Duke preview with Dave Nathan of 99.9 The Fan in Raleigh, N.C.

2007 Recap: 1-11 overall, 0-8 ACC

What we like best: The passing game. Thad Lewis threw for 2,430 yards and 21 touchdowns with 10 interceptions last year and will go into his junior year with a coach known as a quarterback guru. Lewis can't help but get excited when he hears that David Cutcliffe has worked with the likes of Peyton and Eli Manning, plus has some experience in turning around a moribund program at Ole Miss. Cutcliffe compared Lewis Tee Martin at Tennessee.

Eron Riley is the only proven receiver, but he has All-ACC talent. Last year Riley caught 40 passes for 830 yards and nine touchdowns and, teamed with Lewis, will give Duke one of the better quarterback-receiver combinations in the conference. Considering the running game was abysmal last year, that Lewis-to-Riley combination will be critical to any success Duke has on offense.

What we like least: There's a lot to pick from, but I guess we should go with the losing environment that surrounds Duke football. Cutcliffe won at Ole Miss, but Duke will be a tougher assignment. The Blue Devils haven't had a winning season since 1994 and have lost 25 ACC games in a row. Just like success breeds success, failure breeds failure. Steve Spurrier did win at Duke, but as losing season follows losing season the Spurrier years seem like ancient history.

Schedule:
Aug. 30 -- James Madison
Sept. 6 -- Northwestern
Sept. 13 -- Navy
Sept. 27 -- Virginia
Oct. 4 -- at Georgia Tech
Oct. 18 -- Miami
Oct. 25 -- at Vanderbilt
Nov. 1 -- at Wake Forest
Nov. 8 -- NC State
Nov. 15 -- at Clemson
Nov. 22 -- at Virginia Tech
Nov. 29 -- North Carolina

Patrick's prediction: 4-8 overall, 2-6 ACC, 5th in the Coastal Division

What others are saying:

Phil Steele, Phil Steele's College Football Preview: "They've got three games early on which they could win all three or bare minimum win two of the first three. Then they get the week off and play Virginia. If they knock off Virginia this is a team that could actually flirt with a winning record. I'm not calling for it. I'm thinking maybe four or five wins this year, but I actually think Duke has a shot at escaping the basement."

Vince Oghobaase, Duke defensive tackle: A reasonable expectation for me personally, and I believe a lot of my teammates think the same, is that the sky is the limit. We have now all the tools and everything in place to be a successful ball club. There's no excuse why we can't go out there and win ballgames this year."

Mike Hogewood, ACC football announcer and host: "The last time Duke did anything good, who was the head coach? Steve Spurrier. What was Steve Spurrier known for? Offense. You've got David Cutcliffe, an offensive guy, some say an offensive genius, coming in there. And who's he replacing? A defensive guy, Ted Roof ... I think he's (Cutcliffe) is going to give Duke a chance. He's got to get some players, obviously, but there's no reason Duke can't be better than they have been."

Other previews:

ESPN/Blue Ribbon College Football Yearbook

Athlon Sports

Mike Hogewood joins the guys this week to talk ACC football. Find out why something Al Groh said surprised Mike, his thoughts on Duke's David Cutcliffe, why he thinks Patrick is bold (and perhaps crazy) and his surprise team in the ACC this year, plus much more.

Also,

-- Drew Weatherford says the starting job is his at FSU;

-- Duke's Vince Oghobaase almost throttles Patrick;

-- Q threatens to take his pants off at the ACC Football Kickoff;

-- Andrew Gardner thinks he know why Chan Gailey got fired;

-- Patrick apologizes to Jeff Adams and Rob Higgins;

-- Listeners weigh in on offensive lines, optimistic teams and Virginia Tech's striptease;

Plus more on this week's podcast.

This is a young Miami team with 26 true freshmen listed in the media guide. That's why the veterans like Jason Fox and Eric Moncur feel the need to show leadership this season if the Hurricanes are to have success on the field.

"A lot of those (young players) have the physical ability to play," Fox said in an interview with ACC Nation at the ACC Football Kickoff July 20 in Greensboro, Ga. "But a lot of them don't know yet how much more college football is than just being physically able to play. It's a lot more mental than people realize."

That just one lesson Fox wants to teach the freshmen. Fox and Moncur talked more about the young players, including their thoughts on the young quarterbacks, and many other things as they look ahead to the 2008 season.

Duke hasn't had a winning season since 1994 and hasn't won an ACC game since 2004. The Blue Devils went 1-11 last year and got rid of coach Ted Roof. Enter former Ole Miss coach David Cutcliffe, who said it wasn't as simple as teaching Duke to win football games.

"You know what we have to learn," asked Cutcliffe. "We have to learn how to earn the right to win. That's probably the best way I can sum up our team."

Duke just won a lawsuit by basically claiming football programs don't get any worse than the one the Blue Devils currently field, but if Cutcliffe has his way that will change soon. If he starts to win this year it will be, in part, because of the arm of Thad Lewis and his ability to find receiver Eron Riley. There is other talent on this Duke team also and Cutcliffe discusses that talent as well as other subjects heading into the 2008 season.

