What to watch for in Duke football's matchup against UConn

Duke football looks like a real contender in the ACC after its 2-0 start and now looks to take down the UConn Huskies tomorrow night to improve to 3-0. There have certainly been some growing pains early on in the season, so here's what to look for out of the Blue Devils tomorrow night.

Maalik Murphy continues to improve

Murphy has shown why he earned the starting job after transferring over from Texas, yet has also shown his fair share of imperfections while getting used to offensive coordinator Jonathan Brewer's system. On the season, Murphy is completing just about 63% of his passes while throwing five touchdowns to two interceptions. He's made great plays, especially in crunch time against Northwestern to help pull out the Blue Devils' comeback win, yet has made some errant mistakes as well. Miscommunication with receivers and inaccurate throws leading to interceptions has been a factor, and ball control as well. On the final drive of regulation against Northwestern where Duke would ultimately kick a field goal to send it to overtime, Murphy tried to run for yardage when he fumbled the ball that was thankfully recovered by the offense. Cleaning up mistakes like those will play a huge role in his progression throughout the season, but he's shown he can lead the Blue Devils to an outstanding finish.

Offense gets going early

Duke has struggled to put points on the board early in games so far this season and has certainly shown to be a second-half type of team. Out of Duke's 52 points scored on the season, just seventeen of them have been in the first half, that's about 32%. In the second half against Elon in the first game of the season, the Blue Devil offense got going, putting up sixteen points. But, against a Big Ten opponent like Northwestern, it took until overtime for Duke to find some rhythm offensively and the team relied heavily on its defense to keep the Wildcats out of the scoring column and from putting the game away. After getting in the end zone towards the end of the first quarter to go up 7-3, Duke scored a combined six points for the rest of regulation. It took the Duke defense holding Northwestern to three second-half points to put the Blue Devils in position to tie the game and ultimately win it in overtime. It was a phenomenal late-game surge from the offense, scoring two touchdowns on a total of three plays to seal the game, and is a great sign to see the offense be able to find a rhythm in an overtime period after struggling for the majority of the game to do so. But, Duke will need to find some consistency early on in games to continue to rake in victories over high-major opponents. Against a UConn team that allowed 50 points to Maryland in week one, Brewer looks to find ways to get the offense rolling quickly.

Defense continues to dominate

The defensive-minded Manny Diaz didn't take long to get this Duke defense to be one of the best in the ACC. As of now, Duke ranks third in the conference in points allowed per game (11.5), fourth in rushing yards allowed per game (81), fourth in passing yards per game (133), and third in sacks (8). It is also fifth in red zone defense, only allowing its opponents to see the red zone five times this season and allowing two touchdowns. Against Northwestern, the defense recorded eleven tackles for loss and seven pass deflections. Its linebacker core of Alex Howard, Cameron Bergeron, and Tre Freeman have been phenomenal for this Duke front seven, combining for 42 tackles. Cornerback Chandler Rivers was the defensive catalyst against Northwestern, credited with five solo tackles and a pass deflection. UConn star receiver Skyler Bell will be a tough task to contain tomorrow. The Wisconsin transfer has an innate ability to break tackles and has great speed to get out in the open field. Duke will need to shut him down at all times and keep his big playmaking ability in check.

Convert on third down

One of the main reasons that Duke has struggled to put points on the board early is its issues continuing possessions. It currently ranks fifteenth in the ACC in third down conversions, securing a first down just 33% of the time. Duke was just 4-for-15 on third down against Northwestern and went three-and-out five different times. In Brewer's air-raid type of scheme, Duke predominantly is passing the ball, even on third-and-short scenarios. Defenses have been able to predict play calls and limit Duke's ability to keep possessions alive. Even with the injury to running back Jaquez Moore, it will be important for the Blue Devils to mix up its play calling and keep defenses on their toes.