Waters Reflects on Duke Football Journey
David Shumate, GoDuke The Magazine
This interview originally appeared in the October 2023 edition of GoDuke The Magazine
David Shumate: It's crazy to think that you've been here since 2019 and I’d to reflect a little bit on your career. I know you came in thinking you were going play defense and that switched in camp, but when you think back on your time here at Duke, let's just start all the way back at the beginning. Does it feel like a lifetime ago with everything that's gone on?
Jordan Waters: It feels like I've been here for years, man, you just made me reminisce a little bit, but it feels like I've been here for like 10 years honestly.
DS: No doubt, but then you flash forward to this season, you’re obviously older, you already have your degree and you guys opened the year by beating Clemson. I know there were several ups and downs in between but can you speak to the progress you’ve seen in the program, particularly with what you guys are doing this year?
JW: I think the progress always starts with our work and particularly in the offseason, the winter conditioning, the summer conditioning. Obviously, Coach (David) Feeley has been a huge part of that these past couple of seasons. We work hard, we run hard. I don't think anybody practices as hard as we do. Our offseason is like no other. We just work hard, and everybody has bought in and was willing to do the work needed and that’s been a big part of our great start this year.
DS: Drilling down to your game in particular, when you get into the mechanics of your game, how would you say you're a different player now than when you first arrived on campus?
JW: Honestly, I'm more motivated. Physically, mentally, I'm more willing to do what I'm capable of and I know my body. I'm not like a speedster, I'm not going to outrun that many people, but I knew that I could be more physical and that's going back to this offseason, working with Coach Feeley and lifting like a running back and now I feel like I'm running like a running back. I'm running more downhill. I'm not bouncing around like I used to when I thought I was faster than everybody. I’m just doing what I know I’m capable of.
DS: You're still pretty quick, although we have seen you run over people — that play at Charlotte comes to mind for me. But when you think about that play that you had against Notre Dame a couple of weeks ago and taking seven guys with you down to the one-yard line, when you're in the midst of one of those plays, what's going through your mind when guys can't get you down?
JW: It's just a mentality. We talk about running hard, that's my job, to run that hard and it's just like setting the tone. Letting the team know that I'm running that hard, I know how hard they are playing, and it allows everyone to elevate their game and play that much harder.
DS: You mentioned the work that you put in. I'm curious, and we talked about this before so I kind of know the answer a little bit already, but how much of that comes from your upbringing coming from a really small town and and knowing the work that it takes to get to this level because it’s the work you've really been doing your whole life?
JW: It factors in a lot. I don't think anything has been given to me. I come from a little small town, Fairmont, and honestly I didn't even want to go to Fairmont because I didn't think I was going to get recruited being at a 2A school. My mom told me just to put my trust in God and I'm here now and nothing has changed — I'm still working hard. I don't think I accomplished anything yet, but when I’m able to get to a point where my mom and dad are sitting there with their feet up, then I think I will have accomplished what I wanted.
DS: Obviously, now you're a clear leader on the team and you're teaching some of the younger guys. As you're bringing those guys along, whether that's Peyton Jones or anybody on down the list, how much do you reflect on when you were coming up and the guys gave you those lessons?
JW: Oh yeah! Those guys, they took care of me. Deon Jackson, Brittain Brown, Mataeo Durant, they took care of me, and they showed me the ropes and now since I've been here 10 years, it's my job to do the same for the younger guys.
DS: When you were that younger guy back in the day, did you realize at the time how valuable that is, the advice they give? Or does it take being an older guy to realize how valuable those lessons are when you start imparting them yourself?
JW: Well, I definitely realize it now. Back then I was younger, and I was just here to learn, but now I see what they were trying to get me to do and stuff like that.
DS: When you take a look at the season you guys are in the midst of trying to make a run in the ACC and get to Charlotte for the ACC Championship Game, what's important in this middle portion of the season, as you guys look ahead to November with all of your goals still in front of you? It's kind of a balance, I would think staying present in the moment, but also having a look at the big picture.
JW: I would say staying consistent is really important. Coach Elko, he's talked about this since he got here, the four quarters of the year, and we're right in the middle right now. It's really the toughest part. We've been doing this for a long time now, the same routine every day, getting beat up every practice and in the game, but staying consistent, staying healthy, and just handling the middle better than any other team is the key.
DS: Before I let you go, tell me a little bit about (fellow running back) Jaquez Moore. I know you were mic’d up a couple of games ago and you seem like you have more fun when he makes a big play than when you make a big play. Just give us some insight into your guys' relationship.
JW: That's my dog man. I said in another interview, we're roommates, so we talk about everything, and our stories relate so close to each other. Our upbringing, our parents’ situations, all types of stuff, even down to how we were raised. So, to see him win is like I'm winning. I know how hard he wants to succeed, and I want him to succeed just as much.
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