Duke football opens spring practice after promising turnaround. What to look for in 2023

A year ago, it was just talk.

Mike Elko infused hope into Duke’s dormant football program, but the Blue Devils had yet to show anything on the field when they gathered for their first spring practice under his watch in March 2022.

Fast forward a year, and the situation is dramatically different.

In his rookie season as a head coach at any level, Elko won ACC coach of the year honors, and Duke went 9-4 and won a bowl game for the first time since 2018.

When the Blue Devils began spring practice Friday with talk about topping last year’s success, their words carried well-earned credibility.

“The kids are excited about where this program is going and the direction we’re headed,” Elko said Friday. “Now everything’s about elevation, taking last year and building off of it as we go into the offseason and spring ball and trying to take this thing where we can get it.”

Elko and his staff have already accomplished plenty. Duke’s nine wins last season were its most in a season since 2014. That’s also the last time Duke had a winning record in ACC play before going 5-3 in league games last season.

Duke players said Friday after their initial spring practice they are intent on accomplishing even more.

“We’re comfortable with the system that we’ve had in place for a year now,” graduate student offensive lineman Jacob Monk said. “We’re just still hungry. Like you would think after a year like that, people would ease up. But I mean, we’re working as hard as ever and ready to keep going.”

Duke begins spring practice with 18 returning starters. Monk is one of them, as are wide receivers Jalon Calhoun and Eli Pancol, defensive linemen DeWayne Carter and Ja’Mion Franklin and starting left guard Maurice McIntyre.

All of them could have moved on with their lives and careers. Monk, McIntyre, Pancol, Franklin and Calhoun are using the extra season afforded them due to the COVID-19 pandemic, when the 2020 season didn’t count against NCAA eligibility rules.

Entering his third season as a starter, Carter bypassed entering the NFL Draft to play one more season for Duke.

Their presence gives Elko and his staff a solid core to build around in their quest to prove themselves.

“Not losing guys in this day and age is a really important thing,” Elko said. “Excited that they made the choice to come back and do this thing. I think they have high expectations for what they’re capable of this year.”

Here are some other important items as Duke goes through spring practice, leading up to its April 22 spring game:

New defensive coordinator

Tyler Santucci arrived in January to take over the Blue Devils’ defense, which was No. 5 in the ACC in scoring defense (22.1 points per game) last season with Robb Smith as its defensive coordinator.

Smith left coaching and Elko reunited with Santucci, with whom he’s worked during previous stops at Texas A&M, Notre Dame and Wake Forest.

“Obviously he’s got tremendous familiarity with the defense and the package and the system,” Elko said Friday. “He’s a tremendously great young coach with a ton of energy. The players really relate to him and enjoy playing for him and being around him. I think that was a huge statement hire for us, to be able to go out and get him as our defensive coordinator.”

Lingering injuries

Four Duke players are limited for spring practice due to offseason surgeries, Elko said.

Carter, starting defensive end Vincent Anthony Jr., and starting offensive linemen McIntyre and Graham Barton will be held out of work for most, if not all, of the spring practices.

Elko said all should be fine by the summer and ready to go when the season rolls around.

Transfers in uniform

Cornerback Myles Jones (Texas A&M) and offensive linemen Dustyn Hall (South Florida), Michael Purcell (Elon) and Jake Hornibrook (Stanford) joined the Blue Devils via the transfer portal and are participating in spring practices to give them a head start on the transition.

Duke found plenty of success via the transfer portal last season as newcomers Darius Joiner (safety), Speedy Young (cornerback), Chance Lytle (guard), Jack Burns (center) and Andre Harris (guard) played important roles in the team’s success.