After a 1,455 day drought, Duke finally has another ACC win.
The Blue Devils ended their league record 30-game ACC losing streak in impressive fashion Saturday, downing the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets 41-17.
"It's a great feeling," Duke interim head coach Ted Roof said. "It's great for our players. I couldn't be more proud of our players and our coaching staff."
Behind a dominating performance from the senior-laden offensive line, Chris Douglas ran for a career high 218 yards and two touchdowns on 30 carries. Before Saturday, the Yellow Jackets (5-4, 3-3 ACC) were ranked No. 1 in the ACC in run defense and were in the midst of a four-game winning streak. Georgia Tech true freshman quarterback Reggie Ball, who before the Duke game was a shoe-in for the ACC rookie-of-the-year honors, threw three costly interceptions, including Malcolm Ruff's 42-yard interception return for a touchdown that took away Georgia Tech's growing momentum and made the score 34-17 with 8:54 remaining in the fourth quarter.
"As soon as I caught the ball, I was out of my mind," Ruff said. "I played running back last year, so I have some running back skills."
The Blue Devils (3-7, 1-5 ACC) quickly began their high-scoring day on a methodical, five minute, 10-play, 62-yard touchdown scoring drive on the first possession of the game. The series included two bootleg plays, one for 24-yards on a pass from quarterback Mike Schneider to Andy Roland and another from quarterback Chris Dapolito to Ben Patrick for 16-yards. A one-yard touchdown run by sophomore Cedric Dargan capped the drive.
After stopping Georgia Tech on a fourth-and-three play on Duke's 36 yard-line, the Blue Devils, who rotated quarterbacks Schneider and Dapolito throughout the game, used another bootleg pass--a 24-yard toss from Schneider to Roland--to put themselves in field goal range. Brent Garber then knocked in a 43-yard field goal to make the score 10-0 with 44 seconds to go in the first quarter.
Georgia Tech outscored Duke 10-7 in the second quarter, but the Blue Devils began the second half with 10 unanswered points, making the score 27-10 heading into the fourth quarter.
Things began to go awry in the fourth quarter for Duke after Yellow Jacket Jonathan Cox picked off Schneider only seven seconds into the game's final stanza. Georgia Tech made the Blue Devils pay for their turnover, scoring a touchdown on a seven-play, 49-yard drive.
With Georgia Tech trailing only 10 points, the Yellow Jackets forced Duke to punt after four plays. Just as Georgia Tech seemed to buzzing for the first time Saturday, Ruff intercepted Ball's lofty pass, and effectively ended the Yellow Jackets' chances at victory.
"Mistakes happen," Douglas said in strategic passive voice. "If you let something like [Schneider's interception and the ensuing Georgia Tech touchdown] affect you, that will be the end of your game. You've got to keep playing through it."
The Blue Devils would score once more on a 27-yard run by Douglas late in the fourth quarter, sending the jubilant Duke fans into ecstasy. Students rushed the field and tore down the goal post closest to the student section immediately following the game.
Schneider and Dapolito only completed eight passes on the day from 15 attempts, but the Blue Devils ran for 253 yards against a Georgia Tech defense that, before Saturday, only gave up 94.8 rushing yards a game.
Ball threw 27-for-47 for 247 yards with three interceptions and zero touchdowns, and Yellow Jacket P.J. Daniels ran for 108 yards.
Duke cornerback Kenneth Stanford led the Blue Devils with 11 tackles and an interception, and James Butler had 11 takedowns for Georgia Tech.
It was senior day at Wallace Wade Stadium, with Duke closing out its regular season home schedule before it takes on Clemson and North Carolina on the road in the next two weeks. Duke's last ACC win came on Nov. 13, 1999, in a 48-35 victory over Wake Forest.
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.