Duke Football Notebook

April 3, 2005

DUKE FOOTBALL NOTEBOOK
NEW NUMBER FOR PATRICK
Blue Devil fans will adjust quickly to the new jersey number of tight end Ben Patrick, who will wear number eight for the 2005 season after donning number 83 in his first two years ... "New year, new me," Patrick remarked about the switch of numbers ... Last season, the Savannah, Ga., native led Duke in pass receptions with 32, and caught 21 passes over the last five games of the season.

BAILEY ADJUSTING TO LINEBACKER
Rising sophomore Patrick Bailey has enrolled in a new class this spring: Linebacker 101 ... "It's a whole new world, but it's fun," said Bailey, who made the switch from defensive end to outside linebacker prior to spring drills ... The Elmendorf, Texas, product saw action in 10 games as a member of Duke's defensive line this past fall, picking up 25 tackles and three tackles for loss ... "He's made a good transition," said Duke head coach Ted Roof. "He has a bright future and I expect him to have a good year for us." ... Roof also noted the fine play of three other young linebackers, Codey Lowe, Charles Robinson and Alfred Williams ... Lowe was credited for 44 tackles while playing in his first 11 games last year while both Robinson and Williams redshirted this past fall.

A GLANCE AT THE SPECIAL TEAMS
Duke will enter the 2005 season with very limited experience at the kicking and punting positions ... "That is the nature of college football," head coach Ted Roof said ... At kicker, redshirt freshman Alex Feinberg has shown marked improvement this spring according to Roof, who also has been impressed with walk-on Randy DeSmyter ... Rising senior Chris Sprague, who handled the kickoff chores for the Blue Devils in 2004 and punted at Pasadena City College prior to arriving at Duke, is the scheduled replacement for four-year starting punter Trey McDonald ... Casey Hales is back for his second season as Duke's long snapper.

RETURN GAME
In 2004, the Blue Devils' kickoff return unit was nothing short of exciting as Chris Davis finished third in the ACC with his 25.8 yards per return average ... Davis burst on to the special teams scene in week four against Maryland by taking a kickoff 94 yards for a touchdown ... Ronnie Drummer, who averaged 20.3 yards per attempt on 19 returns, had a kickoff return for a touchdown called back due to penalty at Georgia Tech ... Davis also is expected to handle Duke's punt return duties for the second straight season.

SCHEDULE NOTES
Duke's season-opening game at East Carolina on September 3 will kick off at 7 p.m. in Greenville ... The 2005 edition of Homecoming is set for October 1 against Navy while Parents' Weekend will be highlighted by Duke's home tilt against Florida State on October 22.

QUITE A FIVE-GAME STRETCH
Beginning with Virginia on September 24, Duke's five week stretch that includes contests with the Cavaliers, Navy (Oct. 1), Miami (Oct. 8), Georgia Tech (Oct. 15) and Florida State (Oct. 22) features teams that combined for 43 overall wins and four bowl game victories last season.

COACHING MOVES
Former Duke All-America quarterback Ben Bennett recently took over as the head coach of the Manchester (N.H.) Wolves of the af2 arena league ... Bennett spent the last three seasons as the head coach of the Florida Firecats, leading the team to the Arena Cup title last spring ... Former Duke graduate assistant coach Dyran Peake has joined the football staff at the University of Delaware ... Peake, who will work with the Blue Hen defensive backs, coached at Cornell in 2004.

50TH ANNIVERSARY
The 2005 season will mark the 50th anniversary of the 1955 Duke club that went 7-2-1 and claimed the ACC title under head coach Bill Murray ... The season began with consecutive wins over N.C. State and Tennessee, and concluded with a 6-0 victory over North Carolina ... The team was led by All-ACC selections Jesse Birchfield, Bob Pascal and Sonny Sorrell while future NFL great Sonny Jurgensen led the team in passing.

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