Duke’s Riley Leonard is Day-to-Day Heading into NC State Game

Duke Starting Quarterback Riley Leonard suffered a high ankle sprain against Notre Dame on September 30th. When the injury took place, any watcher could have easily wondered if Riley would see the field again in 2023. After all the time ticked off of the clock, Leonard was using crutches to make his way off the field. Apparently it looked way worse than it actually is. Duke Head Football Coach Mike Elko said that at this point, Leonard is “day-to-day” heading into this weekends matchup against NC State.

Here’s what he had to say:

On an injury update just to stop you guys from asking. You know Riley’s dealing with an ankle. He’s day-to-day and he’s recovering. He’s making really, really strong progress. He was out moving around and throwing the ball this morning. We’ll see what happens this weekend. I do think the outlook for him is really positive for the rest of the season. So, we’ll see when we can get him back. We’ll just list him as day-to-day for now.

Yeah, last week was recovery and getting him into a position where he could be weight-bearing, which he is now. So now he’s able to kind of move around and start the process of getting back into a position where we feel comfortable that he can go out there and play the game the way he’s capable of playing.

I don’t think it matters. Obviously, Riley is such a huge competitor and when he’s ready to go, he’s going to go. I think the one thing is that he’s extremely competitive in every aspect of his life. So, he’s attacking this rehab, about six to seven hours a day. I think he’s on a mission to get back and not miss any games. That’s kind of his thought process. So again, we’ll see whether that’s a reality or not, but when he’s ready to go, he’ll be our quarterback.

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It would be quite the feat for Leonard to play on Saturday, and I can’t imagine a scenario when he is out there playing at 100%. Through 5 games, Leonard is averaging 182.4 yards passing per game, completing 62.7 percent of his passes. He has thrown for 3 touchdowns and 1 interception, with a Passing Efficiency Rating of 129.8. You could make the argument that Leonard has been more dangerous with his legs through 5 games, rushing for 326 yards (6.9 yards per carry) and 4 touchdowns.

The Wolfpack will have to wait and see, preparing to face either Leonard or Redshirt Freshman Henry Belin IV.