After the Duke football program's first three weeks of the 2026 season, the key takeaways are mostly positive.
Duke has steadily improved over its first three games, established an identity on the field, and earned a quality win over Illinois on the road. Now, the program must keep playing to its strengths and handle business in its upcoming slate.
One interesting note for this team so far is that, at several different positions on the field, the Blue Devils have several guys ready to make an impact when their numbers are called. Aside from a few key players, there aren't that many bona fide stars on this roster. However, plenty of guys can impact winning in a big way.
Here are three players who are poised to have bigger roles moving forward.
I'm still buying the hype on wide receiver Jared Richardson despite a quiet start to his time at Duke.
The Penn transfer didn't have a single catch in either of the Blue Devils' first two games of the year, but made some impressive plays behind a three-reception, 44-yard outing in Week 3 against Stanford.
The 6'2" receiver has the most productive resume of any Duke receiver this season; he notched almost 200 catches for over 2,500 receiving ya...