Known more for basketball, Duke has actually made a bowl game in four straight seasons, but hasn't earned a bowl win in over 50 years.
They'll look to buck that trend on Saturday as they take on another basketball powerhouse on the gridiron.
College Football Odds at BookMaker.eu
Duke Blue Devils +1.5
Indiana Hoosiers -1.5
Over/Under 66
ODDS ANALYSIS
Starting at just a point and a half, the spread has increased by half a point to -2 in favor of the Hoosiers. The total, on the other hand, has seen a much bigger shift, adding five points to grow to 71.
Neither team finished with a great record. The Blue Devils closed the year going 1-4 ATS in their last five games. Still, both have strong trends in their favor ATS with Duke going 15-5-1 ATS in non-conference games while Indiana is 5-1 ATS in its last six out of conference matchups.
KEY MISMATCH
The Hoosiers have a very strong offense, but a weak defense. It's important that Indiana turns this game into a shootout if they want to win.
Duke's defense is stronger than Indiana's, but only marginally in allowing an average of 24.1 PPG and 372 total yards per game.
The Blue Devil's defense against a Hoosiers' offense averaging 36.2 PPG and 490.8 yards per game could be a bit of a mismatch, but the bigger mismatch may be the Hoosiers' pass defense, ranked No. 128 nationwide, allowing 326.3 passing yards per game, against Duke's pass offense.
Duke quarterback Thomas Sirk has thrown for 2,461 passing yards per game and completed 60 percent of his passes this season. He's also thrown for 15 touchdowns and six interceptions.
Sirk doesn't have an elite arm, but should have a good game against the Hoosiers who'll also struggle to limit the damage he can do on the ground. The dual-threat QB leads the team in rushing with 654 yards.
KEY STAT
.893 – This is the percentage of red zone possessions converted into points for the Hoosiers, ranking them No. 20 in the nation, well ahead of Duke at No. 60.
Of those scores, however, 17 have been Indiana field goals while the Hoosiers turned 56 chances into 33 touchdowns, 19 of which came on the ground.
BETTING ANGLE
The health status of Indiana running back Jordan Howard is huge. The junior back missed the team's last regular season game and had just three carries and 14 yards on November 21 against Maryland.
In only nine games, Howard ran for 1,213 yards and nine touchdowns, averaging 6.2 yards per carry.
If Howard plays, that changes the Hoosiers' offensive attack. Without Howard, the lead back will be Devine Redding. He's got just five fewer rushing attempts than Howard, but has only 785 yards and 4.1 yards per carry. The rushing game is far more dynamic with Howard in the backfield and Redding providing a change of pace.
The All-Big Ten back remains questionable due to his knee injury.
ANALYSIS AND PREDICTION
There's no reason to expect a low scoring game with the Indiana defense and offense involved. Duke's offense should put up some strong numbers against the Hoosiers, but Indiana's offense is just too strong.
Duke's defense has only produced nine interceptions all year long and have given up at least 30 points in five of its last six games against lesser offenses. Whether Howard or Redding do the bulk of the running, quarterback Nate Sudfeld is still under center with his 3,184 yards and 24:5 touchdown to interception ratio. He also comes into play with at least four passing touchdowns in back-to-back games.
If Howard is back that clinches things for the Hoosiers, but as it stands, take Indiana to cover the spread and top Duke in a close back and forth affair.
Indiana 40, Duke 35
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