Mike Elko: Riley Leonard 'day-to-day' following ankle injury against Notre Dame

Mike Elko provided an update on Duke quarterback Riley Leonard as the Blue Devils look to get back on track this weekend.

Leonard suffered the injury on the final offensive play against Notre Dame, a game Duke feels like slipped out of their grasp in the waning moments. Ahead of a showdown with NC State on Saturday, Elko elaborated on how his signal caller is feeling at the moment on Monday.

“An injury update, just to stop you guys from asking, Riley’s dealing with an ankle. He’s day-to-day. He’s recovering. He’s making really, really strong progress,” Elko told the media. “He was out, moving around, throwing the ball this morning. We’ll see what happens this weekend, but I do think the outlook for him is really positive for the rest of the season.

“So we’ll see when we can get him back. We’ll just list him as day-to-day for now.”

That sounds like some pretty positive news for Duke. Many had flashes of Leonard missing the rest of the season when he went down, but that doesn’t seem to be the case.

Moreover, Leonard’s one of the best quarterbacks in the ACC and one of the best signal-callers in all of college football. Duke will certainly miss him until he returns, as he’s been a critical ingredient for the program’s rise the past two years.

When he was injured against the Fighting Irish, Leonard refused a cart to the locker room once he came out of the medical tent and was seen on crutches. He could not put any weight on his right leg.

In the end, the Duke star finished the game with over 200 all-purpose yards, with 88 of those coming on the ground. He also tossed in one touchdown pass and one interception.

Jacob Monk reveals his message to Riley Leonard after the game

Moreover, Jacob Monk will have Riley Leonard‘s back on and off the field. On Saturday, the Duke QB went down with his injury on the final play of Duke’s 21-14 loss to Notre Dame. After the game, Monk revealed his message to Leonard.

“Letting him know, I’m always there for him,” Monk said. “I slipped up on the last play of the game and let up a sack. You win some, you lose some, but I feel like as a captain, I can’t let that happen. I just let him know I’m here for him always.”

It’ll be great for Duke if Riley Leonard is back this weekend. Time will tell, but the quarterback has a chance.

On3’s Grant Grubbs also contributed to this article.