Coming off an extremely disappointing home loss to Virginia last weekend, the Duke football program now sits at 5-5 on the 2025 campaign, needing at least one victory across its final two regular season games to ensure itself as bowl-eligible. The Blue Devils had a legitimate shot to secure a spot in the ACC Championship game with a win over the Cavaliers, but an uncompetitive loss at home has now completely deflated any conference title game appearance or College Football Playoff hopes the team had. However, the program can at least squander some joy from the season by taking down arch-rival North Carolina on the road this weekend.
The Tar Heels have dealt with a fairly rocky first year under Bill Belichick, as UNC currently sits at 4-6 overall and 2-4 in conference play. North Carolina has lost five of its last seven matchups, most recently coming off a 28-12 road defeat to Wake Forest. The Heels are now in desperation mode to make a bowl game, needing to take down Duke today, then NC State on the road to finish the year at .500. Let's take a look at the final betting odds and make a prediction for the Blue Devils' arch rivalry game.
Duke vs. North Carolina: Final betting odds
According to FanDuel, Duke is a 6.5-point favorite (-122) with North Carolina as a 6.5-point underdog (+100). Duke's moneyline is currently set at -250, with UNC's at +205. The total points Over/Under for the contest is 51.5.
Duke vs. North Carolina predictions
The Blue Devils entered their marquee opportunity against Virginia as a 4.5-point favorite and ended up being down 31-3 at the start of the fourth quarter. It was a pretty disappointing showing from Duke, which had a chance to cement itself atop the ACC standings by taking down another one-loss in conference squad. Now, the Blue Devils will be scratching and clawing to make a bowl game, but UNC is one of the worst offenses in the ACC.
The Tar Heels are 16th in the conference in points scored per game (18.7) and total touchdowns (20). Duke might've been shut down by the Cavaliers, but even on the road, this is a game the Blue Devils absolutely need to have.
Final score prediction: Duke wins 29-17