Quick hitter #7 – QB, Thaddeus Lewis talks of TD’s to Riley, and fan support

What do you think of your performance against JMU?

I think it was okay.  There’s always room for improvement after the first game.  The mistakes we made in the James Madison game will need to be corrected.

Do you feel like last weeks performance helped further develop the fan base?

Definitely!  The fans stayed out there in the rain during an hour delay to see what Duke had to offer.  We came out there and performed to the best of our ability and tried to give them what they came to see.

You had two hook ups with Eron Riley for touchdowns.  Is it safe to say he is your main man?

Definitely!  There is something about Eron that you know if it is thrown his way, he’s going to come up with it.  On the two touchdowns … the first one I was kind of surprised to see him get in my vision and he never hit that route, but he kind of got there … you know, it’s just what the defense gave us.  He was open in that situation.   I have a feeling Coach wants to get him in position to get more catches than he actually had.  You’ll see a lot more of that this year.

It seemed that play was designed to go another way …

Yes.  It was a smash combination.  They covered Eron pretty well, but he got to the backside.  In that situation you have to use your eyes to work the cornerback either way.  As it so happens I was trying to look back this way to see if I could move him a little bit and Eron came in my vision.

What did you think about the Blue Devil Walk and the pre game festivities?

I thought that was great.  You know, just to see the fans, students, faculty and everybody cheering you on … you don’t always have that where you are use to getting off the bus and you are gone.  Just having that walk and getting a connection with the fans before you get out there on the football field and you feel as one.  The fans don’t always get to see you up close and give you a handshake on a one on one basis like they did during the walk. 

Is it safe to say that kind of thing made a difference in the teams play?

I can definitely say that the fan support makes a difference.  It’s like the twelfth man on the field.  We need that extra boost on third and long offense or defense.  Just to get a win – that’s going to make them come back and cheer you on again.

What are your thoughts going into the Northwestern game?

It’s going to be a good game, it was last year.  They’re a different football team, so we will definitely have to go out there and prepare well.  I’m pretty sure they are working hard.

Quick Hitter #5 – OG, Rob Schirmann talks fundamentals and appreciation for the Wade Crazies

The Duke offensive line played very well in the opening day win over James Madison last Saturday. They will test themselves against the Northwestern defense this weekend in a battle of two 1-0 teams. Rob Schirmann is an offensive guard and leader who is part of a senior core for Duke. Schirmann’s 25 career starts is tops among the interior lineman.

It took Duke its first four games last season to gain as many yards on the ground as you all did this past Saturday. What do you attribute the improvement to?

We’ve been working pretty hard on our run game. We’ve been working on all of our skills. We’ve practicing pad level, our steps and all the fundamentals. We’ve just been working hard on that and you can see it in a game.

Are you part of the Cutcliffe weight loss plan? What did you weigh last year?

I was about 285 and I’m about 275 now. I lost more in the off season, but tried to gain a little bit more. It’s increased my strength and I’ve lost a couple of percentages of body fat and I’ve gotten a little quicker in the off season. It’s all been very positive.

It’s been awhile since you’ve won a game, how do you think you will react to that this week?

We will not focus on that this week. There’s no big heads around here and there’s no big ego’s. Nothing from last week will effect how we focus and prepare this week, how we go into this game. We’re strictly focused on Northwestern.

What is your reaction on the crowd this past Saturday and the Blue Devil Walk?

Personally, I thought that was great. And the Blue Devil Walk pretty much amazed me. I was extremely excited and pumped up to see all the students out there on that and in the stadium, seeing them all out there through the rain delay … I’m real happy we had that kind of support.

What did you do after the victory?

The first thing I did was smile. Then I looked over at the student section and not a single person had left. It was unlike anything I had seen in the past during the four years I had been here.  It was a good feeling and was pretty exciting.

Quick Hitter – Vincent Rey talks leadership and JMU

I caught up with LB Vinnie Rey, having a bit of one on one time with him after an intense practice.

Looks like you guys are going at it hard and preparing for James Madison …

“We’re working hard.  It’s like two jobs.  It’s a job in the film room and it’s a job out here.  The film room is a job to understand and learn the schemes.  Out here you just have to run to the ball and finish.”

You are going up against a multi-faceted quarterback.  How do you prepare for that?

He’s a very good quarterback … good on his feet and throwing the ball also.  We have a big job to do, but we can’t forget that there is ten other guys out there on his team who can play as well.

You stepped up big time last year.  Have we seen the best of Vincent Rey yet?

No sir!  I feel like I’ve gotten a lot better physically.  I’m learning the game a lot better under the new coaching staff.  I feel that I just have to keep doing my job on defense.  The better I do my job, the better I help my team. 

