How Duke beats Clemson on Labor Day.
The Monday night finale of college football's week one has become a staple in the sport. Fans are treated to a full four days of college football, beginning on Thursday, before just two teams take the field on Labor Day evening to wrap up the sport's kickoff.
Clemson and Duke will get that honor this year. This is Clemson's second consecutive season beginning the year with a conference game on Monday night. The Tigers smoked Georgia Tech 41-10 in Mercedes-Benz Stadium last season to kick things off. As they prepare for another run at an ACC title, Clemson fans are expecting a similar result in week one, but Duke will provide a much tougher test for the Tigers.
Duke Athletics
The Blue Devils are far from a pushover and an upset is certainly not out of the question. Clemson enters as a 12.5-point favorite, but this one is dangerous. How would Duke pull off such a massive win to start the season? Here's the blueprint:
1. The Blue Devils come out swinging.
Duke lost four games in 2022, all by a single score and three by three or fewer points. They also scored over 30 points nine times last season. Led by quarterback Riley Leonard, this is a dangerous offense. This is also a team that's proven themselves and the fans have noticed. With ACC behemoth Clemson coming in to begin the season, Wallace Wade Stadium is going to be rocking. If the Blue Devils can score early and get a stop, things will get really tense for the Tigers.
2. Clemson's new offense hits some snags
As much as coaches love to harp on practice, there are no substitutions for game snaps and Clemson has a grand total of zero with new offensive coordinator Garrett Riley calling plays. With the pressure on, and sophomore quarterback Cade Klubnik making his first regular-season start, it's reasonable to expect some clunkiness out of Clemson.
3. Duke hits some big plays
Clemson is more talented, bigger, and faster than Duke, but they also had a propensity for giving up big plays. The Blue Devils aren't going to be able to push Clemson up and down the field, so they'll need to hit on their opportunities when they arise. In 2022, Clemson gave up 60 plays of 20+ yards, tied for 83rd in the country with Navy, Arkansas State, and Eastern Michigan. If defensive coordinator Wes Goodwin hasn't cleaned up the miscommunication in his secondary, Riley Leonard could have a field day.
4. Too little, too late
It's a tale as old as college football. Higher-ranked team comes out slow against the underdog. Underdog builds a two-score lead and has momentum. The higher-ranked team starts to push back and impose their will, making a run, but there's just not enough time. Underdog wins.
This is not a prediction, it's just the most likely avenue to a Duke win. There's a very strong possibility that Clemson shreds Duke behind Riley's high-powered offense and the Tiger defense lives up to the hype, shutting down the Blue Devils. We'll find out together on Monday night.
