 Photo courtesy of Duke Sports Information The video below gives 3 reasons why I am excited about the Devils Deck at Wallace Wade Stadium. Keep scrolling to read "Why the Devils Deck at Wallace Wade Stadium Is a Game Changer". Why the Devils Deck at Wallace Wade Stadium Is a Game Changer
#1 - Keeps the tailgate scene going The new Devils Deck at Wallace Wade Stadium is set to enhance the tailgating experience even during the football game itself. Many college football fans, including myself, have noticed that people often leave games early. With an average game length of about three hours and twenty-two minutes, it can be a long stretch, particularly for casual fans. The Devils Deck aims to address this by offering yard games and ample walking space, providing an alternative to sitting in one spot for the duration of the game. This innovation could help keep casual fans engaged and in the stadium longer. #2 - Quality over Quantity The Devil's Deck will accommodate up to 1,500 fans, offering a unique game day experience. While this renovation will reduce the stadium's total seating capacity from 40,004 to 35,018—about a 5,000-seat decrease—this change shouldn't be viewed negatively. The quality of the game day experience will be taken to another level. Let's be honest... when Duke starts selling out all games (including games like vs Elon, vs Connecticut, etc.) then Duke can look into expansion of the stadium. For now, the Devil's Deck addresses the immediate need to keep casual fans engaged throughout the game. #3 - The Price Is Right At $45, the Devil's Deck offers an excellent value for fans. The all-you-can-eat tailgate food alone makes it a bargain. For comparison, purchasing a burger, hot dog, pretzel, and two sodas at a typical concession stand at a sporting event would likely cost over $30. This is a great deal that will benefit both the casual and the hard core Duke football fan. Props to Duke football for bringing a unique experience to Wallace Wade Stadium this upcoming season. Duke football will kickoff the 2024 football season exactly one month from today in Wallace Wade Stadium vs Elon on Friday night of Labor Day weekend. Be on the lookout for my season record prediction for Duke football as well as my first bowl prediction of the season coming soon. Until then stay cool and see you Labor Day weekend.
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From Duke Sports Information
Duke Athletics announced Monday the addition of the Devils Deck to Brooks Field at Wallace Wade Stadium. Available for the 2024 season, this all-inclusive tiered deck spans seven sections, accommodates just over 1,500 fans and offers a unique social experience to continue tailgating while watching the Blue Devils compete on the gridiron. "I saw from afar last season how a great atmosphere can impact games at Brooks Field at Wallace Wade Stadium," Duke head coach Manny Diaz said. "This year, we wanted to take our gameday experience to a new level. With the addition of the Devils Deck, fans get access to an exclusive fun tailgating atmosphere, while still being inside the stadium to watch the game. Thank you to Chris Alston our executive director of marketing and to Bob Weiseman our deputy director of athletics for spearheading this exciting project." The Devils Deck was concepted in collaboration with WME Sports as part of Duke's on-going efforts to help enhance its brand and the experiences associated with it. Designed for both individual fans and groups, the Devils Deck features standing and non-reserved seating areas throughout its free-flowing space. Fans can enjoy all-you-can-eat tailgate food and non-alcoholic beverages, access to purchase beer and seltzer as well as availability to rotating yard games. With an in-game DJ creating an electric atmosphere, the Devils Deck redefines the game day experience at Brooks Field at Wallace Wade Stadium. The renovations to the north end of the stadium will decrease the official seating capacity from 40,004 to 35,018. Passes for the Devils Deck begin at $45 per person, if purchased at least 24 hours prior to kickoff or $55 if purchased on gameday. The Duke student rate is $35 per student. Group reservations are also available for purchase prior to gameday. Please note a valid game ticket is required in addition to the Devils Deck pass. Fans can purchase this add-on online at goduke.com/footballtix or by calling the Duke Athletics Ticket Office at 919-681-BLUE (2583). Along with the additions of the Devils Deck and in-venue videoboard and social media gameday host Rachel DeMita, Duke will announce additional gameday enhancements over the coming weeks. Duke's 2024 season opener is slated for Friday, August 30 when it welcomes Elon to Brooks Field at Wallace Wade Stadium for a 7:30 p.m. kickoff. Coach Jon Scheyer utilized the transfer portal for a specific type of player Photo courtesy of @DukeMBB on X This article is written by @DukeReport contributor, Josh Cox. I sat on press row in Cameron Indoor Stadium as Blake Hinson celebrated in front of the Cameron Crazies. Hinson had just completed one of the most impressive stat lines from a visiting player Duke had ever seen. What impressed me was not the 24 total points or the gaudy 7/7 shooting from behind the arc. What stood out to me was the grown-man attitude that Hinson brought to the court that night.
