After last Saturday's ugly 17-16 loss to Virginia Tech, many thought Thursday's prime time matchup with their arch rival would provide the Blue Devils with the perfect bounce back opportunity.
Not quite.
North Carolina defeated No. 25 Duke 45-20 Thursday night at Wallace Wade Stadium. After threatening early, the Blue Devils were shut down on both sides of the ball for the remainder of the game, crushing their dreams of returning to the ACC Championship. With the loss, Georgia Tech clinches the Coastal Division spot in the title game and will take on Florida State Dec. 6 in Charlotte.
"Tonight, we just got outplayed," head coach David Cutcliffe said. "I don't think there's anything you can explain. You've got to learn from it, you've got to see what you can do better, but on the grass out there, in every aspect, they did a better job than we did."
Led by junior quarterback Marquise Williams—who went 18-of-27 for 287 yards and two scores through the air—North Carolina (6-5, 4-3 in the ACC) dominated what had been regarded as one of the top defenses in the ACC, racking up 591 yards before the night was over.
The game was not always slanted in the Tar Heels' favor, though, as it seemed like Duke would strike first Thursday night. After it forced North Carolina into a three-and-out on its first possession, senior Jamison Crowder exploded on the following punt for a 30-yard return to the Tar Heel 44-yard line on the ensuing punt.
But, just like last week, turnovers killed the Blue Devils.
Short-yardage specialist Thomas Sirk came into the game on second-and-seven and fumbled the ball away following a jarring hit from Nazair Jones, giving North Carolina the ball at its own 22-yard line.
"We were going into the game thinking quarterback runs were going to be good for us," Cutcliffe said. "We felt like it was a good change up and an opportunity to pop a run where he's not seeing a short-yardage front. He got a normal front. And he's really good as a ball security guy—he's a big, strong guy. They had a guy that came off a block and happened to just get it flushed and it came out."
The Tar Heels would not squander their second possession, driving 78 yards in 3:44, capping the drive with a four-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Marquise Williams to Quinshad Davis.
The Blue Devil woes would not end there, as Boone would fumble the ball on the second play from scrimmage on the ensuing drive. North Carolina's Tim Scott scooped up the loose ball and returned it 10 yards to put the Tar Heels up 14-0 with just 7:19 left in the first quarter.
"We just didn't take care of the football," Boone said. "We didn't take care of the football and they scored early off our mistakes. That was very imminent.... When we took care of the football, we could draw it out and do whatever we want. But early on, we didn't execute, they played off our mistakes and that kind of was the turn of the game. The gap got too big and it was hard to catch up."
But Duke would not roll over, answering with a 10-play, 75-yard drive of its own. Boone found redshirt senior Issac Blakeney across the middle of the field for a 10-yard score to cut the lead in half.
That was as close as the Blue Devils would be for the rest of the night.
The Tar Heel attack was unrelenting, scoring on its next two drives to make it four consecutive drives ending in with North Carolina touchdowns. Just two minutes into the second quarter, the Tar Heels led 28-7.
"At the beginning of the game, we made some fundamental mistakes, fumbling the ball, not taking care of the ball," junior running back Shaquille Powell said. "UNC played great, they played real hungry, and we didn't play like we wanted to go to the ACC Championship game and beat these guys."
As much as the game was about Duke's turnovers, it may have been even more about its inability to capitalize on North Carolina mistakes.
After the Tar Heels scored on four of their first five drives, the Blue Devils would force three-straight North Carolina fumbles in the second quarter. Despite having three opportunities to get back in the contest, Duke squandered each possession, as the first two ended in punts. The Blue Devils could not get anything going off of the third turnover and just ran out the clock to go into halftime down 28-7.
"It's always frustrating when you can't answer," Boone said. "We're pretty well-known for answering the bell. If teams score, we're pretty known for at least getting points back.... We didn't execute as well as we needed to, and that's what it all comes down to."
Despite being down by 21 and having no momentum, Duke fans stuck around with hopes that it would get better. Unfortunately for the packed house, the second half was just as ugly.
After both teams combined for 16 possessions in the first half, the second half would slow down, with the squads combining for just eight possessions.
Duke's initial drive ended with a North Carolina interception, and the Tar Heels would make Boone and the Blue Devils pay with a 15-play, 68-yard drive capped by a one-yard plunge by T.J. Logan into the end zone.
The Tar Heels would tack on another field goal before Duke found the end zone again, as Jamison Crowder hauled in am 18-yard toss from Boone to cut the lead to 38-14. Sirk and the Blue Devils would strike once more, as he powered ahead with 8:21 left in the game.
The Blue Devils will have one final chance to end their regular season on a high note Nov. 29 at home against Wake Forest before playing in a bowl game for the third consecutive season.
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