Blue Devils come up clutch to win at UNC
CHAPEL HILL — There’s no need to kick a go-ahead field goal when you can get Todd Pelino around the edge.
Instead of attempting a go-ahead field goal in the waning minutes, Duke ran a fake field goal with Pelino motoring 26 yards to the 1-yard line. Anderson Castle’s 1-yard touchdown proved to be the difference in the Blue Devils’ 32-25 win at North Carolina on Saturday at Kenan Stadium.
Duke (6-5, 5-2 ACC) got a turnover on downs to end the game, retaining the Victory Bell and winning in Chapel Hill for the first time since 2017.
The fireworks came after Duke went from leading 24-10 to trailing 25-24.
UNC attempted an onside kick to start the second half and it didn’t go 10 yards. So, Duke only needed to go 44 yards for its third touchdown of the game — which was Anderson Castle’s second 1-yard plunge of the game.
That put Duke ahead 24-10 and meant all four times the Blue Devils’ offense had a full possession, it scored.
The Tar Heels answered, though, going 75 yards on 10 plays. Duke delivered several crushing blows to Gio Lopez on that drive, right down to a roughing call on his 20-yard touchdown to Jordan Shipp, and he kept firing darts.
Duke’s first possession without points reached midfield before a punt. The Blue Devils pinned UNC deep.
And then the Tar Heels went 91 yards in nine plays, scoring on Davion Gause’s 12-yard run. Seven of those nine plays gained between 11-16 yards, as Duke’s defense was just continually gashed.
A week after Virginia went 12-for-19 on third down to beat Duke, UNC started this game with a 13-play drive that included four third-down conversions. That ended with Gio Lopez’s 1-yard QB keeper for a touchdown and 7-0 lead.
There were two saving graces here:
– One, Duke scored all three times its offense was on the field in the first half. Those were a 1-yard touchdown run by Castle and a 14-yard touchdown pass from Darian Mensah to Jeremiah Hasley. And a 33-yard field goal by Todd Pelino.
– Two, Duke only allowed one more third down for the rest of the first half. The Blue Devils forced back-to-back three-and-outs, and then UNC hit a third-down conversion in the last two minutes. That helped set up Rece Verhoff’s 49-yard field goal in the waning seconds of the first half.
Duke took a 17-10 lead to halftime.
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