Duke vs Virginia Prediction - College Football Picks 11/18/23

The Duke Blue Devils and Virginia Cavaliers face off on Saturday in a college football showdown at Scott Stadium. 

Duke Dealing with Quarterback Issues

Riley Leonard is still dealing with an injury and it’s unknown if he’s going to be able to go here. Getting the start in the last game for Duke was Grayton Loftis and he completed 16 of his 28 passes for 189 yards and three touchdowns. Duke actually played pretty well in the last game, but they couldn’t make the winning plays late and ended up losing in overtime. Duke on the season is averaging 27.6 points while their defense is giving up 18.8 points per game. The defense is ranked 23rd and they are going to need to step up again here. Duke really needs Leonard to return to boost this team. 

Duke Betting Trends

• The favorite has won each of Duke's last nine games.
• Duke has failed to cover the spread in seven of its last eight November games as a favorite.
• Duke has lost the first half in each of its last three games against conference opponents at Scott Stadium.
• Each of Duke's last five November road games against non-AP-ranked teams have gone OVER the total points line.

Virginia Improving 

Virginia hasn’t had the best season, but they seemed to be improving. In the last game against Louisville, Virginia had a big third quarter, and it looked like they might win, but in the 4th quarter they were outscored 17-3 and ended up losing by seven points. Quarterback Anthony Colandrea completed 20 of his 31 passes for 314 yards, one touchdown, and one interception. The offense is ranked 96th and it hasn’t been good enough overall. In this game, if the defense steps up, they have a chance in this game.