The Atlantic Coast Conference recently released official 2018 football schedules for member programs. We take a look at the opponents for Duke Football next season.
Duke and the ACC have officially announced football schedules for the upcoming season. The Blue Devils capped off 2017 with a great win in the Quick Lane Bowl over Northern Illinois. After an inconsistent season where the Blue Devils had streaks of winning four, losing six, and winning three, what does 2018 hold in store for Duke Football?
In 2017, Duke finished 6-6 with a difficult regular season schedule. Not much has changed on the Blue Devils’ schedule next season. They will play against 11 of the exact same opponents from last season:
Canes Warning
- 9/1: Army
- 9/8: at Northwestern
- 9/15: at Baylor
- 9/22: North Carolina Central
- 9/29: Virginia Tech
- 10/13: at Georgia Tech
- 10/20: Virginia
- 10/27: at Pitt
- 11/3: at Miami
- 11/10: UNC
- 11/17: at Clemson
- 11/24: Wake Forest
Duke will face the exact same teams with only one difference, replacing Florida State with Clemson. Clemson is the most difficult game one the schedule and one of the biggest matchups for Duke in recent years. The Tigers are already projected to be a Top 5 team, ACC champions, and one of the favorites to return to the College Football Playoffs. Additionally, Duke has a tougher set of road games traveling to face Northwestern, Baylor, and Miami as well as Clemson.
In order to be successful in 2018, Duke must make major improvements. The team had several good wins (GT, WF, NU), but also some very bad losses (UVA, Pitt). If they want to improve their bowl outlook next season, they need to find a way to beat the teams they are supposed to beat, win close games, and compete against tougher opponents.
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The official set of games for Duke Football in 2018 can be found here. Duke Football will kick off the 2018 season on September 1st with a home game against Army. The Blue Devils will look to carry the momentum from the Quick Lane Bowl victory into the upcoming season.