Football left behind by Georgia Tech in second half

The Duke football team's woes continued on Saturday as bad became ugly.

The Blue Devils suffered through their fifth consecutive homecoming defeat as a revitalized Georgia Tech team embarrassed Duke with a 37-21 drubbing at Wallace Wade Stadium.

The loss dropped the Blue Devils to 2-4 overall, 0-3 in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

"It's frustrating personally and as a team that they can come in here and destroy you in front of your family and alumni," junior linebacker Billy Granville said. "It's hard to deal with. This is the worst feeling I've ever had."

Duke's frustration came to a boil early in the fourth quarter when head coach Fred Goldsmith sent Tom Cochran onto the field to kick a 36-yard field goal. Facing fourth-and-two with 11 minutes to play, a successful kick would have trimmed the Yellow Jackets' lead to 31-24.

But Cochran misunderstood the call. He faked the kick while 10 other Blue Devils prepared for a field goal.

"We just totally miscommunicated," Cochran said. "I went for the fake and [holder Jeff Hodrick] went for the hold.

"When you're out there, things are moving so fast."

The Rambling Wreck led 37-21 after a failed extra point attempt by placekicker Brad Chambers. But the damage had been done as the Blue Devils would not threaten again.

Duke was able to begin the game on a solid note, marching 71 yards for a touchdown on the first series of the game. Quarterback Spence Fischer, who finished 21 for 33 with 186 yards passing, completed 5-of-6 passes on the opening drive.

"We felt we came on early and set a good tempo," Fischer said.

Laymarr Marshall provided Duke with the early lead after a one-yard run, his first of two rushing touchdowns on the day.

But Duke would once again struggle with its running game, finishing the game with 61 yards on 24 carries. The loss of running back Robert Baldwin, the 1994 ACC Player of the Year, to graduation has exposed a weak spot for the Blue Devils.

"We miss Rob," Fischer said. "But we have good running backs that are playing well right now. This is a different team with a different chemistry."

Georgia Tech's offense featured tailback C.J. Williams, who currently leads the ACC in rushing. Williams finished the day with 185 yards rushing and two touchdowns in less than favorable running conditions. He has now rushed for 1,130 yards in his last eight games.

"The turf was a little soft with the rain [the field] has gotten lately," Williams said. "I changed my cleats after the second series. I probably would have gotten more yards if it wasn't for my feet getting stuck."

The lead seesawed throughout the first half until Tijan Redmon sliced and burned his way for 85 yards on a kickoff return for the Blue Devils. He was finally forced out of bounds at the 5-yard line, but not before sending the homecoming crowd of 20,110 people into a frenzy.

"I was definitely tired," Redmon said. "I was out of gas. I slipped a few tackles and the next thing I knew I was in the open field. I was pretty much just running for my life."

Marshall then carried the ball five yards for a touchdown on the next play, and after Cochran's extra point, Duke led Tech 21-17.

"This was probably my best game ever at Duke," Redmon said. "But we ended up losing. I'd rather have a win any day. I look at it from a team aspect. As long as my teammates are happy, I'm happy."

Duke maintained its new found momentum as free safety Ray Farmer made a diving interception on the Duke three-yard line with 53 seconds to go in the half. Yellow Jacket quarterback Donnie Davis' pass had been intended for wide receiver Derrick Steagall before Farmer ended the drive with his acrobatic reception.

Despite this momentum going into the locker room, the second half proved to be a nightmare for the Duke faithful. Georgia Tech scored 20 unanswered points as the Blue Devils were left struggling for answers.

"We missed some reads in the second half," Fischer said. "I take responsibility for that. [Georgia Tech] wasn't changing up anything from what they were doing in the first half. We just didn't connect and get the chains going. That put a lot of pressure on our defense because they were out on the field for a long time."

Davis harassed the Blue Devils defensively as he led the Yellow Jackets to 518 all-purpose yards. He also became the first Tech quarterback to both pass and rush for over 100 yards in the same game.

"[Davis] had that glitter in his eye," Georgia Tech head coach George O'Leary said. "He had an air of confidence about him where you just knew he was going to get it done. He did a good job controlling the tempo of the huddle and a good job running the option."

Duke was hampered by injuries throughout Saturday's contest. Tight end Bill Khayat and wide receivers Adam Geis and Joe Opalenick all sat out with injuries. Linebacker John Zuanich was also slowed down by an injury and was used sparingly.

"I think Duke is a good football team that is banged up with some injuries," O'Leary said. "That hurts. There aren't too many teams in college football that can lose starters and replace them with people of the same caliber."

The battered and bruised Blue Devils will next travel to Charlottesville to play the 19th-ranked Virginia Cavaliers on Saturday.

"We have to assess our situation," Redmon said. "Some people may feel down, but there is nothing we can do about it. Georgia Tech won. That's it, that's the bottom line. Now we have to prepare for Virginia."