The third time was the charm. Well, sort of.
Duke's offense finally scored a touchdown, but dropped passes and blown assignments led to yet another Blue Devil loss. Duke, which had hoped to begin 1999 on a roll, now finds itself winless after three games and in a downward spiral looking down the barrel of a possible 0-6 start.
While the defense did give up some big plays, including a four-yard bootleg touchdown run by quarterback Greg Zolman to end the first half, it was Duke's offensive ineptitude that quashed any hope for a Blue Devil win in September. The offense's inability to move the football consistently and sustain drives left the defense vulnerable and on the field for nearly 40 minutes.
The quarterback carousel is not helping matters. Duke will likely be starting a different quarterback for the fourth straight game when it faces No. 1 Florida State next weekend. The lack of job security at the key position on offense has already led to numerous critical mistakes and might cost the Blue Devils several games. Still, Duke is not blaming the quarterback shuffle for its early-season woes.
"It's not a big deal to adjust to the quarterbacks," receiver Scottie Montgomery said. "You can't use that as an excuse. These guys get 60-plus snaps in practice."
But consider this: The Blue Devils have done the quarterback shuffle for the last three years and have had poor results. Duke's record over that span is 6-30, including this year's disastrous start.
Quarterback Bobby Campbell put up some fairly impressive numbers (251 passing yards) against Vanderbilt and played very well at times. Campbell did make several nice plays, including a 45-yard touchdown pass to Montgomery that Campbell called at the line of scrimmage. However, he still made some critical errors including an interception that likely cost the Blue Devils a touchdown.
Campbell will most likely be named the starter this week based on his performance Saturday, but his job is anything but secure. Spencer Romine's return still looms on the horizon as he waits for his separated shoulder to heal and Kevin Thompson, the very cerebral quarterback, will probably be given another shot.
Thompson was named the starter for the Vanderbilt game and took most of the snaps with the first unit during practice last week. But he was yanked after only three series and four pass attempts and never got back in the game.
After Saturday's game many fans now believe that the 1999 season is unsalvageable, but the team is still holding out hope for a successful campaign.
"I think we can save the season," Montgomery said. "We're not even into the conference yet."
If Duke is to have any chance of saving its season, it has to start now. The Blue Devils must select a permanent No. 1 at quarterback. The carousel ride must come to an end-12 points a game will not come close to beating most of the ACC competition.
The inability of Duke to get consistent production out of its quarterback is also hurting its rushing attack. When the quarterback fails to produce in the passing game, opposing defenses simply put eight or nine guys in the box to stuff the run since the pass is no longer a viable threat.
Duke needs to throw the ball deep earlier in games. This will stretch out the defense and will get the corners that press hard to back off of the receivers. It will also allow the very anemic running game a chance to get moving.
The running game finally showed signs of improvement Saturday. Tailback Duane Epperson provided some punch against Vanderbilt, running for 58 yards on 14 carries and Duke's first touchdown of the year. However, the Blue Devils still need to get a lot more production out of their ground game to beat conference opponents. Their 47 rushing yards per game will not get the job done in the ACC.
While a win against top-ranked Florida State next week seems very unlikely, Duke must take some positives from the game. It has to cut down on all of the mistakes and play better than it has in the first three weeks.
"We've got to try to work to get better," coach Carl Franks said. "Every member wants to get better; I don't know what it takes."
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