logo
ACC reveals the 2025 Duke football schedule, including a Tulane rematch for Darian Mensah

ACC reveals the 2025 Duke football schedule, including a Tulane rematch for Darian Mensah

USA Today28-01-2025

The Duke Blue Devils, along with every other member of the ACC, officially revealed their 2025 college football schedule on Monday evening, and new quarterback Darian Mensah will see a familiar foe in the non-conference leadup.
Duke opens the second campaign of the Manny Diaz era with an August 30 game against Elon, exactly one year to the day after the 2024 opener against that same Phoenix team. The Blue Devils won 26-3 in Diaz's first game thanks to a pair of Maalik Murphy touchdown passses.
The Blue Devils play another Big Ten team in Week 2, this time hosting the Illinois Fighting Illini, before traveling for their first road game on September 13. The team? The Tulane Green Wave, Mensah's former program. The new Duke quarterback announced his decision to transfer after leading Tulane to nine wins and an American Athletic Conference Championship appearance as a redshirt freshman.
Duke's first ACC game comes against the NC State Wolfpack in Durham on September 20, and it closes the season with back-to-back rivalry battles against the North Carolina Tar Heels (Nov. 22) and Wake Forest Demon Deacons (Nov. 29).
Check out the full schedule below:
2025 Duke football schedule

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Kansas City Chiefs DC Steve Spagnuolo says rookie DB 'had a tough day' at OTAs
Kansas City Chiefs DC Steve Spagnuolo says rookie DB 'had a tough day' at OTAs

USA Today

time5 hours ago

  • USA Today

Kansas City Chiefs DC Steve Spagnuolo says rookie DB 'had a tough day' at OTAs

Kansas City Chiefs DC Steve Spagnuolo says rookie DB 'had a tough day' at OTAs The Kansas City Chiefs are back at work for OTAs, and rookies continue to integrate into the team's game plans. Defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo spoke with reporters on Wednesday, revealing a tough outing for rookie defensive back Nohl Williams. "Nohl (Williams) had a tough day today. (It's) Just a couple things that stick out, but what I really like about him is (that) he's a student of football," said Spagnuolo, "You know, coming from Cal – that Cal (team) had really good players on that team, they had a lot of them. I thought, for the most part, when we Zoom called or interviewed guys, I thought they were really sharp football-wise, so it begins there with all the things we do. We'll find out a little bit more about him when we get pads on, and we can go live, but he's done a pretty solid job for us right now." Following a trade with the New England Patriots, the Chiefs selected Williams in the third round with the 85th pick in April's NFL draft. He is expected to be a key contributor in takeaways for Spsgnuolo's defense. After transferring from UNLV in 2023, Williams totaled 53 tackles, six pass deflections, two interceptions, two fumble recoveries, and two touchdowns. In 2024, Williams' seven interceptions from the previous year at California earned him First-Team All-ACC honors and made him a Consensus All-American.

If SEC wants more College Football Playoff respect, it's time to dump cupcake games
If SEC wants more College Football Playoff respect, it's time to dump cupcake games

USA Today

time6 hours ago

  • USA Today

If SEC wants more College Football Playoff respect, it's time to dump cupcake games

