55-48 Duke, FINAL
Duke holds on to beat Virginia in this thriller. Check the print issue Monday morning for full game coverage.
55-48 Duke, 0:17 remaining in the fourth quarter
Verica just converted his own fourth-and-15, putting Virginia on the Duke 40 with little time remaining. But, the Cavaliers have two timeouts remaining.
55-48 Duke, 0:40 remaining in the fourth quarter
A fourth-and-20 conversion, plus a 40-yard Desmond Scott touchdown run have put the Blue Devils in the lead once again. Just an incredible turn of events for Duke, which can barely contain itself up and down the sideline. The few fans have been treated to an epic shootout, far and away the most exciting home game of the season.
Connette's two-point conversion run puts Duke up by 7.
48-47 Virginia, 1:20 remaining in the fourth quarter
Two consecutive sacks by Virginia have forced the Blue Devils to take their final timeout.
48-47 Virginia, 2:26 remaining in the fourth quarter
Keith Payne has been unstoppable today. Consecutive runs by Payne put the Cavaliers in the end zone yet again. The Blue Devils were able to stop the Cavaliers' two-point conversion, which was the first play of the drive not to be run by Payne.
Duke will start what likely will be the game's final drive at its own 9-yard line.
47-42 Duke, 3:55 remaining in the fourth quarter
Desmond Scott just suffered a massive hit on the Blue Devil 28-yard line, coughing up the football to Virginia's Nick Jenkins. Scott was laid out horizontally in midair by Cam Johnson, who grabbed the running back from behind, stopping him in his tracks before flipping him over. With just four minutes left, Duke will need to make its first real stop of the game.
47-42 Duke, 4:40 remaining in the fourth quarter
Just like Navy last week, Virginia has been extremely successful with a switch to a passing-only attack. Another touchdown in this shootout puts pressure on the Duke offense to put even more points on the board with just a few minutes left.
47-35 Duke, 6:08 remaining in the fourth quarter
Who says Sean Renfree can't run the ball? After the pocket collapsed in on him back at the Cavalier 40-yard line, Renfree slipped out towards the line of scrimmage and ran it through several great blocks in the secondary all the way to the end zone. His second rushing touchdown on the afternoon sent the sideline into a frenzy, coaches and players alike.
40-35 Duke, 8:40 remaining in the fourth quarter
Well, just in case anyone in Wallace Wade had begun heading for the exits, this one is still a close ballgame. Virginia just punished Duke's defense, gaining 78 yards on 9 plays with relative ease. Verica hit a wide-open Perry Jones in the flat, who ran it in from ten yards out. Aside from the interceptions, Duke's secondary has looked outmatched all day.
40-28 Duke, 12:28 remaining in the fourth quarter
Walt Canty just picked off a Verica pass over the middle, running it back to the Cavalier 15-yard line. It was a real floater of a pass over the middle that Canty stepped up and snagged before it could get to its intended target. After two conservative rushing plays, Renfree was forced to scramble out of the pocket down the far sideline, eventually trucking a member of the Virginia secondary before going down at the 1-yard line. On the next play, Renfree's sneak gave the Blue Devils the touchdown.
Cutcliffe decided to send Connette out to go for the two-point conversion, but for the first time all day, it seems, the freshman was stuffed at the line.
34-28 Duke, 0:17 remaining in the third quarter
Another solid drive by the Blue Devils. 10 plays and 48 yards took Duke down to the Cavalier 30, where Snyderwine's 47-yard field goal extended the lead.
31-28 Duke, 5:03 remaining in the third quarter
Ross Cockrell may have just made the defensive play of the season. Running away from the line of scrimmage, the cornerback tipped a pass up in the air twice before extending his entire body to make a diving catch, his second interception of the day (and it should have been his third)
Renfree is back in to lead the offense.
31-28 Duke, 6:16 remaining in the third quarter
Looks like Connette got a little antsy on the sideline. The freshman ripped off five straight quarterback keepers to bring Duke all the way down to the 10-yard line. He finally gave the ball to Varner, who was in motion back across the middle, who ran it in for the score.
Update: Renfree is standing on the sideline with his helmet on, apparently ready to go back in the game. He's still rotating his head back and forth, but looks ready to go.
28-24 Virginia, 8:45 remaining in the third quarter
And now Renfree is down. The sophomore is writhing in pain, clutching his face after being hit just after completing a pass across the middle. The trainers had him sit up and move his head back and forth, leading us to believe it was some sort of neck injury. But for now, Connette will lead the offense.
28-24 Virginia, 9:40 remaining in the third quarter
Conner Vernon is down on the field after returning the kickoff back to the 28-yard line, where he was clotheslined by LoVanté Battle. The training staff was out on the field before some players had even realized the play was over. Donovan Varner went out to check on Vernon, who was able to walk off the field under his own power after about 5 minutes. Again, we'll keep you updated if we hear anything.
28-24 Virginia, 9:48 remaining in the third quarter
Virginia took its first lead of the game on a 9-play, 96-yard touchdown drive. Verica's 19-yard touchdown pass to Kris Burd pushed the Cavaliers over 400 yards of total offense. Verica found his groove on the drive, spreading the ball to just about every receiver on the field.
24-21 Duke, 14:20 remaining in the third quarter
Duke started off the third quarter with a bang, as it successfully ran an onside kick for the third week in a row. Snyderwine's perfectly-executed kick bounced high in the air, into—then out of—Conner Vernon's hands, and finally was recovered by a pile of Blue Devils near midfield.
