When you have been playing football for as long as Duke has, you have surely played everyone, right? Not so fast... While Duke still has a ways to go to play everyone competing at the FBS level, there are at least a handful of teams the Blue Devils have the upper hand over. Although they still need to beat, more than their fair share of teams, what about all the ones who have never defeated Duke before?
We are going to look at Duke's all-time record vs. a number of teams, highlighting the ones where the Blue Devils have never been conquered before. This includes ties as well, for what it is worth... What was interesting in putting this article together is seeing all the teams Duke has maintained a healthy winning margin over, despite not having the greatest of football histories. This team is on a run now!
So let's not dilly dally any longer. Here are all the Power Four teams Duke has never lost a game to.
Power Four programs the Duke Blue Devils have never lost to before
According to Winsipedia, here are the Power Four programs who have yet to get one past Duke.
- Arkansas Razorbacks (1-0)
- Baylor Bears (3-0)
- California Golden Bears (2-0-1)
- Kentucky Wildcats (4-0)
- Nebraska Cornhuskers (1-0)
- UCF Knights (1-0)
Heading into the 2026 college football season, Duke has never lost a game to these six Power Four programs. While it is interesting that they still have an undefeated mark vs. the California Golden Bears, they do have one tie on their ledger. Although we should not hope for it to happen, the chances of Cal getting its first win over Duke is certainly coming, as a part of them being in the ACC.
As far as the other teams are concerned, Duke being up 3-0 on Baylor and 4-0 on Kentucky should make Blue Devils fans feel great. While neither of those programs are anything close to blue bloods on the college football gridiron, Duke having their number all time is quite pleasant. As far as having never lost to Arkansas, Nebraska, or UCF, that is what happens when you rarely play all these teams.
Now let's dive headfirst into all that the Group of Six can provide us. Who has Duke never lost to here?
Group of Six programs the Duke Blue Devils have never lost to before
Heading into the 2026 college season, Duke has never fallen to these eight teams in the Group of Six.
- Florida International Panthers (2-0)
- James Madison Dukes (1-0)
- Memphis Tigers (2-0)
- Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders (2-0)
- Northern Illinois Huskies (1-0)
- Ohio Bobcats (2-0)
- Temple Owls (2-0)
- Troy Trojans (3-0)
While Duke has hardly played anyone out of the Group of Six before, it does have a strong record vs. many of these teams. After all, Duke does compete in the ACC. Most of their losses have come against better-run football programs in their power league. Not to say that any of these marks are really that impressive, but being 2-0 over Memphis, 2-0 over Ohio, and 3-0 over Troy is commendable.
Now that we know the 14 teams Duke has played but never lost to, will any of them knock the down?
What FBS teams could beat Duke for the first time in the coming years?
In addition to all the FBS teams Duke has never played before, there are three non-conference opponents to keep an eye on, in addition to Cal now being part of the ACC. Those programs would be TCU, Temple, and Middle Tennessee. Duke has a home-and-home scheduled with TCU in 2028 and 2029, as well as a home date vs. Temple in 2028. Duke also host Middle Tennessee later up in 2029.
Of those three, TCU is the most likely team to hand Duke its first loss in the all-time series for three reasons. TCU is a Power Four team, the Horned Frogs will play the Blue Devils twice, and they are the much better program presently over Temple and Middle Tennessee. A lot can change between now and then, but do not count on it. Keep in mind any future dates with Cal will have Duke on the fence.
At this time, Cal and TCU are the most likely teams to hand Duke its first loss in their respective series, if you want to call them that... Technically, Duke could play both of these teams this season, assuming the Blue Devils meet Cal in the ACC Championship and TCU in their holiday season bowl. If not, well, they will surely be on the schedule in the coming years. Will Duke be ready for them then?
As long as Duke continues to prosper under Manny Diaz, they should be able to hold steady in all this.
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