In its first real test without All-ACC performers Matt Skura and Lucas Patrick Saturday afternoon, Duke’s new-look offensive line started slowly and never found its footing.
A week after outmuscling an overmatched N.C. Central defense for 308 rushing yards, the Blue Devils rushed for just 37 yards on 30 carries in a disappointing 24-14 loss to Wake Forest. Running backs Jela Duncan and Shaun Wilson had no room to run in the backfield and did not get many chances when Duke was playing from behind in the second half. The Demon Deacons sacked redshirt freshman quarterback Daniel Jones five times.
The Blue Devils’ offensive line is still developing chemistry with redshirt freshman Zach Baker starting at left guard and new starting center Austin Davis joining three returning starters—Casey Blaser, Tanner Stone and Gabe Brandner. With two consecutive road games on Duke’s schedule, that development will likely need to accelerate for the Blue Devils to keep their bowl hopes alive.
“There were times when it doesn’t make any sense why we don’t even get a hand on a guy,” Duke head coach David Cutcliffe said. “They’re a pretty good pass-rushing team but not the best we’re going to face, so we better learn quickly from it.”
The Blue Devils tried to establish the run early and often to take pressure off their young quarterback, just as they did last week when Duncan broke free for a 50-yard touchdown run on the second play from scrimmage. This time, Duncan again picked up a first down on Duke’s second play with a 13-yard run—but Saturday that was the high point for the Blue Devils’ running game.
Wake Forest’s defensive front overpowered Duke’s offensive line and nearly kept the Blue Devils off the scoreboard after Duke had first-and-goal at the 2-yard line on the game’s first series. The Demon Deacons broke up a pass and stuffed Duncan on two straight runs up the middle to force a fourth down.
“Our inability to run it early was very obvious,” Cutcliffe said,
Jones ran untouched into the end zone on a read option on fourth-and-goal, but the struggles at the line of scrimmage continued for the rest of the game.
Wake Forest crowded the box throughout the contest, daring Jones to throw the ball and forcing Cutcliffe and offensive coordinator Zac Roper to abandon the rushing attack in the second half. Duncan and Wilson combined for just one carry after halftime, but the Demon Deacons continued to blitz and disrupt Jones’ timing.
The pocket collapsed on the Charlotte native time after time as Wake Forest’s experienced defenders made 10 tackles for loss, sometimes rushing untouched into the backfield. Senior linebacker Marquel Lee led the team with 10 tackles and redshirt junior defensive lineman Duke Ejiofor sacked Jones three times and forced both of the Blue Devils’ fumbles in the backfield.
The first fumble came when he batted down a backwards pass in the first quarter with Duke threatening in Demon Deacon territory already up 7-0.
“He kind of surprised me, to be honest,” Jones said. “I need to see that and be smart about that, so that’s on me.”
The second fumble gave Wake Forest the ball in the red zone when Ejiofor sacked Jones on the second play of the second half.
The Demon Deacons capitalized on the short field to take a 14-7 lead.
“We shot ourselves in the foot the whole game,” redshirt senior wide receiver Anthony Nash said.
Although Jones had two runs of at least 10 yards and ran for both of the Blue Devils’ touchdowns, he ended up with just six yards on 19 carries due to the sacks, several failed read options and unsuccessful scrambles.
The end result was Jones dropping back to pass on virtually every play of the second half, making Duke’s offense predictable. He put up big numbers through the air, but made a questionable decisions with throws into coverage and threw his first career interception in the closing minutes to seal the loss.
The Blue Devils play their first road game next Saturday against another strong defensive team in Northwestern, and the offensive line will need to improve for Duke to have a chance in what now seems like a must-win game before a Sept. 24 matchup at No. 18 Notre Dame. Last season, the Wildcats controlled the line of scrimmage en route to a 19-10 road win in Durham.
“We have to run the ball. That’s football. If you don’t establish the run, it’s a lot easier for them to play the pass,” Nash said. “We have to work on that in practice and I feel like we’re going to be fine. It’s one hiccup.”
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