Bloody Tuesday, the toughest day of practice for Duke during game week, came yesterday, but there were few complaints during all the pounding.
Players started the day with team meetings at 7:10 a.m. and were on the field by 8:45, in full pads for full contact.
After almost a month of training camp, junior Brett Huffman, a tight end, noticed a significant difference in the way the Blue Devils worked through Coach David Cutcliffe's drills.
"It was a different vibe, a different feel," Huffman said. "You could just tell that everybody had a little more bounce in their step. We were excited that it was the first Tuesday of game week."
Duke will open its season Saturday at home against Richmond, which won the Football Championship Subdivision national title and finished 13-3 last season. Richmond also won in its last visit to Wallace Wade Stadium, in 2006.
Cutcliffe is heading into his second Duke season, and he's confident that this team can end a streak of 14 consecutive seasons without a winning record.
"This team should be a bowl team," Cutcliffe said. "I've been doing this a long time. It has the ingredients. It has enough experience in the right places. If the coach puts them in the right position, then we'll get there.
"I know that throws a lot of pressure on Duke. I know people look at me sometimes like I'm crazy. I just say what I really believe, and I don't have a problem with doing that. I just like to say the truth."
Cutcliffe considered yesterday's practice sharp in every detail, a sign that his players already are focused on the Spiders.
Training camp hasn't been without setbacks. Duke had no major injuries, but at least several players were slowed by ankle, hamstring or other injuries and missed practice time.
The team also dealt with swine flu. Cutcliffe estimated that about 30 players became ill and missed practice time. He said that Duke went 14 to 15 days without the same lineups on offense and defense.
Cutcliffe, who can't tolerate players who can't move their feet, was pleased yesterday by the footwork of the linemen. Players were in correct positions on almost every practice play.
"We really had our best workout today," he said. "I thought it was our best day of throwing and catching the ball and route-running. We had great gains in that area."
Cutcliffe said he started Bloody Tuesday on Sunday, with an intense 40-minute workout. The day before, Duke worked on its kicking game, a weakness that Cutcliffe has asked special-teams coordinator Ron Middleton to eliminate. Middleton's work has solidified all aspects of the kicking game.
"We take everything we do in kicking and rehearse it in game situations," Cutcliffe said. "It was by far the best I've been around in my career: our body positions, our focus.
"It kept Coach Middleton happy the entire practice, which is impossible."
Cutcliffe is still deciding on Duke's place-kicker. He probably will have Nick Maggio and Will Snyderwine share the duties.
Cutcliffe expects at least seven freshmen to play against the Spiders -- receivers Conner Vernon and Tyree Watkins, defensive backs Zach Greene and Walt Canty and linebackers Augie Campbell, Tyree Glover and Austin Gamble.
"We're going to play some freshmen," Cutcliffe said.
"There are others that you may see play, but that may come to a game-time decision based on what some other people are doing."
■ Bill Cole can be reached at bcole@wsjournal.com.
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