We have all been around one of those older guys who still has some serious game. It is great cinema to watch some young up-and-comers think they are going to dominate the vet only to see the opposite happen. The grown man wins, and be certain that he will let the young bucks hear about it. The 2023-2024 rendition of Duke basketball reminded me of the young up-and-comers. They had some great talent and physical ability up and down the roster. And when everything was clicking, they could beat anyone they faced. But far too many times, a Blake Hinson scenario played out. No, not a 7/7 shooting night from 3 (even though Duke has come to expect at least one player from an opposing team to play the game of his life in Cameron), but a grown man being more aggressive and possessing that no-nonsense mindset. The mindset that says, “I will punch you first, and every time you punch me back, I will punch again.” As I had an up-close look at last year’s Blue Devil roster, I came to the realization that they lacked one thing: toughness. This is not an indictment on any of the individual players. They were all talented, and they all possessed some level of individual toughness. But as a unit, they were not defined by toughness. If they got punched in the mouth, I am not sure they would punch back. The season ended with Duke making a run to the Elite 8 and losing to a fiery NC State team playing to keep Kevin Keatts’ job. The morning after their final loss, the conversations about next year’s roster began. As Head Coach Jon Scheyer mentioned on The Brotherhood podcast as well as in his interview with The Devils Den, he approached the potential returning players with brutal honesty. No one would be guaranteed anything heading into this season. There was a reset button pressed by Scheyer and his staff. They brought in Cooper Flagg, arguably the most highly-touted high school recruit in over a decade. The roster had to be built to maximize Flagg’s game; because maximizing Flagg’s game is Duke’s best bet to hang that sixth National Title banner. As players made their decisions, Duke wound up only bringing back two scholarship players (sorry, Spencer, I know you technically are, but you get it) in Caleb Foster and Tyrese Proctor. After a late commitment from South Sudan Olympian, Khaman Maluach, Duke had six incoming freshmen heading to Durham. The transfer portal was going to be crucial in building the 2024-2025 roster. Scheyer and Company landed four wings in Cameron Sheffield, Maliq Brown, Mason Gillis, and Sion James. For the sake of my point, I will focus on the latter three. Brown, Gillis, and James while uniquely talented in their own ways, possess similarities. All three are grown men. Their physical attributes are undeniable. All three are TOUGH. Brown was a first-team ACC All-Defensive Team player for Syracuse, often locking down on the opposing team’s best player. He is a guy who can guard any position. And as anyone in Cameron saw when Syracuse came to town, he can also compete on the offensive end. Gillis was the Sixth Man of the Year in the Big Ten, bringing an edge to a Purdue team who would ultimately lose in the National Title game. But his toughness (and pettiness…we all love a bit of pettiness) can be seen in a pregame interaction with the Indiana Hoosiers. As the IU roster approached the foul line early for the singing of the National Anthem, Gillis was preparing to shoot a couple of final free throws, which he drained with IU players just inches from his face. James was a team leader and physical specimen at Tulane. He not only led his team on the offensive end, but turned himself into a lock-down defender. Oh and have you seen how this guy gets down in the weight room? While Duke may not have signed any of the top five players in the portal, they absolutely addressed last year’s weakness. They got tougher. These grown men will bring an edge with them that lets Duke’s opponents know that they will no longer be celebrating wins in Cameron by jumping on press row in front of the Cameron Crazies. These grown men, should they get punched, will always punch back. As recent history has shown us, talented freshmen are great, but they can typically take a team but so far. National Titles are won with a grown-man toughness provided by veteran leadership. And Duke used the transfer portal to upgrade in the grown-man toughness category.  Grayson Loftis, Jordan Moore, Maalik Murphy, Jaylen Stinson, and Justin Pickett joined head coach Manny Diaz yesterday at the ACC Kickoff doing interviews, photo shoots, and tv appearances with the ACC Network. Duke Report was able to get a few interviews and videos of the players and coach Diaz. You can find links to three of the Youtube videos for Duke Report below. You can find a few more ACC Kickoff videos at the Duke Report Youtube channel link below.  We are now just over five weeks away from the season opener at home in Wallace Wade Stadium against Elon on Friday August 30th of Labor Day weekend. Duke has a stacked schedule this season that first year Duke Football head coach Manny Diaz and the players will have to navigate through. I have a Top 6 Duke Football games I am looking forward to and why that you can check out in the video below or just scroll down the blog to see the article with the video as well. This year's football schedule for Duke features three Friday night games - two at home and one away - including opening the season with two back to back Friday games Throw in games at home against North Carolina, Florida State, SMU, and Virginia Tech as well as away games at Georgia Tech, Miami, and NC State and like stated above, this is a tough schedule to navigate. Check back here at Blue Devils Blog as well as Twitter @DukeReport and the Duke Report YouTube channel. More content will be coming soon, including my season record prediction and the weekly (love 'em or hate 'em) bowl projections. See you all soon.   The ACC Kickoff is less than 2 weeks away. I will be heading down to Charlotte for the event and will be there for all of Duke Football’s coverage on Wednesday.
