Walker Eget quieted a lot of doubters in Duke's road win over Illinois

We'll be the first to admit it:

We were too quick to rush to judgment on Walker Eget after one start. The San Jose State transfer never looked comfortable in Duke's season-opening win over Tulane. It was obvious that the Blue Devils were going to need more from the QB position to reach their goals this season. A good defense and an elite RB can only take you so far in a QB-driven game.

Making his first road start with the Blue Devils, Eget looked calm, cool, and collected. Nate Sheppard and the running game were still the focal point, but Eget was the complimentary piece that Manny Diaz hoped he could be.

Eget was an efficient 15-of-21 for 206 yards and three touchdowns. Duke needed more from its offense against a good Illinois team on the road. 17 points wasn't going to get it done this week. Thanks to Eget's efficiency, Duke racked up 31 in a 31-27 win.

Duke's defense settled in after a rocky start, allowing just three second-half points. They showed they have championship-quality to them. But the offense picked up the pace in Week 2, providing the balance that the Blue Devils had to have.

Walker Eget gave Duke the offensive balance they needed against Illinois

Illinois opened the game with a touchdown drive to go up 7-0. Eget and Duke answered right back to tie it. Following a 30-yard run by Sheppard, Eget threw his first Duke touchdown pass, hitting Jonah Burton to tie the game:

Eget overcame an injury scare in the fourth quarter. He had to be helped off the field, favoring his surgically repaired knee, but he later returned to the game to help Duke seal it.

Eget gave Diaz exactly what Duke needs from the QB position against Illinois. With a much-improved defense and a dominant running game led by one of the nation's best backs, Eget doesn't have to be exceptional. He just has to be steady. That's exactly what Diaz wanted out of Eget, and that's why he ultimately beat out Dan Mahan for the job.

He was anything but steady last week against Tulane. But it's fair to remember that it was his first start for Duke and he was coming off a major injury. He deserved time to figure things out.

Diaz gave it to him, much to the chagrin of me and many others. And it worked. Eget looked like a different player, and now Duke looks like a different team.

Duke is 2-0, earning wins over two teams it lost to a year ago. It's hard to argue with that.

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