PITTSBURGH – A pair of road contests against Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) teams and a seven-game Northeast Conference (NEC) slate highlight the Duquesne football program's 2020 schedule released on Friday morning.
The Dukes, led by 16th-year head coach Jerry Schmitt, are set to open the season with three straight road games before playing six of their final eight tilts in the state of Pennsylvania, including five at Arthur J. Rooney Field.
Duquesne heads west to the Rocky Mountains to begin the 2020 campaign at FBS Air Force on Sept. 5. The Falcons are coming off a highly successful 2019 season in which they posted an 11-2 record with a 7-1 mark in Mountain West action. Air Force defeated Washington State in the Cheez-It Bowl and capped the year ranked in both the AP and USA Today Coaches polls.
The Dukes will then make a familiar trek to Ohio to take on Youngstown State on Sept. 12 at Stambaugh Stadium for the second consecutive year and fifth time overall.
Duquesne will close the three-game road swing by traveling south to face another FBS opponent in Coastal Carolina on Sept. 19 in Conway, S.C. on the teal turf at Brooks Stadium.
The Dukes will then close out non-conference play as well as commence the home portion of its schedule hosting Virginia University of Lynchburg on Sept. 26 on The Bluff.
Duquesne hits the road to its NEC slate at defending champion Central Connecticut on Oct. 3.
Since the beginning of the 2011 season, the Dukes have won 65 overall games, 39 NEC contests and five conference championships. This is at least nine more overall wins, seven more conference victories and two league titles than any other team in the NEC during that span.
Either Duquesne or the Blue Devils have claimed at least a share of the NEC title in each of the last five seasons.
Following the trip to New Britain, Conn., the Dukes will leave the state of Pennsylvania just once over the next seven weeks.
Duquesne welcomes crosstown foe Robert Morris on Oct. 10 to Rooney Field, where the Dukes are 9-2 all-time against the Colonials.
Following a road contest at Wagner on Oct. 17, Duquesne has a three-game home stand, entertaining Sacred Heart (Oct. 24), LIU (Oct. 31) and Bryant (Nov. 14) in the Steel City. The Dukes' bye falls during week 10 of the season on Nov. 7.
Duquesne closes out the year on the road at Saint Francis U on Nov. 21 in Loretto, where the Dukes have claimed 16 wins in 22 trips.
Season ticket details for the 2020 season are set to be available April 2. For more information CLICK HERE.
Read more about the 2020 schedule and opponents below.
2020 SCHEDULE
Sept. 5 – at Air Force
Sept. 12 – at Youngstown State
Sept. 19 – at Coastal Carolina
Sept. 26 – VIRGINIA UNIVERSITY OF LYNCHBURG
Oct. 3 – at Central Connecticut*
Oct. 10 – ROBERT MORRIS*
Oct. 17 – at Wagner*
Oct. 24 – SACRED HEART*
Oct. 31 – LIU*
Nov. 14 – BRYANT*
Nov. 21 – at Saint Francis U*
HOME GAMES IN CAPS
*NEC game
2020 SCHEDULE FACTS
- Three of the Dukes' four non-conference foes will be first-time opponents: Air Force, Coastal Carolina and Virginia University of Lynchburg.
- Duquesne will face two FBS teams in the same season for the second time in three years. The Dukes took on UMass and Hawaii in 2018.
- The matchup against Air Force will be Duquesne's first against any of the three FBS service academies (Air Force, Army and Navy).
- The Falcons are coming off an 11-2 season in 2019, including a 7-1 mark in Mountain West play. Air Force defeated Washington State 31-21 in the Cheez-It Bowl in Phoenix, capping the season with eight straight victories, marking the second-longest active winning streak in the FBS. The Falcons closed the season nationally-ranked (22nd in the AP Poll, 23th in the USA Today Coaches Poll) for the first time since 1998 for head coach Troy Calhoun.
- Air Force featured the second-ranked rushing offense in the FBS last season, averaging 298.5 yards per game. The Falcons had four players rush for at least 500 yards on the year.
- This will mark the fifth meeting between Duquesne and Youngstown State. The Dukes are 0-4 all-time against the Penguins, with Youngstown State claiming a 34-14 triumph over Duquesne last season at Stambaugh Stadium. The Penguins will be led by first-year head coach Doug Phillips after former head coach Bo Pelini left to become the defensive coordinator at defending national champion LSU.