Check back here at the blog or on Twitter @DukeReport as well as the YouTube channel @Skeelow22 for more content from the ACC Kickoff. You might even see a way too early preseason bowl projection from Brian of Duke Football Talk and myself of Duke Report. With that said we are just over 6 weeks away from the start of the college football season for Duke. Duke Football will kick off its season on Friday night August 30th of Labor Day weekend with a home game in Wallace Wade Stadium vs Elon. Duke once again has a tough schedule that includes home games against North Carolina, Florida State, SMU, and Virginia Tech as well as road games at Georgia Tech, Miami and NC State. Below is Duke Report’s Top 6 Duke Football games (in order of when they are played) we are looking forward to this season. #1 - Duke vs North Carolina - 9/28/24 at Wallace Wade Stadium Looking at the schedule, Duke Football has the ‘potential’ to be 4 - 0 heading into the rivalry game with North Carolina and the battle for the Victory Bell. Drake Maye is gone to the NFL and Unc (just like Duke) will have a new look. As of this writing, we don’t know the time for this game but I am hoping for another night game. North Carolina has a 5 game winning streak dating back to October 26, 2019. Duke Football fans are more than ready to finally bring the Victory Bell back home to Durham. The last two games in this series were very close games with Duke only losing by 3 points in Durham in 2022 and losing after 2 overtimes in Chapel Hill in 2023. I expect another epic matchup in this rivalry. #2 - Duke vs Florida State - 10/18/24 at Wallace Wade Stadium Duke will play Florida State at home in a Friday night game with a 7 PM kickoff that will be on ESPN 2. You already know this game easily makes the top 6. Florida State has the potential to be a college football playoff contender. If you follow college football, you definitely saw all the drama when an undefeated FSU got left out of the playoff last year. With the expansion of the playoff to 12 teams now, I expect FSU to be one of the top ACC contenders. A Friday night game in October against FSU who is looking to make the playoff will be a battle in Wallace Wade Stadium. FSU will be coming off a home game against Clemson with an away game at Miami after the away Duke game. Could FSU get caught up looking ahead...? Let’s look back real quick to Labor Day last season and we all remember Duke pulling off the upset or beat down over Clemson... well this game could have potential to be an upset, but Duke Football will have to be firing on all cylinders when FSU comes to Durham for that to be a possibility. Side note - this is a big game that’s also landing on a Friday night. Here’s to hoping Duke University gets creative and say cancels classes this day or at minimum have an early release which will help with the parking and help fans to be able to get to the game on time and also have the option to tailgate before for what will be a epic matchup against FSU. #3 - Duke vs SMU - 10/26/24 at Wallace Wade Stadium With the All Coast Conference (I mean Atlantic Coast Conference) recent expansion we now have Cal, Stanford, and SMU in the ACC. SMU will travel to Durham to play Duke for the last Saturday in October. I can easily see SMU fans traveling well for this game. SMU will be on a mission to show they belong in the Atlantic Coast Conference. I believe this will be a tough matchup for Duke but has the potential be a quality win as well. #4 - Duke at Miami - 11/2/24 at Hard Rock Stadium Duke will travel to Coral Gables, Florida in early November for a matchup with Miami. This has the potential to be a tough road game for Duke. This game will also spark the interest of both fan bases as Duke Football head coach Manny Diaz will be in the middle of his first year coaching Duke Football while heading down South to play Miami where he was the head coach from 2019 - 2021. As of this writing, I think Miami (along with FSU and Clemson) are top contenders to win the ACC this upcoming season. With that said, I would love to see Duke pull off the upset on the road or at the very least play a very competitive game. #5 - Duke at NC State - 11/9/24 at Carter-Finley Stadium Look college football aside… I’d go to this game as a sports fan just for the tailgating. I’ve been to a few tailgates for Carolina Hurricanes games and I’d imagine it’s just as good for Wolfpack games. One would think NC State has not forgotten about the blow out loss to Duke (24 - 3) last season at Wallace Wade Stadium. NC State will be looking to get revenge on Duke Football with a home game at Carter-Finley Stadium the second weekend in November. Side note - In a conference that now expands from sea to shining sea… it is nice for Duke Football to have a road game that is very close for fans in Durham and the surrounding areas to travel to in Raleigh. Day game or night game… this is a road game local Duke fans around the areas of Durham can easily travel to and still get back home saving money on hotels and travel. #6 - Duke vs Virginia Tech - 11/23/24 at Wallace Wade Stadium I believe this will be a very tough game for Duke. I also think Duke can pull off this win at home. Virginia Tech is one of my surprise teams this coming season and I think coach Brent Pry will have the Hokies ready. I could easily see Virginia Tech with 8 possibly 9 wins heading into this game with Duke and hungry to secure a top tier bowl. I know the times are not set for this game yet, but I would love for it to be a night game as this game has the potential to be a good one. Be sure to check back here at Blue Devils Blog and Twitter @DukeReport as well as the Youtube Channel @Skeelow22 in the near future for our season record prediction as well as our first bowl projection of the season. For many of you that are reading this… I know it’s been a brutally hot summer but rest assured college football and fall nights will be here soon. |
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