(Note: Due to the nature of the press conference, audio levels for the questions aren't as high as Cutcliffe's audio levels.)

There are advantages to having your team buried on page four of the local sports section.

"I don't think I'd want to be Tommy Bowden," Boston College's Jeff Jagodzinski told the media at this week's ACC Football Kickoff. "That (Clemson football) is the only show in town. To be in a pro town, especially (one) like Boston -- it's the best pro sports (town) right now in the country ... it's awesome."

Jags said he has no desire to be on the front page every day and, to listen to some, he doesn't have to worry about that this season. Boston College no only loses the best quarterback in the conference last year in Matt Ryan, but also has to replace its entire backfield and some key parts on defense and the offensive line.

Listen to what Jagodzinski has to say about this team as it gets ready for the 2008 season.

(Note: Due to the nature of the press conference, the audio levels for the questions will be a little lower than those for Jagodzinski.)

Last season Wake Forest had a big-play defense, one that scored eight touchdowns. This year, Wake's Jim Grobe would like to see those big plays again, but he wants more out of the defense.

"The key for us this year is getting off the field (and) give the offense a chance to score some points," Grobe told the media Monday afternoon at the ACC Football Kickoff. "Even though last year we were pretty opportunistic, forced a lot of turnovers, scored a lot of points, I think one of the things we didn't do a very good job of ... we gave offenses too many long drives."

Wake will have to improve on that, as well as find a replacement for wide-receiver and Mr. Everything Kenny Moore. Grobe addressed that issue also, as well as talked about the importance of putting back-to-back solid seasons together and much more.

(Note: Due to the nature of the press conference, the audio levels of the questions may not be as high as Grobe's audio levels.)

Does Al Groh like opening with USC or would he rather have a lesser opponent?

"We must like it because it was our choice," Groh said. "We made the contract. We could have turned it down."

Groh said opening the season was the only time it would have been good for Virginia to face the Trojans. He didn't want to get into the middle of the conference season and then have to content with an opponent that he said was in a league of their own. So, it was opening day or not at all. Groh said USC felt the same way.

The Virginia coach also discussed the quarterback battle (the latest news about Peter Lalich wasn't out when we talked with Groh), his theory of next man up, why football is his passion and more.

(Note: Because of the nature of the press conference, keep in mind that the audio levels will be lower for the questions than they will be for Groh's answers.)

It's been different for Ralph Friedgen, but the Maryland coach also said it was better now that he's turned over the offensive coordinator role to James Franklin.

"I felt like I could devote more time to our players and more to organizing our staff," Friedgen said at the ACC Football Kickoff Monday afternoon. "I know you guys will laugh at this, but I was being spread too thin."

The, shall we say, portly Friedgen was right - we did laugh, but he got his point across -- he didn't think he was doing either job, head coach or offensive coordinator, justice by doing both, so he brought in Franklin to run the offense this season.

Friedgen talked more about the decision, including if he thinks he'll have the itch to call the plays once games get under way, plus the Maryland coach discussed his quarterback situation, his excitement about the running backs and much more.

(Note: Because of the nature of the press conference format, the audio for the questions may be lower than Friedgen's audio.)

Bobby Bowden said that, as of today (or I guess that would have been Sunday when we talked with him) Drew Weatherford is the starting quarterback for Florida State. But Weatherford shouldn't get too comfortable with that title.

"Now he's got a fight on his hands with Christian Ponder," Bowden said at the ACC Football Kickoff. "Then we've got a young man named D'Vontrey Richardson who's got some talent, he's got some talent, you know it. Once he's learns the game, man, he'll be able to push them all."

Bowden also talked about Jimbo Fisher being named coach-in-waiting and how that effected the dynamics of the coaching staff, what he would like to do before leaving the game and more.

When will Tom O'Brien name a starting quarterback at N.C. State?

"When we have one," O'Brien said Sunday at the ACC Football Kickoff. "The problem is, it's not an ideal situation. (Daniel) Evans didn't participate in spring practice. Michael Glennon just got on campus. The good news is that Russell Wilson, because of Daniel not practicing in the spring, got a lot of work. We got a good look at him. We'll figure out who's going to give us the best opportunity to not only beat South Carolina, but give us 12 solid football games and when we find that guy we'll name him."

O'Brien also talked about his team's opener against South Carolina, the difference in approaching this season as opposed to last year when he was in his first season on the job, the media's decision to pick N.C. State sixth in the Atlantic Division and more.

(Note: Because of the nature of a press conference, the audio of the questions may be lower than the responses by Tom O'Brien.)

Clemson's Tommy Bowden talked with the media Monday afternoon at the ACC Football Kickoff in Greensboro, Ga. He discussed the pressure on his team after being voted as the preseason favorite to win the ACC, his quarterback Cullen Harper, playing Alabama to open the season and more.

(Note: Because of the nature of a press conference, the audio levels of the questions may be a bit low, but Tommy Bowden's audio levels should be just fine.)

Message to Paul Johnson -- beat Georgia. That's the way Andrew Gardner sees it. 

