A great defense can only do so much.
In its first matchup against a ranked team all season, Duke fell 28-27 against No. 22 SMU Saturday night. Despite forcing six fumbles, three interceptions and an impressive goal-line stand, the Blue Devils faltered repeatedly on offense and eventually lost in overtime.
"For those guys in that locker room, it's a lot of emotions. It's sadness, anger, confusion, whatever you can feel, they feel," head coach Manny Diaz said after the game. "And there's another emotion; there's an immense pride to be a part of a team that will battle like our guys will. [I'm] proud to be their head football coach."
It was hard to tell which team was more confident heading into the overtime period. On one hand, Duke forced turnovers on each of SMU’s final three possessions in regulation. But, none of those ended in points for the home team, and the Blue Devils ended regulation on a sour blocked field goal.
The Blue Devils elected to start on defense, but could not carry over their momentum from regulation. Just two plays into the Mustangs’ drive, running back Brashard Smith hit a hole and exploded for a 24-yard touchdown.
Redshirt sophomore quarterback Maalik Murphy had an immediate response, finding graduate receiver Eli Pancol on a go route for a score. Possibly due to errors in the kicking game all night, Duke elected to forgo an extra point and end the game right there.
On a two-point conversion play that held the game’s fate in its hands, Murphy could not connect with Pancol. He rolled out and seemed to possibly have room to scramble, but he instead tried to squeeze a throw in a tight window and missed by inches.
The fourth quarter was characterized by one thing: SMU turnovers.
First, just as he did against North Carolina, linebacker Tre Freeman came up with a big interception over the middle of the field
But the Blue Devils stalled out at the 25-yard line, and kicker Todd Pelino missed his second try of the night. Instead of taking its first lead since the second quarter, Duke now needed another stop from its defense.
Just as he did on the last possession, SMU quarterback Kevin Jennings sent a pass over the middle of the field on third down. And, just as it had on the last possession, the ball ended up in the hands of a Blue Devil. This time it was junior cornerback Chandler Rivers, who dove for his second interception of the year.
Then it was Cameron Bergeron. Jennings elected to run this time — but he couldn’t keep it out of harm's way. Bergeron jarred the ball loose and Ozzie Nicholas recovered, setting Duke up in a position to run down the clock for a game-winning field goal.
The pressure was going to be on Pelino, who had already missed two field goals to that point. This one, a 30-yard chip shot, left his foot low and was blocked as time expired.
"We just got to continue to support him, and he knows that. Todd is a great teammate, and we're going to continue to be great teammates to him," defensive tackle Kendy Charles said.
Trailing by two scores, Duke was desperate for a big play. While Murphy appeared far more confident than he did against Florida State, the Blue Devils had gone six drives without points.
Despite the pressure of the moment, the Texas transfer remained calm in the pocket and picked apart the Mustangs’ defense. First, it was a first-down pass to the sideline for Javon Harvey. Then, Jordan Moore hauled in an 18-yard gain. Moore made another impressive grab a few plays later, securing the ball at the goal line with his man draped all over him to bring Duke back within one score. However, a missed extra-point try from Pelino meant the Blue Devils trailed by eight instead of seven.
After a quick stop from the defense and an impressive punt return from Que’Sean Brown, Murphy and the offense got right back to work. Running back Star Thomas got things started with three strong runs, then Murphy floated the ball up 22 yards to his favorite target of the night in Pancol — who finished the night with 11 receptions for 138 yards.
Jake Taylor — who started the year as the third-string tight end — caught the next first-down pass to bring Duke to the SMU 8-yard line, and Thomas bullied his way into the end zone three plays later. Murphy continued his hot streak by finding Pancol for the two-point conversion, who lept in the air to secure the catch and tie the game at 21.
To start the second half, a quick three-and-out followed by what looked to be an instant SMU score deflated the home crowd at Wallace Wade stadium. Roderick Daniels Jr. hauled in a crossing route in traffic, then bursted forward with nothing but green in front of him. Chandler Rivers and Alex Howard tracked him down at the 1-yard line — setting up the biggest series of the night to that point.
The Mustangs lined up four times with inches to gain for a touchdown, and Duke’s defensive front stood strong all four times. What was a momentum-swinging touchdown became a gritty show of resolve from the Blue Devils, who pride themselves on physical play.
"We already knew what time it was," Charles said. "We take pride in the D-line, the front four and the front seven, if you give us an inch, we're gonna take a mile. All we need is an inch to defend."
But another empty drive from the offense meant a similar story had a different ending. This time, SMU’s breakaway passing play did end in a score, as Daniels streaked into the end zone without a Duke defender coming within five yards of him, giving the Mustangs a 21-7 lead.
From the beginning, Duke’s offense looked different. With an urgency absent for weeks Murphy led a textbook drive, complete with slants, screens and a beautiful deep shot. After connecting with Pancol a few times to get into SMU territory, Murphy lined up a shot down the seam to Brown — supported by a key block from running back Peyton Jones. The young wideout dropped a similar ball on the first drive, but this time Murphy dropped it perfectly into his hands for the game’s opening score.
The Blue Devils nearly came up with their second goal-line stand, but Brashard Smith would not be denied. The running back caught a pitch on fourth down and broke a few tackles to score.
On the following drive, the Mustangs benefited from some missed chances from Duke. Even on SMU’s scoring play, Duke nearly came up with the ball. Jennings fumbled the ball at the goal line but recovered it across the line to put his team up by seven.
The Blue Devils once again came up empty on offense, but the defense made two big plays before halftime. Linebacker Cameron Bergeron camped over the middle of the field and snagged an errant pass at Duke’s 45-yard line. Then, Tre Freeman brought the boom on tight end Matthew Hibner to force the ball loose. Despite the excitement in the first half’s final minutes, Duke missed out on any points and went into the locker room trailing 14-7.
The Blue Devils’ schedule does not get any easier, as they will travel to Coral Gables, Fla., to take on No. 6 Miami.
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Dom Fenoglio is a Trinity junior and a sports managing editor of The Chronicle's 120th volume.