David Cutcliffe on Duke's Defensive Game Plan for NC State

NC State’s offense is averaging over 34 points per game so far this season, presenting a challenge to Duke’s defense in Saturday’s matchup.

“They’re balanced on offense,” coach David Cutcliffe said. “They do a great job of mixing things up—run and pass. Great balance—that’s one of the greatest elements you can have offensively. They can throw it. They’ve got receivers. They’re protecting the quarterback well. He’s playing really well. Then (Ricky) Person and (Zonovan) Knight are both outstanding backs. We watched them play when they were in high school. They can run the football. They run the ball a variety of different ways They’re well-coached. Their scheme is good.”

Cutcliffe puts a priority on stopping the Wolfpack’s running game.

“What we have to do defensively is we’ve got to be complete. You have to try to stop the run,” he said. “Everybody in football says it. It’s much easier to say it than to do it. We have to do a tremendous job of being in gaps. You’ve got to do a tremendous job of trying to whip blocks. You’ve got to stop the run game before it gets started. Outside of that, you’ve got to be able to apply pressure to the quarterback.”

Despite the focus on the run game, Cutcliffe also wants to get after the quarterback.

“In the passing game, you’ve got to rush the passer,” he said. “You can’t let people hold the ball. Keep the ball in front of you as well as you can. Matchups sometimes get in the way of that. We’re an aggressive defensive team with a lot of man coverage. When you do that, you’ve got to be a great technique team, but you’ve also got to limit the amount of time the quarterback has to hold ball to throw down field.”

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