How Wolfpack Rival Duke Performed in Week 1

NC State wasn’t the only ACC team in action on Thursday night. ACC rival Duke matched up with the Elon Phoenix, who reside in the FCS. The Blue Devils are regarded as an ACC favorite going into the season, and the Wolfpack will match up with them in week four of this season.

How did Duke fare in its season opener?

Nov 19, 2022; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Duke Blue Devils helmets on the sidelines against the Pittsburgh Panthers during the third quarter at Acrisure Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images | Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

It’s good to keep tabs on all other ACC teams to see how the upcoming competition is doing. The NC State game was going on during the Blue Devils game, so realistically, most Wolfpack fans missed the matchup.

Tulane transfer quarterback Daraian Mensah took the field for the first time in Blue Devil blue. The much-anticipated transfer had a lot of eyes on him. He’s expected to take the Duke offense to heights it couldn’t reach last season.

Mensah finished 27-for-34 for 389 yards and three touchdowns. None of those touchdown passes came in the first half.

Darian Mensah's stat line for tonight 👀

27-34 for 389 yards and three touchdowns! Oh, and he completed his last 14 passes on the night 😈 pic.twitter.com/ahDkqLFj8t
— Duke Football (@DukeFOOTBALL) August 29, 2025

The first half was a half-second year that coach Manny Diaz would like to forget. Duke headed into the locker room tied with Elon 10-10, getting the eye of fans nationwide.

Mensah made sure those eyes saw what he could do, as he threw three touchdowns in the second half and scored three touchdowns in the fourth quarter.

“We just got to keep playing,” Mensah said. “I feel like we moved the ball up and down the field in the first half. Just didn’t execute in the red zone.”

Aug 28, 2025; Durham, North Carolina, USA; Duke Blue Devils wide receiver Jayden Moore (8) spins off the tackle by Elon Phoenix defensive back Darren James-Hamilton (8) during the first half at Wallace Wade Stadium. Mandatory Credit: James Guillory-Imagn Images | James Guillory-Imagn Images

Mensah's most reliable man was receiver Cooper Barkate, with 73 yards coming on the first possession of the second half. Barkate transferred from Harvard, totaling 117 yards on five receptions.

The Duke defense only let up 275 yards of offense. Sounds good, but compared to the matchup these two teams had last year, it’s nearly double the 140 yards Elon had a season ago.

Let's make that two touchdowns from Darian to Sahmir! pic.twitter.com/Dz7nEf80cG
— Duke Football (@DukeFOOTBALL) August 29, 2025

The unit was led by linebacker Jaiden Francois, who had 10 total tackles and 0.5 sacks. The secondary leader for Duke is cornerback Chandler Rivers. Rivers totaled 24 coverage snaps and only let up one reception for negative four yards. A good start for the likely NFL player by this time next year.

Duke had an opposite game from the Wolfpack. Started slow, but ended the game hot. It’ll be interesting to see how these two teams will match up in just weeks, but both quarterbacks for each team found success, with each throwing for over 300 yards.

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