For seven hours, yesterday's 17-16 loss to Virginia Tech stuck with the Duke football team.
Everything it had done right in to jump out to an 8-1 record went awry at Wallace Wade Stadium Saturday afternoon.
The Blue Devils had only turned the ball over six times this season. Anthony Boone had been improving throughout the team's four game win streak and threw two uncharacteristic interceptions. Then there was DeVon Edwards, who was expected to take kicks to the house, not cough up the ball deep in his own territory in the fourth quarter.
Duke's offensive line was the best in the nation entering the game in terms of sacks and tackles for loss, but was manhandled in the second half by a Hokie defense that made itself at home in the Blue Devil backfield, registering four sacks and nine tackles for loss on the afternoon.
And the final domino fell when Ross Martin, who was the ACC's only perfect field goal kicker coming into the game, missed a pair of field goals, including a 40-yard field goal that sailed wide left of the goalpost with less than three minutes to play.
They no longer had an inside shot at the ACC Coastal Division title and did not improve to 9-1 for the first time since 1940. And then Miami, who moved into first place after the Blue Devils' loss, took a commanding 23-7 lead on No. 3 Florida State, looking poised to prevent Duke from controlling its own destiny.
Many fans and experts questioned Duke's rise in the Coastal Division standings as a fluke and pondered what impact the Miami game would have on the Blue Devils' once-high postseason expectations.
Since when was Duke football not allowed to drop a one-point game?
Instead of wondering what could have been, head coach David Cutcliffe absorbed his team's underwhelming performance as a learning experience that could eventually help define his team later in the season.
"When you are an 8-2 football team, you are a lot better than most," he said. "You have to learn how to fail. Failure can never be fine. By having a fast turnaround its almost like having a life lesson. You don’t stay down in this world and become successful."
The effects of the team's failure were not felt for long. Heisman Trophy winner Jameis Winston and the Seminoles roared back to win 30-26, dealing the Hurricanes their third ACC loss of the season, one more than the Blue Devils.
So on those terms, Duke is in nearly the same position it was before Saturday's loss to the Hokies. Facing a short week and a second chance, the Blue Devils are determined to put the mistake-prone loss behind them and bounce back to put themselves in a position to win the ACC Coastal Division.
"It is the only choice we have. We can’t really sit back and relate to this game because we have North Carolina coming up in less than five days, so we have to get our stuff together and move on from this," defensive end Dezmond Johnson said. "It’s okay to think about it a little bit, but we will get a quick start tomorrow, getting ready for UNC."
Although disappointed, Cutcliffe seemed determined to put the loss behind him and quickly start a new week. Duke's most intense practice of the week normally comes on Tuesday, but with the short week, Cutcliffe and his squad began to refer to Sunday as Tuesday in order to put the loss behind them and focus on their Tobacco Road rival.
The loss comes at a rather opportune time—the Blue Devils can get the tough loss out of their minds and can now focus on getting to Charlotte for the second straight year. With their backs against the wall and both Miami and Georgia Tech on their tails, they have to move forward.
The Yellow Jackets knocked off Clemson 28-6 to finish with a 6-2 record in conference play, meaning that if Duke falters, Georgia Tech will take its place in Charlotte against the Seminoles Dec. 6.
Any slim hopes of making the College Football Playoff may be out the door and Orange Bowl aspirations may be no more. But there is no doubt that Duke football still has something to play for: a second straight 10-win season, an ACC Championship appearance and while we are on the topic of second chances —a second chance at upsetting Florida State.
Although a loss may be a setback, it is by no means the end of glory for the Blue Devils. That's why putting a loss behind them and putting themselves in a position to win their final two games is so important.
Happy early Tuesday Duke football.
"It may affect me a little bit tonight, but tomorrow it will not," Cutcliffe said. "Tomorrow is Tuesday. We have never carried a loss to a Tuesday in any game preparation I have been around as a coach. We will not with this one."
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