Virginia @ Duke preview

Last Meeting ( Nov 21, 2015 ) Duke 34, Virginia 42

Duke is coming off a massive road win but will be forced to contend with another serious injury when it hosts Virginia in ACC action on Saturday. The Blue Devils, who won 38-35 at Notre Dame last Saturday to snap a two-game slide, lost safety and fifth-year captain DeVon Edwards to a torn ACL and MCL, which will end his college career.

It's another major blow for a program that also lost starting quarterback Thomas Sirk to an Achilles tear and two other defensive players to season-ending surgeries before the year began. "I think if we hadn't have been as prepared, and DeVon had a big part to do with that, we wouldn't have been able to respond," Duke coach David Cutcliffe told reporters of the ability to get over the injury and win in South Bend. "But I believe in my heart we have the right kind of people and that's what you do when you're the right kind of people." Daniel Jones has stepped in for Sirk and continues to impress, throwing for 290 yards and three touchdowns versus the Fighting Irish and leading his team back from a late seven-point deficit. The Cavaliers dropped their first three games before picking up a 49-35 victory over Central Michigan last week, and own a 34-33 all-time series advantage.

TV: 12:30 p.m. ET, ACC Network. LINE: Duke -3.5

ABOUT VIRGINIA (1-3, 0-0 ACC): Coach Bronco Mendenhall finally picked up his first win at the helm in Charlottesville and he was pleased to see improvement under center, as Kurt Benkert stepped up his game in a big way. The junior transfer was 27-of-43 for a school-record 421 yards and five touchdowns, pacing an offense that had seven touchdown drives that took under four minutes to complete. Olamide Zaccheaus collected 141 receiving yards and a pair of scores in the win and will be looking to duplicate his performance against Duke a year ago, when - as a freshman - he hauled in three catches for 89 yards and a TD and also threw a 15-yard scoring strike to ignite a 42-34 win.

ABOUT DUKE (2-2, 0-1): Jela Duncan has served as a quality reserve in the backfield throughout his career but he has stepped up as a starter in 2016, putting forth a pair of 100-yard efforts and reaching the end zone four times in four games. Jones has shown his running ability with 100 total rushing yards and three scores on the ground for a team that gained 208 against the Fighting Irish. The defense might be pinning its ears back and gunning for Benkert - who has been sacked 10 times - after picking up three more sacks against Notre Dame and entering the week's action tied for the ACC lead with 17.

EXTRA POINTS

1. Cavaliers RB Taquan Mizzell (161 career receptions) needs two catches to grab sole possession of second place on the school's all-time list.

2. Duke PK AJ Reed has made 1-of-4 field goals, the one make being a 19-yarder with 1:24 left to help defeat Notre Dame.

3. The Blue Devils are 12th in the ACC in third-down conversions (37.7 percent), while the Cavaliers are 13th (36.7).

PREDICTION: Duke 31, Virginia 27