Manny Diaz said last week that given Duke football's offseason, he felt his team needed a starting quarterback before opening the season against Tulane.
Less than a week after naming Walker Eget as the Blue Devils' QB1, Diaz said Monday that decision has given Duke something more than clarity at quarterback.
It's given Duke its identity.
"There's just a knowing, so it just makes sense," Diaz said in his Monday, Aug. 31 press conference. "It's a question answered. ... I think more than anything from the standpoint is we have our identity. Now we know where we are, coaches know. And so now let's go build an offense, wrapped up in that identity that can go win one game this week."
Duke opens its third season under Diaz against the Green Wave on Saturday, Sept. 5 at Wallace Wade Stadium. Eget, a San Jose State transfer, is the third different starting quarterback Diaz and Brewer have had during their tenure at Duke.
"He's been one of the quarterbacks that we've brought in that has adapted to the culture fast," Brewer said. "He's a great kid, he's been in a lot of games, he's got a lot of savvy football wise but his locker room culture – the guys really bought into him."
Sixth-year linebacker Nick Morris Jr. echoed that sentiment.
"I'm really excited to see how he leads the team this year," Morris Jr. said in an Aug. 27 media availability. "He stepped up in leadership this fall camp. Guys have bought into his leadership and I think he's going to have an incredible year."
Eget won't be the only new face under center in Saturday's Week 1 contest. The Green Wave had a quarterback battle of their own, with fifth-year senior Zeon Chriss-Gremillion winning the starting job.
Chriss-Gremillion has prior stops at Houston and Louisiana.
"He's a super great athlete," defensive coordinator Jonathan Patke said. "He can really run, he's got all the arm talent, he can push the ball down the field. He really does it all. He's played a lot of football at different places, different stops along the way, and everywhere he's gone, he's won the job at some point. So he's doing a lot of things right."
Eget and Chriss-Gremillion won't be the only new faces in Saturday's matchup. Along with a new signal caller, Tulane has a new head coach in Will Hall taking over as head coach after Jon Sumrall's departure to Florida.
Duke will be also searching for revenge after Tulane beat the Blue Devils 34-27 in New Orleans a year ago – a game in which quarterback Jake Retzlaff rushed for a school-record four touchdowns.
"What a great way to test ourselves in the opener," Diaz said. "Obviously a program that got after us a year ago, we've got a lot of respect for.
"But it changes year-to-year. If you look at the people that played in last year's game it's like the laundry will be similar but so much personnel is different on both sides."
Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m. ET on ACC Network.
Anna Snyder covers Duke for The Fayetteville Observer as part of the USA TODAY Network. Reach her at asnyder@usatodayco.com or follow her @annaesnydr on X, formerly known as Twitter.
This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: Manny Diaz says naming Walker Eget QB1 has given Duke its 'identity' ahead of Tulane
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