A simple message from mom keeps Duke QB grounded. Now he wants to elevate.

By Brian Murphy, WRAL

Charlotte, N.C. — As a standout athlete, Duke quarterback Riley Leonard has gotten his share of praise from outsiders.

What he really needed was someone to pop that bubble. Enter his mom Heather and a tradition that extended to Wednesday's interviews at the annual ACC Kickoff event in Charlotte and even his left wrist.

"I went to my mom one day and said, hey, someone has to bash me and tell me I suck to give me motivation," Leonard said. "She's, like, shoot, I'll do it. Ever since then, before every game, she calls me. She texted me last night, 'Hey, don't suck at these interviews.' Things like that. It just gives me some motivation."

Leonard wore a blue "you suck" bracelet Wednesday, one of about two dozen he owns.

"They remind me," Leonard said, "'Hey, don't worry about any of that stuff. Stay humble, kid. And put your nose down in his work.'"

A year ago, Leonard was worried less about keeping his ego in check and more about just trying to get on the field for the Blue Devils. A three-star recruit, he'd played in seven games (one start) as a freshman. But Duke brought in a new coaching staff and there was little quarterback separation after spring practices.

Leonard seized the job quickly in fall camp.

"Within the first five, six practices, we realized that he had gotten a lot better and made a huge jump over the summer," Duke coach Mike Elko said. "Could he sustain it? Could he continue? Could he continue to be consistent? And then ... what you didn't know, though, was how gritty he was and how much moxie he had, and that sort of jumped out really quick and we started playing some other people."

For offensive lineman Jacob Monk, it was a play by Leonard in the Blue Devils' 45-21 victory against Miami that stood out the most to him.

"Running over like three people, not being denied, in Miami to score," said Monk, a graduate student from Clayton. "And then reaching the ball out, somehow levitating above the air and not getting a knee down."

Leonard had a 74-yard rushing touchdown in a 38-35 loss to North Carolina, winning at least one fan among the Tar Heels.

"Riley is one of the best quarterbacks in the country. He is so good," UNC coach Mack Brown said. "I don't know how people missed him. I’m on Riley’s PR team."

Leonard finished the year with 2,967 yards passing, 699 yards rushing and 33 total touchdowns. Duke went 9-4, including a 30-13 win over UCF in the Military Bowl. Elko won ACC Coach of the Year honors and signed a contract extension in the offseason.

The football future is suddenly a light brighter in Durham, where basketball is king. Duke opens the season at home in a nationally televised game against ACC champion Clemson.

"It's less of a challenge and more more of an opportunity to prove ourselves, to prove to everybody that last year wasn't just a one-year fluke," Leonard said. "Coach Elko, me and all these guys, we're here to stay. And we're here to here to build this school into a dual-sport school — a football and basketball school."

The ACC is loaded with veteran, returning quarterbacks in 2023. North Carolina's Drake Maye is considered a Heisman candidate. Florida State's Jordan Travis might be one, too. There's high expectations for Clemson's Cade Klubnik and, maybe, Miami's Tyler Van Dyke. There's transfers reuniting with old offensive coordinators in NC State's Brennan Armstrong and Pitt's Phil Jurkovec.

And there's Leonard, who participated in the Manning Passing Academy this summer and recounted conversations with Peyton Manning and current New York Giants quarterback Daniel Jones, a first-round pick from Duke.

"He deserves to be in that conversation with the best quarterbacks in this league," Elko said. "No disrespect to anyone else's, but we've got a really talented one in Durham for sure."

Leonard said as the incumbent starter, he's been able to focus on the details associated with playing quarterback: timing, arm strength, route running, protections. As well as how he handles his interactions with receivers and linemen and on the sidelines between drives.

Elko preached "now" when he arrived in Durham, as in the Blue Devils were going to win "now" and not wait several recruiting classes or raid the transfer portal. Now Elko, who is expected to be a hot commodity for other coaching jobs, wants the program and his quarterback to "elevate."

"We're really excited to see him elevate his game," Elko said. "He showed us last year just he has a tremendous competitive spirit. He knows how to elevate his game at the right time and, in those critical moments, he is able to make the plays we need him to make for us to win football games. I'm looking forward to seeing him as an established starter going into year two, as a kid who is a lot more comfortable in our system going into year two, a stronger kid going into year two. I think his game can even take another step."