LOUISVILLE, Ky.—Despite coming into Friday's contest against the Cardinals as 35-point underdogs, the Blue Devils have No. 7 Louisville on its heels at halftime.
Duke trails the Cardinals 10-7 after two quarters of play at Papa John's Cardinal Stadium. The Blue Devils took advantage of an eight-minute margin in time of possession to hold an explosive Louisville offense in check.
Although Heisman Trophy frontrunner Lamar Jackson has put up his usual gaudy stats with 129 yards passing and 52 yards on the ground, Duke's blitzes have affected the Boynton Beach, Fla., native. Jackson was just 8-of-16 passing, missing several key throws that could have extended drives. The Cardinals are just 3-of-7 on third downs.
It looked like Louisville was well on its way to another 60-point outburst following a 10-play, 80-yard touchdown drive to start the game, but the Blue Devils responded after a five-yard touchdown pass from Jackson to Jaylen Smith.
Redshirt freshman quarterback Daniel Jones hit sophomore T.J. Rahming for a 51-yard completion to set Duke up in Cardinals territory. From there, Jones took matters into his own hands with a 12-yard rush before finding tight end Erich Schneider on a play-action pass on third down to tie the game with a nine-yard strike.
After a 53-yard pass from Jackson moved Louisville to the Duke six-yard line on the subsequent drive, the Blue Devils came up with three consecutive stops to hold the Cardinals to a field goal.
Duke then chewed up almost eight minutes of clock on a long drive before special teams troubles hurt head coach David Cutcliffe's team once again.
The Blue Devils went on a 12-play, 45-yard drive that left Duke with a fourth-and-two from the Louisville 22-yard line. After initially lining up to go for it, the Blue Devils opted for a field goal, but freshman kicker A.J. Reed could not connect from 40 yards out to tie the game. He is now 3-of-7 on field goals this season.
Here are some observations from the first half:
- After leaving the Army game early with an injury, veteran running back Jela Duncan did not start the game despite being listed as probable. Duncan carried the ball for the first time early in the second quarter and finished with 28 yards on seven carries.
- The Cardinals have tried to take advantage of Duke's defense with one-on-one matchups against cornerback Bryon Fields downfield. Jackson completed a deep pass to Dawkins in the first quarter, but missed senior Jamari Staples on the next Louisville drive.
- Unable to build separation early in the game, the Cardinals looked frustrated in the second quarter, with a roughing the passer penalty and sloppy coverage on screens allowing the Blue Devils to get into field goal range.
- A rain shower sent people scrambling for cover late in the second quarter and could affect play-calling in the second half of this one.
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