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There were a lot of smiles after Duke’s Nate Sheppard broke into a Heisman pose after a touchdown run against Stanford this season.
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There he was holding the ball, stiff-arming with his right hand, a leg up. A perfect pose.
But winning a Heisman Trophy?
Sheppard grinned when the pose was brought up after the Blue Devils’ ACC opener, a 35-7 victory over the Cardinal.
“I see some other guys around the country hitting it early, so I was thinking why don’t I join in and have some fun,” Sheppard said.
Another way to “join in” is to be the country’s leading rusher and have your team keep winning games. Sheppard has FBS-best 644 yards and Duke is 4-0 this season after a 62-7 romp over William & Mary on Saturday.
The victory moved the Devils to No. 21 in the US LBM Coaches Poll, but they remain unranked in the AP poll.
Sheppard had limited touches in the game at Wallace Wade Stadium, the sophomore picking up 116 yards on nine carries as Blue Devils coach Manny Diaz and his staff let a lot of others play against an outmanned FCS team from the Patriot League
No complaints from Sheppard, Diaz said.
“He gets it,” Diaz said. “We always say when the team wins, the individuals win. The best way for him to accomplish the goals he wants to accomplish by the end of the season is for Duke to have a great win-loss record.
“This is a unique team. They’re very close. It’s not an ego-led team.”
As Duke enters a bye week, the 2025 ACC champions have played and beaten Tulane, Illinois, Stanford and William & Mary. Combined record of the four: 7-10.
But Stanford (2-2) bounced back from its loss to Duke against Georgia Tech on Saturday, taking a 34-27 win over the Yellow Jackets (1-3), who made the trek to the West Coast for their ACC opener. Georgia Tech also has a bye week before hosting the Blue Devils on Oct. 10 in Atlanta.
Diaz spent time in the postgame Saturday assessing his team through the first third of the season.
Granted, it helps to have one of the best runners in the country to fuel the offense. Transfer quarterback Walker Eget has settled in and begun to spread the ball around more after the first couple of games where it appeared he only looked for tight end Jeremiah Hasley, wide receiver Jonah Burton or Sheppard.
The past two games have seen wide receivers Jared Richardson, Kavon Simmons and Jaivon Solomon all more involved and getting their hands on balls. The three transfers have all scored touchdowns, Richardson stretching out for a TD throw from Eget near the end of the first half Saturday to complete a 95-yard drive in the two-minute offense.
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“What we’re seeing in practice is now starting to show up on game day,” Diaz said.
Richardson came to Duke from Penn hoping to follow up what wideout Cooper Barkate did last season after transferring from Harvard – make the move up in competition, produce and put up numbers. When Barkate left for Miami with quarterback Darian Mensah after last season, Richardson came in after making 193 catches for 27 TDs in 33 games at Penn and earning All-America honors.
Richardson, a big target at 6-2 and 220 pounds, did not have a reception in his first two games at Duke but has five in the past two games for 83 yards and the score Saturday.
“I’ve gotten a lot more comfortable, similar to (fall) camp,” Richardson said Saturday. ”The first couple of days the adjustment was hard. Coming from Penn it was like ‘This is different, this is ACC ball.’ As time went on, camp got better for me, and I think this is the same thing. Things are starting to click.”
Coaches are always after offensive balance and Duke has had it: an ACC-high 243.5 yards per game rushing (13th in FBS) and 222.8 passing. The Blue Devils are averaging 36.3 points a game, eighth in the ACC.
On the defensive side, there has been a big leap from a year ago, when the Devils were burned too often with explosive plays. Duke has allowed 11 points a game (third in ACC). It has given up 261.8 total yards a game (fifth ACC) and 63.8 rushing (third).
Duke has not allowed a touchdown in the second half and is third in the ACC in third-down conversion defense. It’s a unit with good depth that has been used.
One thing lacking: turnovers from the defense. Duke has recovered two fumbles and had one pickoff. But the Blue Devils are plus-1 in turnovers, with one lost fumble and an interception.
Diaz would like to see fewer penalties from his team but believes that area will improve. The special teams have been sound and have the element of surprise.
“If we continue to run the football on offense and limit big plays on defense, and make people earn it and have our defensive front continue to play the way they’ve played … the test of time shows that’s how to win football games,” Diaz said. “We’ve got create more turnovers to win these close games that we will be coming into.”
Is Sheppard a legit Heisman candidate? Robert Griffin III believes he is, the former Heisman winner recently ranking Sheppard fifth among his weekly Heisman frontrunners.
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