Late game disappointments continued for the Duke football team (2-8, 0-6 in the ACC) Saturday afternoon at Wallace Wade Stadium. After building an impressive 24-10 lead in the fourth quarter, the Blue Devils made costly mistakes and let the Clemson Tigers (5-4, 3-3 in the ACC) steal a 34-31 victory on a 21-yard field goal with just eight seconds remaining.
"I feel for the players more than anything," Duke head coach Carl Franks said. "They put their heart and everything physically that they could to give themselves a chance to win the football game."
After a hard-fought 57 minutes produced a 31-31 tie, Clemon's freshman quarterback Charlie Whitehurst orchestrated a 56-yard drive to Duke's four-yard line. Tiger placekicker Aaron Hunt subsequently lined up for a 21-yard field goal and buried the Blue Devils' hopes for a win.
"We've been playing teams for three quarters and something happens in one of those other quarters," Greene said. "We give up big plays and we just end up like this."
Whitehurst threw for a Clemson-record 420 yards in the contest, including four touchdown passes. Clemson coach Tommy Bowden was ecstatic about his quarterbacks' first start of the season.
"Charlie Whitehurst did a heck of a job his first time out," Bowden said. "He drove the field. He stayed in the pocket and was patient. Patience is a key."
Duke's impatience on a key play in the fourth quarter proved to be the turning point for the Tigers' stunning comeback. After Clemson had moved the ball 24 yards to Duke's 47, the Blue Devils' secondary stoned the Tigers' passing attack on three consecutive plays. Bowden made the decision to gamble on fourth down-and-10 with his team trailing 14 points.
Duke's pass rush, effective for most of Saturday, made the crucial mistake of not containing the elusive Whitehurst. The true freshman rolled out of the pocket to his right side to escape the Blue Devil pressure and found an open man running a crossing pattern. Receiver Airese Currie caught the ball with enough yardage for a first down, before breaking a tackle and sprinting for a 47-yard touchdown that immediately changed both teams' demeanor.
"The defense really helped the offense in the game in the third quarter," Franks said. "We felt like when we hit a big play to Khary that maybe the momentum had
Just minutes before Clemson converted on fourth down the Blue Devils' looked as though they would run away with the win. After three possessions for either team produced no points and five punts, the Blue Devils used a face mask penalty and a 12-yard completion to Alex Wade to get out of their own territory. Quarterback Adam Smith, who had three touchdown passes and 290 yards through the air, found wide receiver Khary Sharpe for 54-yard touchdown that put Duke up 24-10 with 11 minutes left. Defensive end Shawn Johnson remembered celebrating that moment from the sidelines.
"We were on the sidelines and we were so excited after Khary caught that post," Johnson said. "We thought we were going to bring this one home. There was no doubt in my mind and there was no doubt in the rest of the team's mind. I don't even know what happened."
After a demoralizing five minutes of play in which the Tiger's scored three consecutive touchdowns to take a 31-24 lead the Blue Devils could have thrown in their cards. Instead, Duke's defensive unit made a key play when Johnson sacked Whitehurst and caused a fumble that Duke defensive tackle Matt Zielinski recovered at Clemson's 24-yard line. On second down Smith took a shot to the end zone and hit tight end Andy Roland for a spectacular play and a 31-31 tie.
The first half was played at a fast pace, as both teams scored on their first possession of the game. Clemson used several passing plays to move down the field on the Blue Devils while Duke pulled out a little trickery to get into the end zone.
Smith lateralled the ball to wide receiver and former high school quarterback Darryl Scott on third and goal from the 20-yard line, while tailback Chris Douglas, who had 86 yards on the ground, sprinted down the right side of the field unmarked. He caught Scott's perfectly thrown pass for Duke's first touchdown of the game.
Even after nearly four quarters of solid play, the Blue Devils' ended the game with another tough loss. In Duke's heartbreaking 24-22 loss to N.C. State two weeks ago Duke attempted the very same wide receiver option. Scott overthrew a wide open Douglas, and the Blue Devils came up empty.
Sharpe said, after Clemson sank Duke's hopes at its first ACC victory in three years, one of his team's strengths was looking toward the future.
"To see it slip away like that--three points at the end the game was what decided it--it's tough," Sharpe said. "It hurts but we have to bounce back and set our goals and go out and achieve them."
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