By Mark Bergin, WRAL senior multiplatform producer

Jacksonville, Fla. — Duke’s Gator Bowl matchup against Ole Miss will start a little bit later than initially scheduled.

Kickoff between the Blue Devils and Rebels is set for 8 p.m. ET Thursday. The game airs on ESPN.

The Gator Bowl initially was set to kick off at 7:30 p.m. ET Thursday. However, the rescheduling of the Sugar Bowl between Notre Dame and Georgia is now set for 4 p.m. ET. The Sugar Bowl was supposed to be Wednesday night, but it got postponed a day due to a deadly truck attack early Wednesday morning in New Orleans.

Gator Bowl: Duke vies for second 10-win season in program history

In Manny Diaz’s first season as Duke’s head coach, the Blue Devils are vying for their second double-digit win season since the program began in 1922.

Kickoff between the Blue Devils and Rebels is set for 7:30 p.m. Thursday. The game airs on ESPN.

Thursday will mark Duke’s third bowl game in as many seasons. The streak began under Mike Elko, who is now the head coach at Texas A&M.

Duke (9-3, 5-3 ACC) enters Thursday’s game having won its previous five bowl games.

Quarterback Henry Belin IV is likely to start for the Blue Devils with the transfers of Maalik Murphy and Grayson Loftis. Murphy is planning to transfer to Oregon State.

In 2023, Belin played in four games, making one start. Last season, he completed 50% of his passes (13-of-26) for 232 passing yards and four total touchdowns (three passing). He had one interception.

Perhaps Belin’s play in the Gator Bowl could land him in a quarterback competition for the 2025 season with Tulane transfer Darian Mensah. However, there are reports Mensah will receive millions of dollars for going to Duke from his name, image and likeness.

Quarterbacks Cole Kennon, Rent Montie and Donald Tomlin are the other quarterbacks listed on Duke’s roster.

In the 2025 season, Diaz will be the second-longest tenured head coach among North Carolina’s FBS schools behind NC State’s Dave Doeren, who has coached the Wolfpack since 2013.

The other North Carolina FBS schools each have new coaches for the 2025 season:

• Appalachian State: Dowell Loggains
• Charlotte: Tim Albin
• East Carolina: Blake Harrell
• North Carolina: Bill Belichick
• Wake Forest: Jake Dickert

Duke enters the Gator Bowl on a three-game winning streak, having beaten NC State, Virginia Tech and Wake Forest to close out the regular season.

The Blue Devils will look to slow down Lane Kiffin’s high-powered offense led by senior quarterback Jaxson Dart, who led the SEC in passing with 3,875 yards.

Dart announced his plans to play in the bowl game. He has thrown 25 touchdowns and six interceptions this season.

In 2024, the Duke defensive unit led the ACC in fumbles forced (19) and fumbles recovered (14).

Ole Miss (9-5, 5-3 SEC) won its regular season finale against Mississippi State. However, a late-season loss to Florida likely kept the Rebels out of the College Football Playoff.

The Rebels boast impressive wins over Georgia and South Carolina. However, Ole Miss also lost to Kentucky and LSU.

On Thursday, Ole Miss will play in its fifth consecutive bowl game.

Source: wralsportsfan.com