Behind Enemy Lines: Duquesne

In an effort to bring you in-depth insight on the opposing teams that West Virginia plays, WVSports.com goes Behind Enemy Lines for an in-depth look at the home opener against Duquesne.

What can you expect from the Dukes? Well we contacted an authority on the subject in Dukes Insider Zachary Weiss.

1. What can you expect from this Duquesne team? What are the expectations this season?

Last season was not up to standards for a team used to winning NEC Championships. Duquesne was affected by injuries throughout the season and lost some close contests and the team chemistry was admittedly not where it needed to be.

It is clear from the top on down that the team chemistry is good and expectations are the same, to win an NEC Championship. The team has a lot of confidence in itself to accomplish just that.

2. What's the situation at quarterback? Is this a strength?

Darius Perrantes had snaps each of the past two seasons after Joe Mischler went down but unquestionably the job is his now. He played in one half Saturday and did not many any big mistakes. He accounted for three touchdowns, two in the air and one on the ground. Perrantes made some good pocket decisions and has never been afraid to use his feet to find the open player. He continues to grow on the field and clearly has the team's trust and respect.

3. What type of offense does the Dukes use? Who are the playmakers to watch?

It is a bit hard to judge based on the team's first contest against Edinboro. Duquesne had three quarterbacks see time led by Perrantes. Taj Butts had a good day with 108 yards on 10 carries. He is a redshirt sophomore who transferred from Missouri. Both coach Jerry Schmitt and multiple players also mentioned JaMario Clements who had a touchdown and 47 yards Saturday as a player who stepped up in camp and has bided his time sitting behind a couple of running backs. Now he has a chance and has the tools to make the most of it.

The team's two biggest question marks this season were offensive line play and having a wide receiver group that is both transfer based or if a returner has not has been behind other players and not had much opportunity. The exception to the latter is Joey Isabella who was one of two Dukes to make the Preseason All-NEC Team. He had 191 receiving yards and 2 TDs a season ago. Isabella was injured for part of last season and also for some of camp and in Saturday's game was targeted twice in the red zone but his timing with Perrantes was a step or two off. A little fact about Joey is his brother Andy is a member of the Buffalo Bills.

Saturday's wide receiving stand out was DJ Powell a 6-foot-3 grad transfer from Bethune Cookman. He had 57 receiving yards and two touchdowns. The first came when Perrantes found him after dancing around the pocket and the second came when backup QB Matt Robinson lobbed a ball in his direction and he made a catch.

Keshawn Brown (2 rec/71 yds/1 TD) was also a standout Saturday.

4. Same on the defensive side?

Duquesne's defense is the clear strength of this team. Any Duquesne fan was reminded of that two plays into Saturday's game when Ayden Garnes read the opposing quarterback's eyes and got a pick six out of it. Duquesne had three interceptions on the game as Tim Lowery and Ezekiel M. Daure had the other two. Ty Howard led the team with five defensive tackles. As a team Duquesne's defense had six sacks and forced two fumbles.

Speaking to a graduate student after the game, he told me that this was the deepest he has seen Duquesne's defense and players such as Kevin Kurzinger and Preseason All-NEC Team selection A.J. Ackerman also were among those who stepped up.

5. Any major injuries or players that could miss this game?

Nothing really of note as of this writing. The aforementioned issue of Isabella's return and getting his timing down is the key.

6. How do you see this game turning out and what are the keys?

Duquesne is used to facing big-named opponents and are unafraid of doing so. To have a chance at a win, Duquesne's offensive line will be asked to step up, Perrantes will need to make good decisions under center and the defense can build upon what was accomplished both Saturday and during camp.

This is another challenging test for Duquesne and how it responds to the challenge will tell the tale Saturday and how it responds to the outcome both adjusting as a staff and as a team could show a lot about what the rest of the season holds.

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