Week 2 Duke Football Odds: Blue Devils Drawing Doubt

It might be wise to bet on Duke football again.

Duke football celebration (Jaylynn Nash-USA TODAY Sports)

A 30-point win on Friday night. A shutout (the Duke football program's first against an FBS school since Steve Spurrier coached the Blue Devils to a 41-0 road victory over UNC in 1989). A polished-looking quarterback. Zero turnovers. An inspired, gang-tackling defense, preventing Temple from even sniffing the red zone.

While all of the above proves that first-year head coach Mike Elko had Duke (1-0, 0-0 ACC) prepared to shine at home in Week 1, it would be remiss not to point out that the lowly Owls' eight-game losing streak is now the nation's longest. So there's still no evidence of how the Blue Devils will respond the first they get punched in the mouth.

That certainly didn't happen against Temple.

But at least some adversity seems likely when Duke plays at Northwestern (1-0, 1-0 Big Ten) on Saturday.

Odds: Duke football at Northwestern

At the time of this article's publishing, SI Sportsbook lists the Blue Devils as 10.5-point underdogs against the Wildcats. And the over/under total stands at 55.5 points.

Although the line is not a complete shock, it's somewhat surprising in light of the feel-good vibes flowing among the Duke players right now. Plus, it's not as if Northwestern has proven much.

Oddly enough, if not for Nebraska's win over North Dakota on Saturday, Northwestern's lone opponent thus far this season would be in a tie with Duke's lone opponent for the nation's longest losing streak. Northwestern (in the 17th season with Pat Fitzgerald as its head coach) held off Nebraska in Ireland, 31-28, in Week 0.

In summary, it's safe to say neither the Blue Devils nor Wildcats faced a formidable foe in their openers, leading to plenty of question marks for their Week 2 meeting.

RELATED: How to Get Duke Students to Stay Past Halftime at Football Games

Still, it's worth considering that the Blue Devils were only seven-point favorites over the Owls at this time last week and ended up winning by 30 points.

Will they exceed the oddsmakers' expectations once again?

Like Duke, Northwestern finished 3-9 in 2021. The Blue Devils lead the all-time series, 11-10, and have won the past three meetings, including a 30-23 victory in Durham last September.

PREDICTION: Duke 24, Northwestern 20 (the Elko enthusiasm survives on the road)

The game kicks off at noon ET Saturday on FS1.

Stay tuned to Blue Devil Country for more Duke football coverage.