FINAL: Kansas 44, Duke 16: Some quick stats here at the end of the game. The Blue Devils finished 4-for-18 on 3rd downs, but still amassed 394 yards of total offense, 299 in the air and 95 on the ground. Todd Reesing of Kansas was 28-of-41 for 338 yards and 3 touchdowns, carrying the ball 8 times for 51 yards. Thaddeus Lewis led Duke with 184 yards, 16 completions on 27 attempts, as well as 2 interceptions.
2:14 4th Quarter: Kansas 44, Duke 16: Toben Opurum runs in another one for Kansas, this game is all but over. We'll sign off now and head down to get Coach Cutcliffe's thoughts on this one, a game where the Blue Devils were completely overmatched by their Big 12 foe.
3:09 4th Quarter: Kansas 37, Duke 16: Jay Hollingsworth running with purpose here in the 4th quarter, reeling off consecutive 7- and 10-yard runs. Kansas' Reesing is now 28-of-41 for 338 yards and 3 touchdowns, and has 8 rushing attempts for 51 yards. Dezmon Briscoe leads in the receiving category with 6 catches for 117 yards and 1 touchdown. Memorial Stadium is pretty empty at this point, as the Jayhawks have the game in hand. Kale Pick enters the game at quarterback for the Jayhawks.
9:22 4th Quarter: Kansas 37, Duke 16: The Blue Devils showing a little pizazz of their own here, as Donovan Varner makes a great move on his defender and leaps up to snag a Sean Renfree pass in the end zone. Kansas has called a time out as Duke lines up to go for two.... Lewis rolls right on the two-point attempt, throwing the ball into the chest of the Jayhawks' Chris Harris who knocks the ball down to end the attempt.
10:57 4th Quarter: Kansas 37, Duke 10: The Blue Devils are driving nicely here as we approach the end. Renfree just crushed a Duke ball boy as he ran out of bounds, earning our "Hit of the Day" honors. All indications are that the quarterback and the ball boy are alright.
0:23 3rd Quarter: Kansas 37, Duke 10: With the help of a holding penalty, the Blue Devils limited the Jayhawks to a field goal on this drive. Upset special to watch: early in the 4th Quarter, No. 8 California is tied with Minnesota in Minneapolis.
2:06 3rd Quarter: Kansas 34, Duke 10: Kansas is just simply more skilled than Duke. On a short swing pass, running back Toben Opurum made a slick one-handed grab along the sideline, then ran for another 10 yards down to the Blue Devils' 18-yard line. The Jayhawks seem to be quicker at every position, and their execution has been stellar since they broke the 7-7 tie in the second quarter.
4:39 3rd Quarter: Kansas 34, Duke 10: A failed attempt on 4th-and-6 will give Kansas the ball back on their own 28-yard line. Renfree was drilled on the play, as the swarming Jayhawk defense has dictated much of the play this afternoon.
6:02 3rd Quarter: Kansas 34, Duke 10: Austin Kelly makes a key catch on the sideline to keep the drive alive for Duke on 3rd-and-8, the Blue Devils are now down to the Kansas 32-yard line. Hall of Famer Gale Sayers, a Kansas alum, has made an appearance here today--much to the delight of the home fans.
7:30 3rd Quarter: Kansas 34, Duke 10: 50,101 are chanting "Rock Chalk Jayhawk" here at Memorial Stadium, and the home team is cruising. Toben Opurum took the ball four yards for the score on that drive, and the Jayhawks are leaving the Blue Devils in the dust.
7:39 3rd Quarter: Kansas 27, Duke 10: Reesing just had an incredible scramble for Kansas, nearly falling as he spun around Duke's John Drew, then sliding inside the Duke 5-yard line for a first down.
11:25 3rd Quarter: Kansas 27, Duke 10: Lewis returns to the field, and marches Duke down into Kansas territory quickly. From the no-huddle, the intermediate passing game shined until the Blue Devils got inside the 30-yard line, where two incompletions in the end zone limited Duke to a 38-yard field goal by Will Snyderwine.
12:58 3rd Quarter: Kansas 27, Duke 7: Lewis severely underthrew Donovan Varner on a crossing route, putting the ball right in the chest of Kansas defensive end Maxwell Onyegbule, who ran it back 48 yards for the score. During the ensuing TV timeout, we were treated to our first "Rock Chalk Jayhawk" of the day.
HALFTIME: Kansas 20, Duke 7: After a miscommunication on the kick return, Johnny Williams took town Patrick Kurunwune, as the latter fielded the kick. The Blue Devils have some things to figure out as they head into the locker room, notably how to inject life into a sputtering offense that started strong but recently can't seem to net a single first down. Most alarming for the Blue Devils: Todd Reesing was 17-of-27 for 210 yards and 3 touchdowns in the first half. Duke's quarterbacks were a combined 11-of-17 for only 118 yards, 66 of which came on the first play from scrimmage. Reesing is also the game's leading rusher, with 5 attempts for 26 yards. Kansas has scored 20 unanswered points as we head to the second half.
