After a tough pair of losses to SMU and Miami, Duke made the short trip to Raleigh to face off against N.C. State. After the first half, the Blue Devils have a 12-9 lead:
Five observations
Bouncing back: The Blue Devils have lost a pair of heartbreakers in the last two weeks. Duke fell in overtime to SMU, then led midway through the third quarter against the Hurricanes before getting blown out in the final period. Now, against a slightly weaker Wolfpack squad playing on its senior night, the visitors looked good in the first 30 minutes. It was also a sort of homecoming for head coach Manny Diaz, who began his coaching career with N.C. State as a linebackers coach. Wolfpack graduate running back Jordan Waters, who spent most of his college career in Durham but transferred after the 2023-24 season, will also be playing against some familiar foes.
Decisive defense: Although the offense sputtered early, the defense showed out from the start. After an incredible 63-yard punt by freshman Kade Reynoldson pinned the hosts at their own 4-yard line, defensive end Wesley Williams took Wolfpack quarterback CJ Bailey down in the end zone on N.C. State’s second offensive snap. It put two points on the board and the ball back for the Blue Devils, an early boost to morale. On the next possession for the Wolfpack, Bailey scrambled for what looked like a solid gain, but fumbled at the end of his run. Cameron Bergeron recovered for Duke, giving the Blue Devils a short field and a chance to expand the margin early.
Weak rushing attack: It was a good half for quarterback Maalik Murphy, who had 154 yards on 12-of-16 passing, but the run game floundered for Duke. Running back Star Thomas, typically a consistent producer for the Blue Devils, had just 12 yards in the half. The N.C. State defensive line showed out in a big way, forcing Duke to push the ball through passing at an even higher rate than it usually does. The secondary gave up some big plays in the air, but the Wolfpack won the battle in the trenches during the first half. The Blue Devils finished the first 30 with an abysmal five rushing yards.
Wolfpack rebound late: N.C. State certainly started slowly, scoring no points in the first quarter. But by the midway point in the second period, the Wolfpack had turned things around. Bailey and his offense strung together an impressive 8-play, 57-yard drive that ended in a field goal. While the Duke defense was standing tall in the end zone, the home team was knocking on the door and closing the Blue Devils’ margin to just six points. Right at the end of the half with less than 30 seconds left, N.C. State defensive back Tamarcus Cooley ripped a ball out of receiver Eli Pancol’s hands, returning the ball all the way down to the Duke 21-yard line to set up a 37-yard field goal to end the half.
Disjointed attack: After a solid first quarter for the Duke offense, things went off a cliff for most of the second. The Blue Devils had several 3-and-outs, struggling to move the ball down the field with any sort of consistency. The Wolfpack defense was holding strong, and Murphy had issues finding his targets downfield. On Duke’s second-to-last drive of the half, he evaded an unblocked rusher and threw the ball deep down the field, but receiver Que’Shaun Brown was tightly covered and unable to haul it in.
By the numbers
Tackles for loss: Duke’s defense was dominant in the half, exemplified by several takedowns in the backfield. The N.C. State attack struggled early, and Bailey frequently found himself scrambling or forced to throw the ball away. Even Waters and his fellow running backs couldn’t find much open space on the field. Between five tackles for loss and two sacks, the defense brought the pressure early and caused chaos for the Wolfpack’s offense corps.
Third downs: Besides the short but impressive touchdown drive, the Duke attack ran into some issues in the first half. The Blue Devils went a meager 0-for-6 on third-down attempts, struggling to keep the offensive unit on the field and forcing their defense to come up big over and over again. The Wolfpack certainly did not have a great half for its attempts either, going 1-for-7.
Penalties: Both teams ran into issues with discipline, as avoidable flags lined the field. Penalties accounted for a total of 45 yards, and an illegal block in the back against the Wolfpack set the home team back much deeper in its own territory after what otherwise would have been a strong punt return.
A play that mattered
It was a pair of impressive passing plays to finally get the offense moving for Duke. First, Murphy found Brown on the sideline, connecting for 31 yards. Then, with a totally clean pocket on the very next play, Murphy gunned the ball downfield to receiver Jordan Moore, who made an impressive catch over a Wolfpack defensive back in the end zone to cap off a quick three-play, 75-yard scoring drive. Expanding the lead to 12 with just under four minutes left in the first quarter, Duke had quickly established itself as the dominant force on both sides of the ball.
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Martin Heintzelman is a Trinity junior and Blue Zone editor of The Chronicle's 120th volume.