Duke FB Depth vs Injuries

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August 11, 2015

DURHAM, N.C. – Duke head football coach David Cutcliffe announced on Tuesday that redshirt junior running back Jela Duncan will be out of action indefinitely after suffering a partially torn right pectoral muscle during Monday’s morning practice.  Cutcliffe also noted that two other running backs – redshirt sophomore Joseph Ajeigbe and sophomore Shaun Wilson – are nursing lower body injuries and are currently sidelined from contact drills.

“Just when you feel comfortable with four experienced running backs on the depth chart, three of them are in the training room,” Cutcliffe said.  “Jela’s injury is obviously disappointing because we know how hard he’s worked to get back into the thick of things following the two shoulder surgeries.  Joe and Shaun aren’t available right now, but neither appears to be out long term.”

The Blue Devil offensive coaching staff has shifted redshirt freshman Nicodem Pierre from quarterback to running back.

“I’m really proud of Nico and how he’s handled this situation,” Cutcliffe said.  “With his unselfishness and commitment to this program, he is displaying the traits of the ultimate teammate.  And I absolutely love it because it’s a great sign of the growth of our program when the young men take ownership of the organization and have the passion to contribute in any way possible.”

Duncan rushed 222 times for 1,115 yards and seven touchdowns as a two-year letterman in 2012-13 before missing the 2014 campaign.  As reserves in 2014, Ajeigbe had 41 rushing attempts for 150 yards and Wilson totaled 78 carries for 598 yards.  Pierre, who entered the fall as the third string signal-caller behind redshirt junior Thomas Sirk and redshirt sophomore Parker Boehme, did not see game action a season ago while serving as the primary scout team quarterback.

Additionally, junior cornerback Bryon Fields, who started all 13 games a season ago while posting 70 tackles and one interception, will miss extended time during preseason camp due to a leg injury.  Sophomore Alonzo Saxton II, who appeared in eight games in 2014 and registered 12 tackles, has been the primary replacement for Fields with the first unit.

“Injuries create opportunities for others,” Cutcliffe noted.  “While it is never easy to replace a starter, we’re certainly confident in the depth we’ve established.  The bottom line is that our young guys have to be ready for the challenge when their number is called.”

The Blue Devils open the 2015 season at Tulane on Thursday, September 3 (9:30 p.m.; CBS Sports Network).  Duke season tickets are available online at www.GoDuke.com/footballtix or by calling the Duke Athletic Ticket Office at 919-681-BLUE.

CARS Tour Race at Orange County Speedway

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Rougemont, NC

There was a time when stock car auto racing was so popular that a touring division known as the Hooters Pro Cup Series thrived at local short tracks across the east coast. However, in recent years, NASCAR and all of racing has taken a hit.

The CARS Tour that invaded Orange County Speedway on August 1st is a little different. The CARS Tour was born from the remains of the now defunct USAR Hooters Pro Cup Series, but they now use super late models, and late model stock cars like you would see at a short track on the tour. This allows the drivers more flexibility as to where they can run their racecar on a weekly basis.

Brandon Setzer, son of longtime NASCAR Camping World Truck Series driver Dennis Setzer, won the super late model race at Orange County Speedway on August 1st. The CARS Tour super late models allow young drivers like Brandon Setzer to drive high horsepower racecars in preparation for future days in NASCAR.

Josh Berry, driver of the SPEEDCO Chevrolet for JR Motorsports, raced at Orange County Speedway the week before the CARS Tour came to town to dial in his machine. He won the late model stock portion of the CARS Tour Race at Orange County.

From JoshBerry.net, “I’m really proud of all our guys for working so hard this weekend. This series is really competitive, so to be able to get two wins in our first two starts is impressive. It really turned into a long race with a lot of cautions, so I just had to keep focus and get good restarts to keep the lead. The outside groove seemed to really work for us, so it was real important to stay out front to have lane control for the restarts. I feel like racing at OCS last weekend really helped me learn the track, and I was able to use it to my advantage in the CARS race.”

In the NASCAR racing we see on TV, those drivers do not get a chance to practice at the track that they’re racing at next week, and that is what makes the CARS Tour different and exciting to fans and competitors.

Vance County Friday Night Football is on the air…

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Local Vance County high school football will return soon.  The first game for both Northern Vance and Southern Vance is Friday, August 21.  For more than 50 straight years, WIZS 1450 AM has broadcast high school football live.  The games are also broadcast live on wizs.com.

Northern Vance High School and Southern Vance High School will meet each other in the Optimist Bowl on Friday night, September 4, at 7:00pm.  The gridiron match up will take place at Viking Stadium this season.  Although the two schools previously played the bowl as the regular season finale, and did so since Southern opened its doors in the fall of 1990, the game has been played the last couple of years much earlier in the schedule because they are no longer in the same conference.

FNF2The Vikings have a new football coach this season.  Cory Lea has had his squad participating in 7-on-7 games already.

The Raiders Athletic Director, Joseph Sharrow, has just completed his first year at the helm.  Sharrow recently told The Daily Dispatch newspaper that he never missed a home sporting event in his first year nor did he miss a single away football or basketball game.  Sharrow is multi-talented and has an obvious hands-on approach.  He filled in as an announcer a couple of times last year for WIZS as well.

2015 Northern Vance Varsity FB Sched

2015 Southern Vance Varsity FB Sched