After Navy's game-winning field goal sailed through the uprights as time expired last Saturday, the Blue Devils could not help but feel a sense of déjà vu.
Duke (1-3, 0-1 in the ACC) heads to Miami this weekend looking to avoid that feeling all over again, considering its game last Oct, 21 against the Hurricanes (3-1, 0-0) had been the team's most recent last-second defeat. With just three ticks on the clock, the Blue Devils were six yards and six points from victory, but quarterback Thaddeus Lewis threw his fourth interception of the game, and Miami escaped from Durham unscathed.
"I put us back into a situation to win the game," Lewis said. "But I wouldn't want to be in the same predicament again. If we get the opportunities we had last year to put the game away, we have to do it so it doesn't come down to the last play."
Despite putting on a veritable offensive clinic against the Midshipmen, Duke focused this week on improving its late-game output. Even though the team has averaged 22.5 points per game, it has yet to produce a fourth-quarter point. In contrast, the Blue Devils' four opponents have scored 48 combined points in the final quarter. Facing off against a Hurricanes team that has also had its troubles scoring late in the game, head coach Ted Roof recognized the importance of winning the small battles down the stretch.
"That's another area of emphasis," Roof said. "If you look at the quarter-by-quarter breakdown, we're a little bit behind in the first, a lot ahead in the second, [and] a little bit behind in the third. So, in the first three quarters of the football game overall, we've scored a lot more points than the teams we've played. The fourth quarter has been something we haven't performed very well in. We've got to find a way to close the football game and play the fourth quarter."
Offensively, the Blue Devils have tended to beat themselves late in games with turnovers and penalties. Additionally, many successful drives have resulted in zero points because of the kicking game's inability to convert even short field goals, something Roof said is responsible for some of Duke's losses over the last few years.
Defensively, Duke has struggled to capitalize on the third-and-long situations. This was epitomized in last week's performance against Navy when the Blue Devils pushed the Midshipmen into 19 third-down situations but only stopped them seven times, four of which resulted in either a first down or field goal. Roof said these missed chances add up over the long run and can spell disaster for a team's success.
"What's happened is on the average, the opposition is running 80 plays a game, and we're running an average of 60," Roof said. "So when you do the math, it's 100 extra yards of offense, and that's seven to 10 points. That's been the margin in a couple of our football games. We've got to do a better job on third down."
Despite the team's apparent room for improvement, the Blue Devils are still optimistic about the progress they have had so far this season, especially on offense. The 43-point, 438-passing-yard outpouring against Navy nearly doubled the team's totals from the first three games combined. Nevertheless, as Duke heads into the remainder of its ACC schedule, the competition will only get tougher and the games more meaningful.
The next step toward salvaging this season would be a win against Miami in the Orange Bowl, preferably sans drama.
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