This Saturday at 3:30, one of the greatest rivalries in sports will battle it out in a key game for both teams. However, this time, the game will be contested at Kenan Stadium and not Cameron (Hansbrough) Indoor Stadium or the Dean dome. No, it will not be Coach K vs. Roy, but Coach Cutcliffe versus Butch. Yes, Duke versus Carolina, in a matchup that matters on the football field, not on the basketball court. This is odd to many fans on so many levels.
Duke enters the game 5-3 overall and 3-1 in the conference, tied in the loss column with Georgia Tech for first place of the Coastal division. North Carolina is also 5-3 overall, but 1-3 in conference. The win came on a Thursday night in Blacksburg Virginia against a Virginia Tech Hokie team that rarely loses in that situation. Both teams are coming in off a victory, which is a rarity in this football rivalry. Duke is entering the game with a better conference record than UNC, another rarity. Duke’s last win in the series was in Chapel Hill during the 2003 season, 30-22. However, UNC has one 18 of the last 19 versus the Blue Devils. This game will also be in Chapel Hill, and will be on ESPNU.
This game will feature a strong Duke offense and quarterback Thaddeus Lewis battling a stout North Carolina defense. Lewis has to be licking his chops some after seeing what Florida State was able to do passing against this Carolina defense, particularly in the second half. However, the North Carolina defense seemed to figure out some things last week in Blacksburg. North Carolina offense, behind a healthy offensive line for the first time since game one, played much better last week and hopes to build off of that performance. The Blue Devil defense has been very stingy lately and was opportunistic against Virginia this past weekend.
It is very doubtful that things will get into the frenzy state the basketball contests encourage, but it is great to see this game mean something. The last few years it has been Duke trying to get a win and salvage a forgettable season, but Coach Cutcliffe has this team playing meaningful football in November. Many in both fan bases expected North Carolina to be in the position Duke finds itself in, controlling their own destiny. If Duke wins out, they will find themselves in Tampa for the ACC Championship. North Carolina is trying to salvage a season that begin with rather large expectations, yet fizzled due to some key injuries. Should North Carolina win out, a potential 9-3 record should get them invited to a rather large bowl game. Both teams still have a lot to play for, which is again, a rarity, in this rivalry at this point of the football season.
Who know what will happen this Saturday at Kenan Stadium, but this week should be very interesting for both fan bases to get to talk some smack at a time of the year normally reserved for talking about what’s coming up over the next few months. Both programs have invested a great deal into these programs in stadium upgrades and upgrading coaching staffs and the results are beginning to show. Neither program is where they want to be, but both are moving in the proper direction. Hopefully these programs will continue to grow and this game could possibly mean as much to the respected fan bases in a November football contest, as it does in February and March on the hardwood. Until then, listen to some smack talk this week and hope for a great game Saturday.