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AIPROPX ReportYahoo Sports · 2h ago
DaShawn Stone senses more urgency from Duke secondary
DaShawn Stone is one of Duke ’s key returnees from last year’s secondary, which was inconsistent at best. The Blue Devils finished 134th out of 136 teams in the FBS in passing defense, allowing 276.8 yards per game.
For Stone, fall camp already feels different this year, and with that, hopes of a better secondary are high in Durham.
"We're coaching each other up," Stone said . "Even guys who just got here and don't necessarily understand the playbook, I still go to them and ask, 'What's your footwork on this?' or, 'How do you move with this?' We're just growing together.
"I can really appreciate that, and I feel like it's going to make us better as a whole in the secondary."
Stone isn’t the only key player from last year who is still in Duke’s secondary. Andrew Pellicciotta, Landan Callahan and Will Felder Jr. return after seeing different amounts of time on the field last season. Still, it might be some new guys in Patrick Smith-Young (North Texas), Kyon Loud (Montana) and Che Ojarikre (Stanford) who help stabilize the play of the secondary more in 2026.
"It's been refreshing just having new faces in the room, both at corner and safety,” Stone said We're competing all around, but honestly, it doesn't feel like we're competing against each other. It feels like we're competing with each other and bringing each other up."
But while the intensity has stayed the same on the practice field, Stone has noticed a massive difference in players' willingness to take ownership of their mistakes.
"I would just say our urgency," Stone said when asked what the secondary must improve. "We need to communicate more and just be urgent in everything that we're doing, whether it's drills, practice or, for sure, in the game. That's what we've preached a lot.
"Guys get called out on clips when they're not being urgent. "It's not a take it personally type of thing. It's just, 'This is the standard. This is what we're doing to move forward.'"
This article originally appeared on Duke Wire: DaShawn Stone senses more urgency from Duke secondary
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