Duke Blue Devils begin football preseason with first practice

By Chris Cook
Posted Tuesday, August 7, 2007

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Durham, NC - The Duke football team returned to the field on Monday in the team’s first practice of the 2007 season, but no Blue Devil was happier to don his pads than senior running back Justin Boyle.

Boyle returns to the field after his junior campaign in 2006 was cut short by a knee injury suffered during Duke's November 11 contest at Boston College. Duke’s leading rusher at the time, the injury forced Boyle to miss the final two games of the year and derailed what was shaping up to be an excellent year. In the three games preceding the injury, Boyle averaged over five yards per carry and had a career outing that included four touchdowns and 113 yards against Vanderbilt.

Though the injury sidelined the Acworth, Ga., native for the remainder of the season, a successful surgery and an effective rehabilitation program have Boyle primed to get back on track in 2007.

“It’s the best feeling in the world (to be back),” said Boyle, who averages 3.8 yards per carry for his career. “(My knee) feels good. I’m not wearing a brace and it feels good cutting on it. We have great people working with us, so I’m back to 100 percent now.”

Boyle is eight months removed from the surgery, and though he has fully regained speed and cutting ability, the road to recovery was not an easy one. The procedure forced him to the sit out spring drills, which may have been more painful than the injury itself.

“It was real hard going through the spring,” Boyle said. “It was just hard not being able to be out there with my teammates, so I’m glad to be back.”

With a wealth of experience and talent, Boyle is geared to lead a more polished and experienced Blue Devil squad to a successful 2007 season. The hard-nosed senior returns as Duke’s active leading rusher, racking up 16 touchdowns and more than 1,000 total yards over his first three seasons. In his final year as a Blue Devil, Boyle will not only be counted on to anchor the backfield, but to serve as a leader and role model both on and off the field.

“The first couple of years, we had the older guys leading the team,” Boyle said. “But now it feels like that role has been passed to us and it’s on our shoulders.”