Coming off of a trying win over Nevada in the season opener, Northwestern travels to Duke on Saturday for its first test of the 2017 season.

The Wildcats will look to notch a win over the Blue Devils for the third straight season, but Duke is a different team than the one Northwestern knocked off 24-13 at Ryan Field last season.

We went to DevilsIllustrated publisher Brian McLawhorn to get the inside scoop on the Blue Devils, which opened the season with a 60-7 demolition of FCS North Carolina Central last week.

The following is our Q&A with McLawhorn.

Q: Pat Fitzgerald has been singing Duke QB Daniel Jones’ praises this week, calling him a “terrific” quarterback. How has he improved since Northwestern fans saw him last, in Week 3 last season? What are his strengths?

McLawhorn: The first five games of last season were certainly a learning period for Daniel Jones. Leading up to the 2016 season he went from an unknown to Duke's starting quarterback within a matter of weeks. From Week 1 through Week 5 we saw a quarterback with a strong skill-set that was trying to figure it out on the fly. Through those first five games, he threw just six touchdown passes to eight interceptions, including a five against Virginia. After that, the game slowed down and his understanding and comfort in the college game caught up with his overall ability.