Two Duke football defensive players earn All-American honors

The best defense in the ACC has multiple members on All-America lists.

Duke v Wake Forest
Duke v Wake Forest | David Jensen/GettyImages

Duke football boasted what was one of the best defenses, if not the best defense, in the ACC this season.

The Blue Devils led the ACC in fumbles forced (19), fumbles recovered (14), passing yards allowed per game (194.8), and defensive efficiency rating (113.6) while finishing second in sacks (40), second in points allowed per game (22.2), and third in opponent third down conversion percentage (32.6%)

The program also finished second in the nation in tackles for loss (110) and sixth in total turnovers (26).

Upon the stellar unit first year Duke head coach Manny Diaz put together, two members of the secondary have earned All-American honors.

Junior cornerback Chandler Rivers was named to Second Team All-America by The Athletic.

Pro Football Focus rated Rivers as the highest graded cornerback in the country earlier this season, and he's been on a tear as an upperclassmen.

Rivers led the Blue Devils in pass deflections (8) and tied for the most interceptions (3) and forced fumbles (2) on the team.

The junior totaled 29 solo tackles and a sack along with those numbers.

Rivers also was tied for the ACC lead in interceptions and became the first Blue Devil with a pick in three straight games since John Talley in 2006.

According to PFF, Rivers is projected as a 4th round selection in the upcoming 2025 NFL Draft.

Along with Rivers, junior safety Terry Moore was slotted to Second Team All-America by Action Network.

Moore finished up his junior campaign with 45 solo tackles and 5 pass deflections to go along with 2 forced fumbles and 3 picks like his teammate Rivers.

The junior also finished 4th on the team in total tackles (70) and tied for the team lead in fumble recoveries (2). PFF also gave Moore the highest coverage grade of any player in the ACC.

With the overwhelming success the Duke football defense had this season, two members of its core earn spots on All-America teams.

Schedule

Schedule