Duke University Vice President and Director of Athletics Nina King announced the contract of head football coach Mike Elko has been restructured and extended through the 2029 season.

Included in the new agreement is an enhanced, escalating model for the assistant coach and support staff salary pools.

"Over the last 18 months, Coach Elko has cultivated and executed a plan to push Duke Football forward with tremendous attention to detail, energy and a persistent commitment to excellence," King said. "His passionate dedication to the Duke experience sets the standard, and we are fortunate to have him and the entire staff developing the young men in our program into elite student-athletes and future community leaders. Coach Elko's vision acutely aligns with the principles of the university, and I could not be more excited to have him guide Duke Football well into the future."

Elko, who was hired on December 10, 2021, earned ACC Coach of the Year honors in his first season as Duke posted an overall record of 9-4 capped by a 30-13 victory over UCF in the Military Bowl. After Duke recorded an 0-8 ledger in ACC play in 2021, Elko took the helm and guided the Blue Devils to a 5-3 mark last season to match the best one-year improvement by a winless team in league history. In addition, the plus-six overall improvement (3 wins in 2021 to 9 victories in 2022) equaled the second-best turnaround in ACC history.

In year one of Elko's leadership, the Blue Devils showed marked improvement on the field, moving from 102nd and 127th nationally in scoring offense and defense to 31st, respectively, in both categories. Duke's total offense and defensive rankings also advanced under Elko, going from 54th and 130th to 43rd and 67th, respectively.

The most significant turnaround came in turnover margin where the Blue Devils jumped from 108th nationally in 2021 to an ACC-best and No. 2 national mark of +1.23.

"Sincere thanks to Dr. (Vincent) Price and Nina (King) for their commitment not only to me but also the football staff and entire program we have here at Duke," Elko said. "This will enable us to continue to build elite opportunities for our young men to develop and succeed at one of the most prestigious universities in the country. We came here with a mission to create a program that could become the absolute Best of Both Worlds, and this is another step in that direction. The future of Duke Football is extremely bright."

Additionally in 2022, Duke ranked first nationally in fumbles recovered (16) and punt return average (19.92), fifth in fewest turnovers lost (10), eighth in tackles for loss allowed (3.92), ninth in both fewest fumbles lost (4) and most turnovers gained (26), 12th in fewest interceptions thrown (6), 23rd in team sacks (2.8) and 25th in winning percentage (.692). A total of nine Blue Devils earned All-ACC honors, headlined by offensive tackle Graham Barton, who was a first team selection.

Duke opens the 2023 season at home versus Clemson on Monday, September 4. Kickoff is set for 8 p.m., and the game will be televised by ESPN.