Durham, NC – Duke head football coach Mike Elko and the 2023 Blue Devils are scheduled to begin fall football camp on Friday.
Last season, Elko guided Duke to an overall record of 9-4 capped by a 30-13 victory over UCF in the Military Bowl to become the first head coach in program history to lead his team to nine wins and a bowl victory in the first season at the helm. After Duke recorded an 0-8 ledger in ACC play in 2021, Elko took the reins and guided the Blue Devils to a 5-3 mark last year to match the best one-year improvement by a winless team in league history. In addition, the plus-six overall improvement (3 wins in 2021 to 9 victories in 2022) equaled the second-best turnaround in ACC history.
The Blue Devils return 19 starters from last year’s squad, including seven All-ACC selections in offensive tackle Graham Barton, wide receiver and return specialist Jalon Calhoun, defensive tackle DeWayne Carter, safety Brandon Johnson, quarterback Riley Leonard, center Jacob Monk, and punter Porter Wilson. Additionally, Duke returns 98.8 percent of its total yards, 99.0 percent of its rushing yards and 98.7 percent of its receiving yards from a year ago.
The Blue Devils finished 2022 ranked first nationally in fumbles recovered (16) and punt return average (19.92), fifth in fewest turnovers lost (10), eighth in tackles for loss allowed (3.92), ninth in both fewest fumbles lost (4) and most turnovers gained (26), 12th in fewest interceptions thrown (6), 23rd in sacks (2.8) and 25th in winning percentage (.692).
Duke’s defensive unit ranked fourth in the ACC in rushing defense, allowing just 121.08 yards per outing, and held five-of-12 opponents to under 100 yards rushing for an average of just 3.73 yards per carry with eight rushing scores. In addition, the Blue Devil defensive back unit compiled 59 pass breakups in 2022 to rank fourth in the ACC and were one of two schools in the conference with five players with six-plus pass breakups on the year.
Season and single-game tickets as well as mini plans for the 2023 campaign are now available by visiting GoDuke.com/footballtix.