- After starting the year 4-0, Youngstown State finished 6-6 last season with a 2-6 ledger in Missouri Valley Football Conference play. The Penguins open the 2020 season at local foe Akron prior to facing off with the Dukes.
- Coastal Carolina enters its fifth season at the FBS level in 2020 and is a member of the Sun Belt Conference. Prior to that, the Chanticleers competed at the FCS level through the 2015 season as part of the Big South Conference.
- Coastal Carolina is led by second-year head coach Jamey Chadwell, who helped the Chanticleers to a 5-7 finish in his first year at the helm in Conway, S.C.
- Coastal opens the 2020 campaign at South Carolina, then will travel to Eastern Michigan before hosting Duquesne and Kansas on the teal turf at Brooks Stadium.
- The games against Air Force and Coastal Carolina will be the fourth and fifth contests, respectively, for the Dukes against an FBS opponent. Duquesne took on Buffalo in 2014 before battling UMass and Hawaii in 2018.
- Virginia University of Lynchburg is a member of the National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA) and played seven teams from the FCS in 2019, including Merrimack out of the NEC.
- Since the beginning of the 2011 season, the Dukes have won 65 overall games, 39 NEC contests and five conference championships. This is at least nine more overall wins, seven more conference victories and two league titles than any other team in the NEC during that span.
- Duquesne opens NEC play at defending conference champion Central Connecticut State for the first time since 2014.
- This marks just the second time that the Dukes have opened their NEC slate with the defending league champions. The last time was in 2013 against Wagner, when Duquesne claimed a 34-7 win over the Seahawks at Rooney Field.
- The 11-2 Blue Devils closed out the year ranked in both the AFCA Coaches' Poll (22nd) and the STATS FCS Top 25 (23rd). CCSU fell at Albany by a score of 42-14 in the FCS Playoffs First Round under first-year head coach Ryan McCarthy.
- CCSU ranked fifth in the FCS in total defense a year ago, limiting opponents to 283.3 yards per contest.
- Either Duquesne or the Blue Devils have claimed at least a share of the NEC title in each of the last five seasons.
- Following the game against the Blue Devils, the Dukes will only leave the state of Pennsylvania once for the remainder of the 2020 campaign (Oct. 17 at Wagner).
- Duquesne is 13-8 all-time against crosstown foe Robert Morris, with a 9-2 ledger at Rooney Field. The Dukes have won nine straight at home against the Colonials, including a 48-24 triumph in the last matchup on Oct. 13, 2018.
- Last season, Robert Morris (7-5, 6-1) finished with its most overall wins and league victories since 2010.
- The Dukes have won five consecutive games over Wagner, as Duquesne owns a 10-5 advantage in the all-time series with a 4-3 record on Staten Island.
- Duquesne notched a 28-24 win over the Seahawks last season and a 47-30 victory in its last trip to Grymes Hill in 2018. This marked the Dukes' second-highest point total in the last three seasons.
- Duquesne has also won five in a row over Sacred Heart, holding an 11-4 edge in the all-time series with a 5-3 record against the Pioneers at Rooney Field.
- The Dukes picked up a 20-6 road victory in Fairfield last season and a 28-24 victory over Sacred Heart in the two teams' last meeting on The Bluff in 2018.
- Sacred Heart has three conference titles since 2011, second only to Duquesne's five in that time span.
- LIU is in its second season competing at the Division I level in football in the NEC following the consolidation of Long Island University's Brooklyn and Post athletic departments prior to the 2019-20 academic year.
- The Dukes opened NEC play with a 21-14 win over the Sharks last season at Rooney Field. This marks the first time Duquesne will host the same team in conference play in back-to-back seasons since Saint Francis U in 2012 and '13.
- The Dukes and intrastate rival Saint Francis will meet for the 47th time in 2020, with Duquesne holding a 38-8 advantage in the all-time series.
- Duquesne is 16-6 against the Red Flash in Loretto and 9-3 versus Saint Francis in the NEC era. Head coach Jerry Schmitt is 12-3 against the Red Flash.
- The Dukes close out the regular season against Saint Francis for the first time since 2015 and the third time under Schmitt. Duquesne has won three in a row over the Red Flash, including a 30-21 victory last season at Rooney Field and a 27-20 triumph in the Dukes' last trip to DeGol Field in 2018.
