Gunnar Holmberg Returns to Field: "Getting My Legs Back Under Me"

Duke quarterback Gunnar Holmberg returned to the practice field for the first time since suffering a serious knee injury that cost him last season.

Holmberg ended up missing his redshirt freshman season after going down during August preseason practice.

“It was great to back out here with the guys,” he said. “It’s been since August for me. I’m knocking a little rust off, getting my legs back under me, throwing routes against a defense, not just against air. It’s definitely refreshing. It felt good with the guys.”

Sitting out the year was tough, but Holmberg made the best of it.

“It just depends on how you look at it and react to it,” he said. “I used it as a way to study the film. I was in every meeting with the quarterbacks, being a great teammate for the guys that are playing. I traveled toward the end of year, getting some games, watching the signals. It was definitely a more mental game. As I got my knee right, I started putting on more weight, strength-wise. Those are some things that helped me out.”

Now Holmberg is in a battle for the starting job.

“I feel good,” he said. “Pretty much 100%. It was a little different at first, getting confidence back in your knee, but it’s been good for about a month now. Speed-wise, I felt about the same. Strength behind the ball felt good.”

Holmberg is competing with Chris Katrenick, and Chase Bryce will arrive as a transfer from Clemson before fall practice.

“Iron sharpens iron,” he said. “Me and (Katrenick) are good friends. We’re always trying to make each other better. Out there, we’re definitely competing against each other. It either makes you better or makes you worse. Don’t force anything. Just play your game. Play to your strengths. Don’t do anything out of character just because you’re trying to win a job.”