You’ve been named team captain!  What does that feel like in that the other three are seniors?

It’s one of the biggest honors I’ve had in my life.  And it’s definitely a responsibility on and off the field.

What do you bring to the table as a leader?

I bring hard work.  Every time I come out here I want to be the hardest working guy on the field.

Do you have a message for Duke fans?

Come to the game and you will be entertained.  It’s going to be a good game and we want your support.

Cutcliffe talks kicking game, James Madison and the latest scrimmage

On yesterday’s scrimmage -  We did a little game work in yesterday.  We had to put that together and make it all work.  We followed up today with some walk thru’s and corrections and an on the field scouting report continuing with James Madison. 

We scrimmaged yesterday and we didn’t tackle to the ground.  We couldn’t afford to lose anymore running backs.  We got exactly what we wanted out of it … great looks defensively at what the James Madison offense is suppose to look like.  Our number two units ran the James Madison offense.  We saw some things in there that give us problems, we saw some things in there we really liked. (Coach asked his team to stay late last evening and study tape).

Offensively, we worked against JMU schemes.  We threw and caught the ball well.  Tony Jackson continues to please me with his work.  He ’s still got a long way top go, but in the absence of Boyette and Harris he’s steadily improved.

On the kicking game -Our kicking units!  We did everything like a football game.  Nick Maggio inless something happens will be our starting placekicker.  Typically extra points of anything medium to close field goal range is his.  Anything of great distance we would certainly go back in there with Joe.  Surgan will be our kickoff man and Kevin Jones has now had a couple of good weeks punting the ball.  For the first time I’m telling you that I am not going to say please, but that I’m encouraged by our specialist.  Chris Shannon looks like he is going to have the snapping duties.  A lot of positives, the best kicking work we’ve had to date (scrimmage).

Yesterday, Joe made one from 53 yards.  He’s a guy that has unusual ability, so we got a guy we treat as a long range field goal kicker.  Maggio has been 85% in practice and perfect on extra points.  That’s our focus making the extra point.  There is no more important point in football than the extra point.  I want it to feel like clockwork … then we moved down and started doing more field goal work, but I told Coach Midddleton and Roper that I wanted to master the extra point and feel confident.

On Tony Jackson-  He’s a guy who has made things happen when we had to have it happen.  Tony just moved over there in the spring, really the end of spring.  He’s come on.  He’s starting to become a complete back.  Tony’s got great speed.  He’s starting to understand his schemes and reads and he’s cramming the ball in the right places at times.  Is it perfect?  No.  And he and Jay Hollingsworth got all the snaps with the number one unit yesterday.   Hollingsworth is a pretty good runner.  Until I see further where Cliff gets too, that’s where we are going into this ball game.

On the defensive front -  I’m a little concerned with our defensive front after the front four with Oglesby, Akinnbiyi, Oghobasse and Respress.  At tackle we are not as settled as I would like.  We still have some shuffling to do to see who ends up game ready.  Charlie Hatcher and Egboh have done some good work.  Charlie is playing a lot with number one snaps right now … just a depth issue everywhere.  We have kind of got our number one units pretty intact, but we can’t expect our starters to stay in the game the whole time.  This time of year it’s not wise business to do that.

On James Madison- The first thing they do is they play like a really well coached football team.  They play very hard and make very few mistakes.  A talented quarterback, they’ve got speed  on defense and are an unusually good tackling team which is the sign of a well coached team.  Their quarterback is a dual threat and very difficult to contain.  I see why they’re ranked number two in the country in 1-AA.  They essentially had Appalachian State (playoffs) beat and then fumbled late setting up the field goal and lost the game 28-27.  We know we have our hands full.

We can’t get beyond trying to get Duke to play well.  We haven’t played well around here in a long time.  These kids don’t understand the start to finish mode.  So, our focus is more on ourselves than any opponent and that is not a slight to James Madison.  That would pertain to anybody we play.

On injuries -  We have people busting their tales in rehab.  When our people are as good as they are at rehab, we will take it day to day.  We didn’t have any new injuries yesterday.  That’s the best part that came out of the scrimmage.  That and Maggio splinting the up rights. (smiling)

Blue Devil Nation Premium Football articles will be free to all until October 15th.  Make this site a daily destination for some of the very best football coverage which will include recruiting and more.  And let other Duke Football fans know about the free trail.  Stay tuned for information on a move to our new home.

Hear Boynton and Knight for yourself

If you would like to hear a dual interview with Kenny Boynton and Brandon Knight, then go HERE.  Maggard hits the AAU circuit hard and has a cool pod show going on.  Tell him BDN sent you!