Cutcliffe: Lewis still is Duke starting QB

By BRYAN STRICKLAND

bstrickland@heraldsun.com; 419-6671

DURHAM -- Senior Thad Lewis will remain as Duke's starting quarterback when the Blue Devils break the huddle Saturday at Kansas, Blue Devils coach David Cutcliffe announced during his weekly Sunday teleconference.

Cutcliffe, as planned, sent freshman Sean Renfree out for his first career action last Saturday at Army midway through the third quarter, and Renfree played the rest of the game, going 7-for-8 for 106 yards and two touchdowns to lead Duke to a 35-19 victory.

Lewis, beginning his fourth season as starter, was 5-for-16 for 60 yards before Renfree replaced him.

Cutcliffe cited the obvious gap in experience in making his decision.

"I think Sean Renfree is a really well-prepared young player. If I thought he was ahead of Thad right now, he would have had a chance at being the starter," Cutcliffe said. "But right now, with the total package, he's not quite ready for that.

"But as he continues to groom and grow, the roles could change. We'll just have to see as we go through."

Cutcliffe also cited the not-as-obvious gap in practice time, acknowledging that Lewis was among the 30-plus players sidelined with symptoms of swine flu during the preseason.

"He was one of the guys with the flu, and then he came up with an ankle (injury)," Cutcliffe said. "He threw about half the balls that Sean threw during training camp. He didn't get a lot of work, and I think it's showing a little bit.

"We've just got to get him back in a rhythm, back feeling comfortable back there. He will. He's played a whole lot of football, but kind of like a pitcher in Major League Baseball, it doesn't take much to start missing the plate a little bit."

Lewis did throw his 50th career touchdown pass against Army, becoming just the 14th quarterback in ACC history -- the second from Duke -- to accomplish that.

"He doesn't run from pressure," Cutcliffe said. "He's been in pressure situations his whole career, and he's had tremendous success as you look at his numbers throughout his career.

"I expect to see more of the same."