CHAPEL HILL -- Although the offense put up 17 points, the truth is Duke (0-10, 0-7 in the ACC) could have scored three times as much and still come out on the losing end. A defense that had given up 42, 59, 42 and 55 points in its last four games gave up another 52 to the Tar Heels Saturday, giving the team no chance to break a 12-game losing streak in the rivalry-turned-celebration of UNC football.
And the Tar Heels did it this time without the usual Duke turnovers or special teams breakdown. Instead, the Tar Heels earned their points, gaining a season-high 560 yards of offense and averaging 7.2 yards per play. North Carolina featured, statistically, the top two quarterbacks, the top two rushers and five of the top six wide receivers in the game.
The complete breakdown on defense was evident after Duke pulled to within 24-17 five minutes into the second half. Before newspaper editors could even think about rearranging their front pages, the Tar Heels scored touchdowns on their next three possessions, including two in an 81-second span, extending the lead to 45-17 with three minutes left in the third quarter.
"Our defense came out and played well in the beginning of the second half," Duke coach Carl Franks said. "We got the ball with good field position, took it down and scored,
Franks is now 3-29 in his three years as head coach, including losses of 38-0, 59-21 and now 52-17 in the series against North Carolina.
To Franks' credit, he came out firing on defense, blitzing frequently and daring UNC's quarterback-by-committee of oft-abused Ronald Curry and redshirt freshman Darian Durant to throw the ball. But throw they did, including a 72-yard pass from Curry to Sam Aiken to open the scoring.
"We threw the ball frequently," UNC coach John Bunting said. "It's hard to run sometimes when you're getting blitzed over and over. We were able to pick up some long gainers, because that's what happens sometimes when you blitz, and we were able to make some plays."
The Blue Devils' problems on defense Saturday were the usual suspects this season--an inability to stop third-down conversions and a tendency to give up the big play.
Duke's defense came into the game ranked last in the ACC in third-down conversions, allowing opponents to move the chains 49.2 percent of the time on third down. Saturday was no exception; the Tar Heels converted 10-of-18
"We couldn't make the plays, couldn't make the tackles or couldn't cover," Franks said when asked about his team's third down defense. "We had some good calls, and we weren't able to make the tackles to give us an opportunity to get off the field."
UNC was also able to gain over 30 yards on six different plays, a stark contrast to Duke's one big play on offense, a 49-yard pass from Blue Devil quarterback D. Bryant to Ben Erdeljac.
All told, it was another poor showing for the defensive unit, which has only one more chance to redeem itself this season--a Dec. 1 visit to Clemson against preseason Heisman candidate Woodrow Dantzler.
Considering how good the Blue Devils made Curry look, all signs point to another long day for the scoreboard operator. Completing 11-of-19 passes for 217 yards and three touchdowns, Curry far surpassed his previous season-highs of one touchdown pass and 127 yards, both against East Carolina.
"You think Curry is dangerous..." Franks said. "Well that guy Dantzler is real dangerous, and he's in the game all the time."
After looking at the success of his counterpart Curry, Dantzler must be salivating.
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