Extra point: Duke football powers past Northwestern with pair of overtime touchdowns

In its second game of the regular season, Duke football escaped with a 26-20 victory against Northwestern. The Blue Zone is here to break down the victory with three key takeaways, stats and a look ahead:

Three key takeaways

1. Another slow start

Duke’s first away game of the season was marked by yet another all-around slow start. The offense struggled to gain momentum early, with quarterback Maalik Murphy completing only 13 passes for 52 yards in the first half. The Wildcats’ aggressive run game also took the Blue Devil defense by surprise. A 44-yard rush by Northwestern running back Cam Porter, followed by a field goal, had the Wildcats up by three within the first few minutes of play. When safety Terry Moore intercepted a deep pass to secure the visitors’ first takeaway of the season and saw the offense follow up with a touchdown, it seemed as if Duke was finally finding its groove. This hope was short-lived, as Northwestern quickly responded with a touchdown of its own to end the half on top. Although the Blue Devils’ slow starts against both Elon and the Wildcats didn’t prove to be decisive, it is only a matter of time before tougher opponents put them to the test.

2. Special teams struggles

In addition to early offensive struggles, Duke special teams made two uncharacteristic mistakes that could have been costly for the Blue Devils. After redshirt freshman Que’Sean Brown muffed a second-quarter punt, the Wildcats recovered the ball at the 11-yard line before delivering their first touchdown of the night. At the start of the third quarter, a punt by Kade Reynoldson was blocked and recovered to set up a 29-yard field goal attempt for Northwestern. While the Wildcats failed to score in the short-field situation, lapses in focus from special teams could have made a much larger difference in such a tight game.

3. Overcoming adversity

Despite these missteps, Duke’s offense stepped up when it mattered most. The Blue Devils’ two touchdowns in overtime play won them the game, demonstrating the team’s ability to overcome adversity early on in its season. Murphy proved himself capable of performing under pressure after completing a 25-yard pass to receiver Jordan Moore to tie the game at 20-20, forcing a second overtime. The redshirt sophomore followed this up with a 3-yard back-shoulder pass to Eli Pancol that put the Blue Devils up by six points before Northwestern’s final drive. The Duke defense sealed the deal soon after, putting pressure on Wildcat quarterback Mike Wright that resulted in an incomplete pass to end the game. After a runaway victory against Elon last week, this Duke team showed that it can battle it out and ultimately come out on top.

Duke’s defense continued its impressive trend of racking up tackles for loss, accumulating a total of 11 during Friday night’s matchup. Particularly following the blocked punt, as well as the interception by Northwestern’s Theran Johnson, the Blue Devils’ efforts to stop the Wildcats from scoring were crucial. This resiliency displayed by the defense is what ultimately gave Murphy the opportunity to take home the victory.

3. 121 receiving yards

Jordan Moore totaled 121 receiving yards against Northwestern, including one touchdown in the first overtime. This tops his impressive 112-yard performance against Elon just last week. Moore is undoubtedly a key player for the Duke attack, now with three seasons of experience under his belt.

Looking ahead

The Blue Devils will host Connecticut at home Saturday for its third game of the regular season. The squad from Durham will look to remain undefeated by repeating history, as Duke beat the Huskies 41-7 last season.