The Chronicle

Issue date: 9/2/08 Section: Column
Last update: 9/2/08 at 10:59 AM EST

Media Credit: Chase Oivieri Head coach David Cutcliffe has preached change and delivered, winning his first game Saturday night.

Media Credit: Larsa Al-Omaishi/ Having campaigned for publicity and reputation since December, David Cutcliffe and Duke won Saturday night.

I woke up Sunday morning still basking in the glow of the first Duke victory I had seen with my own eyes since 2005. The sun was a little brighter. The air was a little lighter. And I was a bit more hopeful for the season to come.

That's when it hit me like a 10-ton DATA bus featuring the giant likeness of the New Ball Coach: David Cutcliffe is the change we can believe in.

I closed my eyes and saw the Man from the Land of Manning standing before a packed Wallace Wade Stadium, filled to capacity with Blue Devils from all walks of life-Dukies and Durhamites, Greeks and independents, English majors and engineers-all clamoring for what the athletic department has branded as the dawning of a new era.

After nearly three minutes of applause and a litany of thank-yous, Cutcliffe finally speaks to the crowd of passionate believers:

"Nine months ago, I stood before you and told you my story, of the brief union between a veteran coach from SEC country and a former NFL-bred father from New Orleans who got stuck playing for one of the worst professional teams of the 1970s, but shared a belief that in football his two sons could achieve whatever they put their minds to.

"It is that promise that's always set football apart-that through hard work and sacrifice each of us can pursue our individual dreams, but still come together as one football family, to ensure that the next generation of players and fans can pursue their dreams, as well. That's why I stand here tonight. Because for 19 years at Duke, at each moment when that promise was in jeopardy, ordinary Blue Devils-Patrick Mannelly and Ryan Fowler, Lennie Friedman and Orrin Thompson, Vince Oghobaase and Eron Riley-found the courage to keep it alive.

"We meet at one of those defining moments, a moment when our program is at a crossroads, when one can count Duke's victories over the last four years on one hand and when the Duke athletic promise has been threatened once more.

"Tonight, more Blue Devils are still interested in Duke Basketball than pigskin, and some are already bypassing the Blue Zone altogether and setting up camp in K-ville. More of you who live here have found a home at either Kenan Memorial or Carter Findley Stadium, historically better ticket buys in the recession-laden football market known as the Atlantic Coast Conference.

"These challenges are not all of the Blue Devils' making. But the failure to respond is a direct result of a broken system at Duke and the failed policies of Terrence Edwin Roof Jr.

"Duke, we are better than these last four years. We are a better program than this."

The crowd erupts yet again in thunderous applause-and I awake from my daydream, gazing at the Barack Obama poster held up on my refrigerator by my snazzy new Duke Football schedule magnet.

I rub my eyes. What could this vision possibly mean?

Politics aside, these two men seem to be in somewhat similar situations. (For the record, I do not intend to trivialize the important issues facing America with this column or make any sort of political statement, only to use comparisons to make a greater point about Duke Football.)

Both Barack Obama and David Cutcliffe present themselves as agents of change. Both men have generated a hype and a hope about their tenures almost unparalleled by their predecessors. And both men are almost completely unproven in their chosen endeavors. Yes, Cutcliffe has been a successful college coach before, but the mess he inherited at Duke is one so messy it's like a whole new world.

It takes time and ability to correct years of bad decisions. It takes even more time and ability to change an entire culture.

Don't get me wrong-a 31-7 win Saturday evening over James Madison was a solid start in putting Duke back on track. But, it was only that: a good start to a year, and maybe even a tenure, that is sure to see its ups and downs.

When you really think about it, beating a I-AA squad is something that a program like Duke shouldn't be excited about. It's a win a BCS conference team is supposed to take (Sorry, Michigan fans, but it's true).

So the real question is this: what happens when the honeymoon is over? When the Blue Devils lose a game, which they inevitably will-perhaps as early as this week-and the 32,000 fans who filled Wally Wade last Saturday are wondering why they even got excited about Duke Football in the first place?

My gut tells me their interest and faith will wane, their frustration will wax and their attendance will drop faster than a botched snap. But (and perhaps affected by the movements taking place all around me), I have to hope that Duke fans will be a bit more patient than that-that they will look back at the history of Blue Devil athletics and see that even the greatest Duke dynasties, built by some of the best coaches in history, took time to build.

Can Cutcliffe take this team to a bowl game in his very first season in Durham?

In all likelihood, he can't.

Over time, can he turn this football program around?

(An echo heard, as if from a dream...)

Yes he can.

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