems. Charlotte was a better passing team than running team last season .
The Duke Roster
The Players to Watch for Duke
Gunnar Holmberg QB 6’3″ 205 Senior
Last season, Gunnar Holmberg put up 161 yards, tossed 0 touchdowns, and he threw 2 interceptions. He threw a variety of different length passes. His average completed pass was 6.4 yards. The zone read is a common part of the offense and mobility is used as part of the offense, but not necessarily the focus of the offense. His average rush was 0.4 yards.
Mataeo Durant RB 6’1″ 195 Senior
Last season, Mataeo Durant had 817 rushing yards on 120 carries. Was he able to get to the end zone on the ground? He had 8 rushing touchdowns. He is considered one of the workhorse running backs of College Football returning this season. His average rush was 6.8 yards. He is a consistent option in the passing game considering that he is a running back. When he catches a pass, he generates on average 6.8 yards.
Jake Bobo WR 6’5″ 215 Senior
Last season, Jake Bobo picked up 348 yards through the air. He caught the ball 31 times last season. He reached the end zone 1 times. He is a go-to in the passing game. When he catches a pass, he generates on average 11.2 yards.
Ben Frye DT 6’3″ 255 Senior
The leading tackler among Defensive Tackles for Duke, Ben Frye, had 24 tackles last season. He was a strong force in the interior defense forcing 2 tackles for loss last season. He was a non-factor as far as sacking Quarterbacks was concerned last season.
R.J. Oben DE 6’4″ 255 Sophomore
The leading tackler among Defensive Tackles for Duke, R.J. Oben, had 4 tackles last season. He was not a factor as far as tackles for loss was concerned last season. He was a non-factor as far as sacking Quarterbacks was concerned last season.
Nate Thompson S 6’3″ 200 Junior
The leading tackler among Defensive Backs for Duke, Nate Thompson, had 42 tackles last season. He was effective at tackling receivers on screens with 1 tackles for loss last season. He was among the best at disrupting things up the middle and getting to QBs, he had 1.0 sacks last season.
Jeremiah Lewis CB 6’1″ 190 Junior
The leading tackler among Cornerbacks for Duke, Jeremiah Lewis, had 44 tackles last season. Among Cornerbacks, he was very active and disruptive in the backfield, he had 4 tackles for loss last season. He was among the best at picking off passes, he had 2.0 interceptions last season. Lockdown corner.
The Charlotte Roster
The Players to Watch for Charlotte
Chris Reynolds QB 5’11” 192 Junior
Last season, Chris Reynolds put up 1305 yards, tossed 8 touchdowns, and he threw 2 interceptions. He threw deep and medium passes to receivers more often than not. His average completed pass was 7.5 yards. He was considered one of the most mobile Quarterbacks in the country last season, designed runs and zone read looks are common. His average rush was 0.7 yards.
Aaron McAllister RB 5’10” 216 Senior
Last season, Aaron McAllister had 254 rushing yards on 37 carries. Was he able to get to the end zone on the ground? He had 3 rushing touchdowns. He is considered an average workload contributor among running backs returning this season. His average rush was 6.9 yards. He was relied upon as a receiver in their offense last season. When he catches a pass, he generates on average 6.9 yards.
Victor Tucker WR 5’11” 177 Junior
Last season, Victor Tucker picked up 400 yards through the air. He caught the ball 30 times last season. He reached the end zone 2 times. He is a go-to in the passing game. When he catches a pass, he generates on average 13.3 yards.
Tyriq Harris DE 6’3″ 236 Senior
The leading tackler among Defensive Tackles for Charlotte, Tyriq Harris, had 19 tackles last season. He was a strong force in the interior defense forcing 2 tackles for loss last season. He was a strong pass rusher in the interior last season registering 1 tackles for loss.
Nafees Lyon DB 5’10” 184 Senior
The leading tackler among Defensive Backs for Charlotte, Nafees Lyon, had 26 tackles last season. Among Defensive Backs, he was very active and disruptive in the backfield, he had 2 tackles for loss last season. He was among the best at disrupting things up the middle and getting to QBs, he had 1.0 sacks last season.
Duke vs. Charlotte Prediction, Picks, and Odds
Prediction: Duke 32 Charlotte 45
Spread Pick: Charlotte +6.5 -112 BetOnline Get Up to a Grand in Your Hand Now!
Moneyline Pick: Charlotte +210 BetAnySports
Over Pick: Over 59.5 -117 BetOnline Get Up to a Grand in Your Hand Now!