MIAMI — Duke seemingly had it all going for three quarters—a quick-strike offense, a defense that forced mistakes and a significant coaching advantage.
But there were warning signs that trouble could brew in the fourth quarter. Miami running back Damien Berry, who had just one rush for one yard at halftime, ran for 47 yards on just six carries in the third quarter.
And as effective as the Blue Devils had been in getting down the field, they were just as inefficient in finding the end zone with only one touchdown to show for five trips into Hurricanes’ territory.
Those two problems, combined with two questionable officiating decisions that proved to be momentum-changing, undid Duke’s upset chances and bowl hopes as No. 19 Miami scored 21 unanswered points in the final period of a 34-16 victory Saturday afternoon at Land Shark Stadium.
With the loss to the Hurricanes (8-3, 5-3 in the ACC), the Blue Devils (5-6, 3-4) will not play in a bowl game and will have only pride and the program’s first non-losing season since 1994 to play for next Saturday against Wake Forest.
“We had nine seniors on this team trying to get an experience they’ve never had before, so it hurts,” quarterback Thaddeus Lewis said. “It’s frustrating to let a win slip away. That’s more frustrating than [losing to Miami].”
Making the loss all the more frustrating was how effective the gameplan for attacking Miami turned out to be. Duke’s receivers, covered man-to-man for the majority of the game, had no problems getting past the Hurricanes’ cornerbacks and linebackers for big gains between the 20-yard lines.
But once the Blue Devils’ offense reached the red zone, it stalled out severely, as Duke’s biggest advantage—using the field to spread out Miami—dissipated and the game became a battle of whose athletes would perform better, head coach David Cutcliffe said.
As it was, Cutcliffe didn’t even know if his offense would have Lewis to lead the unit. Already without backup Sean Renfree due to an ACL tear, Duke did not have the senior quarterback available for practice all week because of a bad ankle, and even Friday Cutcliffe wasn’t sure if he would play.
“I was real thrilled after Tuesday or Wednesday when I asked how he was and he said, ‘Well, I can get in my car now,’” Cutcliffe said. “He is the toughest guy you’d ever want to find in a football game.”
Lewis said while his mobility wasn’t fully there, he was able to do what he needed to do to keep offensive drives alive.
Aside from running back Desmond Scott, who had a handful of nice returns and decent runs, and Donovan Varner, who had eight catches for 165 yards and a touchdown, he didn’t get a whole lot of help on the offensive end.
But if it weren’t for a defensive meltdown in the second half, the offense’s output may have done the job. The Hurricanes only had 10 points at halftime—points Miami was lucky to have, given that Leon Wright muffed a punt deep in Duke territory and Charlie Hatcher deflected a pass that wound up in the hands of Tervaris Johnson for a touchdown.
After the break, though, Berry became the focus of the Hurricanes’ offense. The junior picked up the tough yards on the ground, and when Miami needed a third-down conversion, quarterback Jacory Harris looked in the direction of tight end Jimmy Graham, whose five catches all led to a first down. The Hurricanes scored on every offensive possession in the second half except for the final drive, when they simply killed the clock.
The biggest momentum swing—and all of the problems that had been kept under wraps up to that point—came midway through the fourth quarter when what could easily have been a three-point Duke lead quickly became an 18-point advantage for Miami. Facing 2nd-and-goal from Miami’s 7-yard line, Lewis looked to hit running back Jay Hollingsworth for a screen pass. Hollingsworth, though, was knocked down, so Lewis threw the ball at his feet, which Cutcliffe said every quarterback is trained to do.
The referees called intentional grounding on Lewis, moving Duke outside the 10-yard line. On the ensuing play, Varner drew a lot of contact from a Hurricane linebacker on a slant pass, but did not draw a pass interference call. The normally stoic Cutcliffe went irate on the sideline, throwing his headset to the ground and yelling at the referees.
Kicker Will Snyderwine then missed a chip shot 31-yard field goal, and Miami scored five plays later to make it a two-possession game. When linebacker Darryl Sharpton returned a Lewis interception for a 73-yard touchdown barely a minute later, any chance at the win disappeared.
But as he has the entire season, Cutcliffe kept his head high through disappointment and defeat, and refused to declare the season over.
“The score had nothing to do with the ball game,” he said. “These seniors, they’d been 1-23. I don’t know that anyone anywhere can appreciate what they’ve done. They’ve set a precedent for a whole lot of people. That’s why I’m so hurt for them today.”
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