SOUTH BEND, Ind. - The stage was set, the cameras were rolling and the nation was watching as Duke took the field for one of its most highly anticipated games in recent history. Before long, though, the Blue Devils' performance was as dreary as the weather hanging overhead at Notre Dame Stadium Saturday.
Plagued by the same symptoms with which the Duke faithful have become all-too-familiar, the team committed back-breaking mistakes, failed to convert opportunities and made the Fighting Irish appear more like the national-title contenders they have been in the past.
"Those guys just came out and outplayed us today," quarterback Thaddeus Lewis said. "The score on the scoreboard speaks for itself. We can't feel it should have been a closer game when we didn't put up enough points to make it a close game."
The Blue Devils displayed another classic case of how an ineffective offense can lead to the demise of its own defense. For the sixth time this season, Duke had at least 15 fewer snaps than its opponent. Half of the Blue Devils' 12 drives lasted just four plays or less, forcing the defense to stay on the extremely wet and muddy field longer than it would have liked.
Duke showed some wear and tear when Notre Dame shifted gears in the second half and concentrated on running the ball straight up and down, effectively daring the Blue Devils to stop it. When the Fighting Irish marched 69 yards for a touchdown in the third quarter by rushing the ball on 10 of their 13 plays, it became clear Duke was out of gas and out of answers.
"They found creases in the holes that weren't covered by us," defensive lineman Vince Oghobaase said. "That's a part of football. You find weaknesses in the defense and you execute that. They did a good job doing that, and I give all the credit to Notre Dame."
But the Fighting Irish certainly got some help. Even in the game's most pivotal two minutes when Notre Dame broke the scoreless tie and headed into halftime with a 14-0 lead, the Blue Devils did their part in facilitating the soon-to-be rout. Both of Notre Dame's scoring drives came as the result of two Duke fumbles.
As the rain picked up and the Blue Devils' passing offense had trouble clicking-evidenced by fumbled snaps, dropped passes and misthrows-Fighting Irish head coach Charlie Weis noted the importance of those two quick strikes.
"In the first half going into the locker room, I think that those two scores right before halftime really changed the complexion of the game," he said.
It transformed a game that looked promising, albeit ugly, into one that seemed out of reach, despite just a two-touchdown differential. Although Duke had somewhat earned a 'second-half team' moniker this season, it never really showed any indication of coming back against Notre Dame. An inability to convert third downs, a proclivity for giving up the big play and turning the ball over at the exact wrong moment were yet again the most critical reasons for the Blue Devils' 10th loss this season.
But in this game, especially, there was not that sign of life fans had seen many times before, no flash of hope and no sense of almost turning the corner. Instead, the Blue Devils did not seem like they could even see the corner from where they were standing.
Perhaps Oghobaase, who repeatedly said his team got its butt kicked after the game, put it best.
"Notre Dame came out to play, and we didn't," he said. "Point blank."
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