ESPN sees Duke in a strong position as it heads into Saturday’s ACC opener against Stanford.
The Blue Devils are 2-0 after knocking off Tulane and Illinois, and they’ll get Stanford at home with a chance to start conference play at 3-0. Duke is listed as an 8.5-point favorite, a number that fits the way both teams have started the season.
ESPN’s matchup predictor is even more decisive. It gives Duke an 85.8 percent chance to win, while Stanford sits at 14.2 percent.
The setup favors Duke in more ways than one. Stanford is 1-1, having beaten Hawai'i in Week 0 before taking a heavy home loss to Miami in Week 1. The Cardinal are coming off a bye and now have to travel across the country for this one.
For Duke, this is the kind of game it has to handle if it wants to stay in the ACC race. Stanford may not be viewed as one of the league’s stronger teams, but this is still the Blue Devils’ first conference test, and it comes with a chance to keep building momentum.
Stanford’s offense has been led by quarterback Davis Warren, who is 43 of 75 for 524 passing yards and a touchdown. On the ground, Micah Ford has paced the rushing attack with 126 yards and three scores.
Duke’s early-season engine has been Nate Sheppard. The running back has piled up 374 rushing yards and three touchdowns in two games, while also adding two receiving touchdowns. He’s already emerged as one of the ACC’s most productive players, and Duke will be leaning on him again Saturday.
In Other News...
Jon Scheyer Still Wants One Kind Of Player At Duke
Jon Scheyers recruiting pitch at Duke still starts well beyond points, rebounds and rankings. As he continues the programs long-running emphasis on building around character, he wants players who come with a strong support system and the kind of independence that suggests they can handle more than just the next game. It is a familiar through line from the Mike Krzyzewski era, with families still part of the process and the off-court side of a prospect carrying real weight in Durham.
Scheyers view is that the Duke experience should prepare players for more than basketball success, and that means being ready for adversity, mistakes and the lessons that follow. He believes the right prospects are not only talented enough to fit the Blue Devils, but grounded enough to navigate the hard parts of college life and still grow from them. In his mind, the best fits are the ones who can lean on others without needing to be carried. [Read more 🡒]
Manny Diaz Has Duke Winning With One Problem Fans Will Hate
Manny Diaz has Duke winning, but the financial backdrop around the football program still looks more like a warning sign than a celebration. The Blue Devils roster spending for the 2026 season is estimated between $12 million and $15 million, a figure that leaves them 67th out of 68 Power Four teams and well below the ACC average, even as the team has stayed competitive and carried momentum from last seasons ACC championship into a strong early run this year.
The good news for Duke is that the program plans to spend more on the roster in the future, which should help it keep pace in a league where money increasingly shapes the ceiling. The hard part is less about the plan than the timing, because Diaz has already shown he can win with limited resources in Durham, and that kind of success does not go unnoticed for long. [Read more 🡒]
Manny Diaz Sent A Clear Message After Duke's Road Upset
Dukes 2-0 start got a major boost Saturday in its road upset of Illinois, and the defense was the biggest reason why. After a shaky opening stretch, the Blue Devils tightened everything up and leaned on a unit that held Illinois to just three points in the second half, with safety Andrew Pellicciotta pacing the effort with 11 tackles.
For Manny Diaz, the result fit the kind of identity he has been trying to build. Duke now heads into its first ACC game of the season against Stanford with real momentum, but also with proof that this team can travel, absorb punches and still finish with a defensive edge when it matters most. [Read more 🡒]