We continue our series looking at the toughest three-game stretch for each team across the ACC with Duke.

Stretch:

• at Virginia Tech, Oct. 24

• Miami, Oct. 31

• at North Carolina, Nov. 7

Why it's tough: Traditionally, Duke hasn't had much success against these three teams. Forget about past history for a minute, when it was a struggle for Duke to beat anybody. Over the last several seasons, Duke has found a way to beat each of these teams -- and that is a big reason why the Blue Devils have found more success. In 2013, they won the Coastal in part because they beat Virginia Tech, Miami and North Carolina -- three teams that were picked to finish ahead of them in the preseason poll. Last season, Duke lost to all three and fell short of a Coastal repeat. If Duke had beaten Virginia Tech or North Carolina late in the season, then it could have been the Blue Devils back in Charlotte -- because they were the ones in the drivers' seat. So you see why this trifecta is so important to their chances at getting back to the ACC championship game. Last year, Duke had Virginia Tech and North Carolina in consecutive games, which didn't go well. Add Miami into this mix, and the three-game stretch becomes the most important of the season.

Odds for success: 50-50. As mentioned above, Duke went 0-3 against these three teams a year ago but still finished 9-4. So the Blue Devils can still have an above average season if they drop all three games again. But the expectation level has been raised, and now this program expects to compete for the Coastal every season. Losing these three would severely limit their chances of getting back to Charlotte. Now consider the history. Duke has beaten Miami twice all time and Virginia Tech once since 1981. Duke has won two of the last three against North Carolina. Getting one out of three wins is perfectly feasible. But finishing with a winning record could be more difficult, especially with the talent the Blue Devils have to replace on offense.