But, the Blue Devils quickly three-and-outed, and were forced to punt. Alex King hung a punt high in the air, leaving the coverage team plenty of time to surround the returner at the 4-yard line.
24-21 Duke, halftime
Key notes and stats
1. The Blue Devil defensive front must get better pressure on Cavalier quarterback Marc Verica. Verica is 11-20 for 171 yards, 1 TD and 1 interception on the day, but both times he has faced pressure he has thrown a ball into the hands of Ross Cockrell.
2. Cover Dontrelle Inman. The senior already has five catches for 106 yards, and no one else on the team has more than 19 yards receiving.
3. Sean Renfree has avoided making the errors in judgement that have plagued him in the past. Though his numbers aren't gaudy, he's 5-10 for 88 yards and one touchdown, he has been good about throwing the ball away when no options present themselves.
24-21 Duke, 0:24 remaining in the second quarter
Keith Payne came back to hurt the Blue Devils once again, but this time he did it through the air. On a play from the 8-yard line, Payne caught a pass over the middle near the 2-yard line, and shrugged off a tackle attempt by Walt Canty as he rumbled into the end zone.
24-14 Duke, 3:52 remaining in the second quarter
In an otherwise unproductive offensive possession, Connette play-faked, then hit Helfet deep down the middle for a 40-yard completion. A quick set of unsuccessful plays brought out Snyderwine, who converted the chip shot 29-yarder.
21-14 Duke, 5:57 remaining in the second quarter
Just after it looked like its drive was over, Virginia opened up the trick playbook on the field goal attempt. The holder flipped the ball over his head to the kicker Robert Randolph, who ran 20 yards untouched for the score. It's a brutal momentum swing against Duke, which had just seen Lee Butler make a huge play in the secondary to force the fourth down.
21-7 Duke, 9:03 remaining in the second quarter
Walt Canty just laid out a huge hit in the secondary, knocking down a receiver who was looking the other direction after making a catch. Canty got up slowly, and made it halfway across the field towards the bench before falling down in pain. He walked off the field holding his wrist with the trainers. We'll keep you updated.
21-7 Duke, 11:30 remaining in the first quarter
Renfree was forced back up the middle of the pocket on third down, and ended up getting sandwiched between two Virginia linemen. Tough hit for Renfree, and it forces the first Duke punt of the day. Illegal Cavalier blocks on the kick put them back within their own 10-yard line. Another penalty, this time for illegal formation, puts Virginia back on its own 4.
21-7 Duke, 13:06 remaining in the first quarter
Another personal foul penalty against the Cavaliers, the third already, stalls the drive at midfield, and will force the first punt of the game. Lee Butler took the kick about 30 yards, all the way back to the 42-yard line.
21-7 Duke, end of the first quarter
The first quarter ends with Virginia driving on its own 42-yard line. The enormous running back Payne is still proving to be the biggest problem for the Blue Devils.
21-7 Duke, 2:22 remaining in the first quarter
Connette took the ball 20 yards up the middle for a touchdown to cap off a big drive for the Blue Devils. The drive was highlighted by a pair of catches by Donovan Varner. Snyderwine missed his first extra point attempt, which was nullified by a false start penalty. He nailed the next attempt from five yard further back, keeping his perfect career record.
14-7 Duke, 6:32 remaining in the first quarter
Cockrell almost made up for his error earlier in the drive by apparently intercepting a ball in the end zone. No replay shown in the press box showed the ball hit the ground, but that's what the referees called. After review, the play was confirmed. And on the next snap, Keith Payne rumbled up the middle for the score, virtually untouched. The 6-foot-3, 255-lb senior hurt the Blue Devils the whole way down the field on the drive, dragging would-be tacklers all over the field.
14-0 Duke, 7:14 remaining in the first quarter
After not being tested at Navy, Duke's secondary again comes up short. Verica floated a apparently-hopeless pass down the near sideline to Dontrelle Inman, who was able to pull it down over Cockrell when the latter didn't turn his head to find the ball. The Blue Devil defense should be thankful for Virginia's penalties, which have cost it twenty yards on this drive alone.
14-0 Duke, 10:28 remaining in the first quarter
Well, the Blue Devils certainly didn't let the Cavaliers get any momentum back on the kickoff. Anthony Young-Wiseman sprinted untouched all the way from the kickoff, and laid out the Corey Mosley before he could cross the 15.
14-0 Duke, 10:36 remaining in the first quarter
Couldn't be a much better start for the Blue Devils. After the defensive line forced Virginia's Marc Verica out of the pocket, the quarterback threw off his back foot right into the waiting arms of Ross Cockrell. Cockrell was just tripped up just before getting into the end zone. On the first play from scrimmage, Brandon Connette bulldozed his way in for Duke's second touchdown in five minutes.
7-0 Duke, 11:25 remaining in the first quarter
Great start for the Blue Devil offense. Desmond Scott carried Duke across midfield with two runs and a big catch up the middle. After stalling around the Virginia 40, Renfree was hit after running out-of-bounds on third down, resulting in a 15-yard penalty. On the second play after the penalty, Renfree hit a wide-open Cooper Helfet down the near sideline for the game's first score.
Pregame:
Welcome to the Chronicle Sports Blog's live coverage of Duke vs. Virginia. It is cold here in Durham, and it has been raining lightly on and off all morning. I'd be surprised if there were more than 10,000 people here today; it seems nobody wanted to brave the elements.
No notable absences in either starting lineup.
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