If SEC wants more College Football Playoff respect, it's time to dump cupcake games Show Caption Hide Caption Kirby Smart on college football's future Kirby Smart urges leaders to prioritize the game's future over personal or conference agendas in playoff talks. The SEC keeps finding new reasons to not add a ninth conference game to its football schedule. Throughout the four-team College Football Playoff era, the SEC ruled that postseason format, so it found insufficient incentive to add another conference game. When the scheduling debate resurfaced two years ago, some SEC members expressed reluctance to add another conference game without additional compensation from its media partner. ESPN didn't sweeten the pot. The SEC stayed at eight. The latest excuse? Many SEC coaches feel loath to welcome a ninth conference game without first knowing the College Football Playoff format for 2026 and beyond. What's next, no ninth SEC game until there's peace in the Middle East? I'm losing my appetite for this eight-or-nine debate. The number should be 10 – as in, every power-conference team should play a minimum of 10 games against Power Four opponents. MAN WITH PLAN: Lane Kiffin pushes promising 16-team playoff model BIG DECISION: SEC's Greg Sankey can be hero or villain in playoff debate SEC craves more CFP respect while playing cupcake games The SEC routinely insists it should gain preference from the playoff selection committee because of its run of national championship dominance the past 20 years, plus its strength of schedule. I won't argue that the SEC often boasts the strongest top-to-bottom conference. The SEC's pandering to the playoff committee, though, plays weak considering how the conference structures its schedule. Teams only play half the other members of their 16-team conference, and most only play one Power Four non-conference opponent, while supplementing the schedule with a few layup games. In this era of the ever-expanding playoff, it is time for the SEC to curtail its feast of cupcake games. Either stay at eight conference games, or go to nine – so long as it adds up to 10 games against real competition. Power Four teams playing more games against legitimate opponents – and fewer games against directional schools – would provide clarity to the playoff's at-large selection process. Alabama, Florida and South Carolina will play 10 regular-season games against Power Four opponents. The SEC's other teams will play eight or nine games against power foes. By comparison, TCU and Baylor will play a nation-leading 11 games against Power Four competition. Let's not spare the ACC, either. The ACC joins the SEC in playing eight conference games, while their Big Ten and Big 12 peers play nine. Most ACC schools, at least, will play 10 games against power-conference opponents, if you include Notre Dame as a power foe. Alternative to a ninth SEC game? Play another Power Four school Prominent SEC voices continue to trumpet that the committee erred by rejecting three 9-3 teams from the inaugural 12-team playoff, and that the committee does not sufficiently reward the SEC's schedule. 'I have a hard time seeing Ole Miss, Alabama, and South Carolina not being in the best teams last year,' Georgia coach Kirby Smart said, in reference to 9-3 teams that didn't make the playoff. I maintain the committee flubbed by selecting two-loss SMU, which beat nobody of substance and lost its two games against Top 25 opponents. Mississippi, which smashed Georgia after suffering a résumé-staining loss to Kentucky, would have been a better choice. And yet, the SEC's three-loss also-rans could have tempted the committee more if they'd played and won another conference game or at least played and won an additional game against a Power Four opponent, instead of creaming a Championship Subdivision school. We don't know how the committee would view a 9-3 SEC team that played 10 games against Power Four competition. We do know what the committee thought of the SEC's 9-3 teams that played only nine games against power-conference foes. They thought them undeserving of a playoff bid. If Florida, which plays Miami and Florida State, goes 9-3 this season, it likely would have a stronger case for an at-large bid than the SEC's three-loss teams last season. The same is true of South Carolina, which plays Virginia Tech and Clemson for 10 Power Four games. Alabama's games against Wisconsin and Florida State give the Tide 10 games at the big-boy table, too. Those teams stand in exception to the SEC's majority that choose a path of lesser non-conference resistance. The SEC keeps floating the myth that the playoff committee does not respect strength of schedule. That's untrue. Indiana won 11 games last season, but the Hoosiers' soft schedule meant Indiana ranked behind four other at-large playoff qualifiers that won fewer games. Also, the SEC's three-loss teams reached the playoff's doorstep largely because of their strength of schedule. Another marquee victory could help get a three-loss team across the playoff's threshold. I can understand the SEC's reluctance to add a ninth conference game. Another league game would guarantee another loss to half the conference. Those additional losses would hinder playoff pursuits across half the league. The alternative to a ninth SEC game, though, should not be a game against Weasel Tech or Seventh-Grade State. Schedule another opponent from the big leagues. Non-conference scheduling includes the hurdle of needing two to tango. Not every power-conference team wants to play an SEC foe. Nebraska ducked out of its series with Tennessee. Wake Forest canceled on Ole Miss. Still, the SEC cannot relent. SEC coaches would be wise to keep the pedal down on this blue-sky idea of a Big Ten-SEC challenge. The SEC insists it wields the nation's strongest conference and that the committee should honor it as such. That argument holds merit, but the case would become easier to prove if SEC teams scheduled fewer games against Coastal Cupcake and more games against power-conference peers. Blake Toppmeyer is the USA TODAY Network's national college football columnist. Email him at BToppmeyer@ and follow him on X @btoppmeyer.

Duke Announces Exciting News on Cameron Boozer's Dad
Duke Announces Exciting News on Cameron Boozer's Dad

Yahoo

time11 hours ago

  • Yahoo

Duke Announces Exciting News on Cameron Boozer's Dad

Duke Announces Exciting News on Cameron Boozer's Dad originally appeared on Athlon Sports. In a show of Blue Devil pride, Duke University has taken to X to congratulate former Duke legends Carlos Boozer and Kenny Dennard on their victory at the 2025 K Academy Golf Championship on Saturday. Advertisement According to the official K Academy 2025 Golf Championship Cup Results, Boozer and Dennard teamed up to claim the title, with their Team PINEHURST beating out Team AUGUSTA 24-30. Team AUGUSTA was headlined by former Blue Devils Mike Gminski, Lee Melchionni and Gerald Henderson. Dennard starred at Duke from 1977 to 1981 and was a key contributor on the Blue Devils' 1978 squad that reached the NCAA championship game, losing to Kentucky. A McDonald's All-American in 1999, Boozer attended Duke University from 1999 to 2002, being named an ACC All-Freshman (2000), first-team All-ACC (2002), third-team All-American (2002) and an NCAA champion (2001). Advertisement He and his ex-wife, CeCe, have three children: Carmani and twins Cameron and Cayden, the latter two of whom have already committed to Duke in the class of 2025. Cameron Boozer was a two-time Florida Mr. Basketball and two-time Gatorade National Player of the Year (2023, 2025), averaging 21.1 points, 11.2 rebounds, 4.2 assists and two blocks per game in his sophomore year. He led his team to three consecutive state titles from 2022-2024 and earned MVP honors at the FIBA U-17 World Cup (2024) and Under-16 Americas Championship (2023). Duke Blue Devils recruit Cameron Boozer© Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports A consensus five-star recruit and the No. 3 overall prospect in the Class of 2025, Cameron committed to Duke on October 11, 2024, joining his twin brother Cayden (No. 23 overall) in forming one of the nation's most celebrated recruiting duos. Advertisement His recruitment validated Duke's top-ranked 2025 class, which is expected to bring immediate impact under Coach Jon Scheyer. Related: 6-foot-11 College Basketball Recruit Makes Final Decision Related: Duke's Jon Scheyer Gets Major Recruiting News on Four-Star Recruit This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on May 31, 2025, where it first appeared.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store