NO. 9 Clemson Set to Open Season Against Duke Blue Devils on Labor Day

By: Jacob Cullum

The Clemson Tigers are slated to face the Duke Blue Devils in Durham this Labor Day Weekend on September 4th at 8:00 (EST). The No. 9 Tigers come into this matchup after a dissapointing ending to last season with a loss in the Orange Bowl to the hands of the Tenessee Volunteers (31-14). The Duke Blue Devils enter the 2023 season after a dominating victory in the Military Bowl vs. UCF (30-13) to cap off the a promising season. The Blue Devils hope to continue their newfound success and snap a 5-game losing streak to Clemson dating back to 2004.

Entering the game as a 12.5-point favorite, Clemson ended last season with a record of 11-3 and won the ACC champoinship for the 7th time in the last 8 years. Lead by sopohomore quartberback and potential Heisman Candidate Cade Klubnik and a veteran defensive group highlighted through standout senior Xaiver Thomas and junior linebacker Jeremiah Trotter Jr. (Preseason All-American 2nd team), Clemson aims to push for another College Football Playoff appearence. Returning running back Will Shipley looks to amass another +1000 yard season on the ground. Coach Dabo Swinney remains confident in the ability of his returning starters and believes Clemson is set for another historic year. With former defensive members Miles Murphy and Bryan Bresee being selected in the NFL draft, Defensive Coordinator Wes Goodwin will have a challenge ahead of him trying to recreate a defense that ranked in the top-25 statistically in 2022.

The Duke Blue Devils enter after a promising 2022-2023 season (9-4) under their first year with Head Coach Mike Elko. The Blue Devils are on a hopeful upswing after an abysmal 2021-2022 season finsishing with only 3 wins. Preaseason All-ACC junior quarterback Riley Leonard remain’s Duke’s biggest question mark. After notching nearly 3,000 yeards in the air and close to 700 on the ground, the dual-threat quarterback is set on having an electric season.

Leonard has potential to become a national standout and has offensive tools surrounding him. The Blue Devil offense also finsished with the second lowest
turnover margin in the FBS with a rating of +1.3. With a trio of returning running backs (Waters, Moore, and Coleman) gaining more than 1,600 yards from scrimmage last season, the Blue Devils high-flying offense could shock the college football world with an effecient and lethal offense.

As no stranger to entering as the underdog, the Blue Devils will look to spoil Clemson’s ACC play early. Duke remains as a dark-horse candidate to make the ACC championship after a confident season last year. Second-year coach Mike Elko has tranformed the Blue Devils football program in just a single season after a (3-9) 2021 season. The question remains as follows: how good will Clemson’s defense be? With no shortage of offensive weapons to keep in check, the Blue Devils offense will be an immediate challenge. Seeing how Clemson reacts to a dual-threat star like Leonard will provide a solid eye-test of the Tigers defensive unit.

You can hear coverage of the game on Monday night on 730 The Game ESPN Charlotte.