It was a foregone conclusion.
When the No. 7 Clemson Tigers (5-0, 3-0 in the ACC) came to Wallace Wade Stadium Saturday afternoon, most of the country expected them to squash the winless Blue Devils (0-5, 0-2). And they did, 52-22.
"The last 15 years Clemson's averaged 16 points up here and won 50 percent of its games," Clemson coach Tommy Bowden said. "You've got to be happy with a 30-point win."
It was an impressive showing for Bowden's team, which led the entire game-including by a score of 35-0 at the half. Behind quarterback and Heisman Trophy candidate Woodrow Dantzler-who ran for 134 yards and three touchdowns and also threw for a fourth-the Tigers tore up the Blue Devils' secondary, which allowed both Dantzler and running backs Keith Kelley and Travis Zachery rushes of over 25 yards.
Meanwhile, the Clemson defense, led by linebacker Keith Adams, sacked first-time starter D. Bryant five times for -55 yards. They also held the Blue Devils to 42 total yards in the first half, including -13 yards rushing. After one half, it was all Clemson.
"Your mind wanders [when you're ahead by so much]," Bowden said. "Heck my mind wanders. I can only imagine a 20-year-old."
Despite trailing one of the
"[Danztler] was coming out until they scored," Bowden said. "If you've been way ahead and lost, it's detrimental."
Duke didn't make a serious comeback run, but the Blue Devils did limit Clemson to only 10 more points while scoring 13 of their own. They even outscored the Tigers 22-17 in the second half.
It was the most points allowed by Clemson all season, and equal to the total offensive output by the Blue Devils in their three previous games.
For a team that missed several opportunities at the beginning-including an interception right when the Blue Devils first made it across midfield and a dropped touchdown pass by wide receiver Kyle Moore-it was a fairly impressive showing for the winless Blue Devils, especially in the second half.
"I told [Moore] he had a choice," Duke coach Carl Franks said. "He can keep playing or he can stop competing. He kept playing and caught
Franks was also pleased with Bryant. The sophomore, who had been backup to the injured Spencer Romine his whole career, threw for 168 yards.
"D. is going to be an outstanding quarterback here," Franks said. "He has the temperament for it and he has the ability for it."
Duke's defense also played better than it has all year. They frustrated Dantzler, who said that he had his worst game of the season, by causing him to scramble around the field and run the ball a lot himself. One of those runs, however, was for 34 yards and a spectacular touchdown.
"That was great blocking and a little determination on my part," Dantzler said. "I was kind of upset that things weren't going right for me. I just wanted to go out there and make it up to my teammates."
Despite the long run, the Blue Devils held the Clemson running backs to their lowest yard total of the season.
"Their game plan was to take away the running game by numbers," Bowden said. "And they did, they did a good job."
But with Dantzler on the field, a good job was not enough for the Blue Devils, who remain winless with six games left on the season and No. 1 Florida State on the horizon.
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