Wednesday April 30th, 2025 2:27AM

Duke not comforted by playing against Miami backups

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DURHAM, N.C. - Duke players say they won&#39;t be thinking about Miami&#39;s brawl on the field last week when the teams meet up this weekend.<br> <br> The fight resulted in the suspensions of 13 Miami players, including three starters for the Duke game. But even against a short-handed Hurricane team, Duke isn&#39;t taking anything for granted.<br> <br> ``We&#39;re not really worried about that,&#39;&#39; Duke tailback Justin Boyle said. ``We&#39;re just preparing ourselves to go out and play.&#39;&#39;<br> <br> Safety Brandon Merriweather, right guard Derrick Morse and punter Brian Monroe, all starters, will miss the Duke game.<br> <br> The timing could be a lucky break for the Blue Devils (0-6, 0-4 Atlantic Coast Conference), whose 14-game losing streak is the second-longest in the country.<br> <br> ``That was a mess down there,&#39;&#39; Duke defensive tackle Casey Camero said of the brawl. ``I think now they&#39;ll watch every step and move they make. I don&#39;t think they&#39;re going to bring that up here. Their players definitely know the red light&#39;s on and they can&#39;t afford to make those mistakes.&#39;&#39;<br> <br> Duke coach Ted Roof doesn&#39;t expect that being on their best behavior will make the Hurricanes less intense.<br> <br> ``I think they&#39;ll be ready to play,&#39;&#39; Roof said. ``Football is a violent sport. They play physically every week, and I&#39;m sure this week will be no exception.&#39;&#39;<br> <br> The fact that the Hurricanes (4-2, 1-1) will have backups in at some positions, especially on special teams, won&#39;t alter any part of Duke&#39;s game plan.<br> <br> ``It doesn&#39;t (change) for us because we know that Miami has quality depth at every position,&#39;&#39; Roof said. ``It&#39;s not like they&#39;re going to fall off the side of the mountain.&#39;&#39;<br> <br> The Blue Devils also have their own problems to worry about. They had their highest scoring output of the season in a 51-24 loss to Florida State last weekend but made far too many mistakes to have a chance to win.<br> <br> Duke turned the ball over three times in that game and struggled on special teams, missing an extra point, getting another one blocked and allowing a 51-yard punt return that set up FSU&#39;s second touchdown of the game.<br> <br> ``When we have turned it over in our territory or given up a big kick return early in the game, we&#39;ve been behind the eight ball,&#39;&#39; Roof said. ``We cannot come out and make those types of mistakes and put our defense in that position early in the game.&#39;&#39;
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