There aren’t too many questions surrounding who will get the start at running back down in Durham. Senior Shaun Wilson, who has been a name year end and year out for the Blue Devils, comes in again for his final season in Durham to lead the way at running back.
Wilson is coming off a season in which he recorded 151 rushing attempts for 623 yards and four touchdowns. Quarterback Daniel Jones was their second leading rusher last season, racking up 141 attempts on the ground as well.
Wilson should yet again get a bulk of the carries this season, as he is a 5-foot-9, 185 pound back that carries experience, speed, and excellent ability. However, he has yet to crack the 1,000 yard mark rushing in his career at Duke. In 2015, he recorded only 84 attempts and 424 yards on the ground. He then doubled the amount of attempts in 2016 but yet didn’t find too much success on the ground.
He will need to step up and step up big for the Blue Devils this season to make them dynamic, as they ranked 8th in the conference last year in rushing yards per game (153.9 ypg).
The reason is because there aren't many experienced backs behind him, as the Blue Devils have a few redshirt freshmen stacked up behind him.
Elijah Deveaux and Brittain Brown look to serve as two back running backs that has yet to record a rushing attempt at Duke so far.
Deveaux is a North Carolina native that came out ranked as a 3-star product by several recruiting outlets. In high school, Deveaux was the feature back and received the bulk of the carries at Charlotte Christian, so he knows how to be the go-to guy and has produced. Brown was also ranked as a 3-star product coming out of high school. He was the lead back at Cherokee during his senior campaign and showcase his ability to run (213 carries, 1,777 yards, and 18 touchdowns), while also catching the ball out of the backfield.
The Blue Devils also welcome in two freshman in Deon Jackson and Marvin Hubbard.
One thing though is for sure, Wilson will not be splitting too much of the carries this season (last year, split time with Jela Duncan) as he will be the feature back and go-to guy for Duke heading into the season. However, the staff at Duke hopes the young talent they have accrued can step up and take some of the load off his shoulders at times.