1:16 2nd Quarter: Kansas 20, Duke 7: Kerry Meier comes up big again for the Jayhawks, this time making a spectacular diving catch in the middle of the end zone. Kansas covered 75 yards on 9 plays in just 2 minutes, 47 seconds. Reesing seems to be reading the Duke defense more easily now, even though the Blue Devils went to a variation of the 4-2-5 defense in the red zone. Duke lined up with four down lineman, backed by Kromah and Rey, with Wright and Rwabukamba at corner, Walt Canty and Catron Gainey at safety, and Matt Daniels alternating between a nickel corner and a short safety. It will be interesting to see if Duke goes back to this three-safety set in the second half.
4:11 2nd Quarter: Kansas 13, Duke 7: Another 3-and-out from the Blue Devils. Jay Hollingsworth saw his first action of the game, but couldn't inject any life into a mediocre offensive performance. Duke is seeing a lot of forced throws from its quarterbacks, as the receivers can't seem to get open and can't get their hands on the ball when they do have separation.
4:59 2nd Quarter: Kansas 13, Duke 7: Despite a big hit from Leon Wright at the goal-line, Jake Sharp lunges into the end zone after catching a short pass from Reesing for the Kansas touchdown. The Blue Devils' Charlie Hatcher blocked the extra point, and Chris Rwabukamba returned the loose ball into Kansas territory, but was knocked out of bounds by the Jayhawks' Kerry Meier. Lewis is back under center for Duke, as the Blue Devils start from their own 31-yard line.
5:55 2nd Quarter: Duke 7, Kansas 7: Reesing finally completes the deep ball he's been looking for, a 45-yard connection with Briscoe down to the Duke 6-yard line. 1st-and-goal for the Jayhawks.
8:01 2nd Quarter: Duke 7, Kansas 7: After Renfree went 3-and-out in his first attempt with the Duke Offense, the Jayhawks' drive stalls as well. Following the Kansas punt, the Blue Devils will start this drive on their own 4-yard line with Renfree under center again. Does anyone know of anything exciting to do in Lawrence?
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.
11:58 2nd Quarter: Duke 7, Kansas 7: Sean Renfree enters the game for the first time for the Blue Devils. He'll start the drive from his own 31-yard line.
14:54 2nd Quarter: Duke 7, Kansas 7: Defensive end Patrick Egboh gets to Reesing for the sack on 4th down, Duke now takes over on their own 26-yard line. Both teams are running a similar version of the spread offense so far, with the quarterback in the shotgun, one running back, and three or four wideouts. There's been a heavy dose of short to intermediate passes, with designed quarterback runs mixed in. This game certainly has the potential to turn into an aerial shootout at any time.
0:00 1st Quarter: Duke 7, Kansas 7: The offensive flurry has settled down here as we reach the end of the 1st Quarter. Coach Mark Mangino now faces a tough decision, with the Jayhawks facing 4th-and-4 at the Blue Devils' 25-yard line. Reesing appears to be arguing to go for it, no sign yet from Mangino here at the break as the officials move the ball to the other end.
4:18 1st Quarter: Duke 7, Kansas 7: After an incompletion on 3rd-and-3, Lewis made a plea to go for it on 4th down. After a flurry of signal waving, the Blue Devils sent out Will Snyderwine and the kick team, before calling timeout to talk things over. Following the timeout, Lewis and the offense return to the field.... The 4th-and-3 pass attempt is tipped incomplete, the Jayhawks take over on their own 37-yard line.
7:10 1st Quarter: Duke 7, Kansas 7: The Jayhawks moved the ball easily this drive, as quarterback Todd Reesing showed his skills with his feet and his arm, covering 60 yards on 7 plays. The scoring play was a short pass to star receiver Dezmon Briscoe, who turned the ball upfield for a 14-yard touchdown.
9:46 1st Quarter: Duke 7, Kansas 0: On Duke's second play from scrimmage, Thaddeus Lewis runs through the gap between left guard and center on a quarterback draw for a 21-yard touchdown. Two plays, 87 yards, and the Blue Devils jump out to the early lead in front of a stunned Kansas crowd.
10:08 1st Quarter: Duke 0, Kansas 0: On Duke's first play from scrimmage, Austin Kelly turns a short slant into a 66-yard gain down the far sideline. The Blue Devils will now see 1st-and-10 from the Jayhawks' 21-yard line.
11:50 1st Quarter: Duke 0, Kansas 0: We're underway here in Lawrence, Kan. The Blue Devils kicked off to start the game, Kansas now faces 3rd-and-7 at their own 46-yard line. The Jayhawks have used their first timeout to talk things over. Conditions are optimal today, a light breeze blowing across the field, sunny skies, and temperatures expected to reach the high 70's.