"I can't speak for the administration, but I'd pretty much say that's why (Chan Gailey) go fired," Gardner, a 6-6, 305-pound offensive tackle, told ACC Nation at the ACC Football Kickoff. "We didn't beat Georgia ... and you've got to. If you lose to a rival, people get upset, people get antsy. Beating Georgia is big at Georgia Tech. It's in the fight song."

The Yellow Jackets were 0-6 under Gailey and now a new coaching staff, led by Johnson, will try to beat the Bulldogs, as well as 11 other teams on their regular-season schedule.

Find out more of what Gardner, as well as defensive tackle Vance Walker, had to say as they talked with ACC Nation Sunday afternoon.

For those who wonder if T.J. Yates can be healthy when he returns this fall as North Carolina's quarterback, Hakeem Nicks and Deunta Williams have no question.

The two Carolina players sat down with ACC Nation at Sunday's ACC Football Kickoff even in Greensboro, Ga., and discussed Yates, Butch Davis, the hype surrounding Carolina football and more.

Virginia Tech is still the favored of many to win the Coastal Division of the ACC, but the Hokies have had problems keeping players on their roster. From injuries to suspension, Virginia Tech has lost some players expected to play key roles this season.

Wide receiver was a position hit especially hard and quarterback Sean Glennon told ACC Nation Sunday at the ACC Football Kickoff that it was is responsibility to make an inexperience group better. Glennon also said he was looking at the quarterback job as his and not a two-quarterback system like the Hokies used at the end of last season.

Defensive end Orion Martin likes the other side of the ball for Tech, but feels he has to take more of a leadership role if the young guys on defense are going to be successful. It's not natural for him to be a vocal leader, Martin said, but it's something at which he's gotten better.

Glennon and Martin talked with ACC Nation at the annual media event Sunday in Greensboro, Ga. Listen to what they had to say on this special edition of the podcast.

Doc Walker, an analyst for ACC football games on Raycom, joins Patrick and Q in Greensboro, Ga., site of this year's ACC Football Kickoff, to talk some, you guessed it, ACC football. Doc gave his thoughts on where the ACC Football Championship should be held, why James Franklin will be good for Maryland's offense this year, the Bowden boys, why he likes parity in the ACC and much more.

Also on the show,

-- Jeff Adams and Rob Higgins of the Tampa Bay Sports Commission drop by to talk about their city hosting the ACC Football Championship;

-- Patrick and Q give their predictions on the final standings in ACC football;

-- Is it the Ritz-Carlton or the Carlton-Ritz?;

-- Fried mac and cheese;

And much more on this week's podcast.

Phil Steele, who publishes and writes one of the most-respect college football preview magazines on the market, joins ACC Nation this week for a special edition of the podcast to talk ACC football. Visit Phil's website for more information and to order the magazine.

We discuss all 12 ACC schools and Phil gives us his predictions on which two teams will meet in Tampa for the ACC Football Championship in December. We also ask Phil his thoughts on what the conference needs to do to gain more respect nationally.

David Glenn of the ACC Area Sports Journal joins the guys to discuss football and the changes to his magazine. As for football, Glenn is on the Clemson bandwagon, but he's stepping lightly, while the magazine will be featuring a few new contributors, including Jay Bilas and John Feinstein.

Also,

-- Billy Packer is finished with broadcasting;

-- Patrick begs for free stuff from the listeners;

-- Has ACC expansion been a success in the first five years?;

-- Did Patrick gush too much over David Glenn?

-- We still want listeners to sign up and beat the bloggers, so if you think you can pick football games better than guys from Eagle in Atlanta, the Good Ol' Blog, the Old Gold and Blog, D.C. Sports Bog and more, e-mail us at patrick@accnation.com or accnation@gmail.com.

Mike Stevens of WDBJ TV 7 in Roanoke, Va., joins the guys to talk about Virginia Tech football as well as his last few days as sports director at the television station before he leaves for greener pastures. Mike also has a great story about Paula Deen and her undergarments.

Also this week:

-- Patrick and Q go over their picks for the male and female athletes of the year in the ACC;

-- N.C. State's Farnold Degand and UNC's Bobby Frasor are ready to return to action;

-- Patrick cleans out the basement;

-- Should college sporting venues sell alcoholic beverages?;

-- The guys lay out the podcast schedule for the next few weeks as ACC Nation gets ready for football;

And more.

It's never too early to talk ACC hoops and Bob Rathbun stops by to chat about basketball. Rathbun, who calls ACC games for Raycom and is the Voice of the Atlanta Hawks, discusses the U.S. Olympic basketball team, a couple of ACC players taken in the NBA Draft and the outlook for ACC hoops in 2008-09.

We also discover that in spite of his lofty credentials that include being a multiple Emmy Award winner and a member of the 2008 class of the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame, Rathbun -- much like Paul Johnson last week -- can't keep his dog quite.

Also this week:

-- ACCNation.com columnist Will Ojanen makes his debut on the podcast;

-- Q receives many e-mails telling him why he's wrong about Duke football and its lawyers;

-- Is Patrick and easy date?;

-- Patrick defends Paul Johnson against those who weren't happy with his appearance on the podcast last week;

And more.