MIAMI, Fla. - It did not matter if Joe Surgan, Nick Maggio, Greg Meyers or anyone else was kicking for Duke. The Blue Devils were going to go for the win if they had the chance, even if it meant foregoing an attempt to tie.
And with a little over four minutes left and needing five yards for a first down at Miami's 30-yard line, Duke, down 17-14, had an opportunity to go for that win-and it did.
Unfortunately for the Blue Devils (1-4, 0-2 in the ACC), they were unable to convert at that pivotal moment and fell 24-14 to Miami (4-1, 1-0) Saturday afternoon in the Orange Bowl.
"We had an opportunity there to take the lead late in the fourth quarter, and that's what we went for," head coach Ted Roof said. "We're going to coach to win and we're going to play to win and a 47-yarder into the wind-I didn't feel real good about that."
As Thaddeus Lewis dropped back on fourth down, senior running back Justin Boyle, who dropped an open pass one play earlier that could have given Duke the first down, stepped up to block Miami defensive end Eric Moncur.
Moncur easily went around Boyle's attempted block as he sacked Lewis for a 10-yard loss, giving the Hurricanes the ball. Two plays later, Miami wrapped up the contest with a 33-yard touchdown pass to DajLeon Farr.
Before that decisive sack, however, the Duke defense, which was much-maligned after giving up 46 points to Navy last weekend, had put the Blue Devils in perfect position to win the game.
Miami, facing fourth-and-one on Duke's 31-yard line with just over seven minutes remaining, elected to go for it in an attempt to seal the game. Hurricanes running back Javarris James took the pitch out to the right side and appeared to have an opening in the gap between the right guard and tackle. Instead, Blue Devils linebacker Mike Tauiliili stopped him cold in the backfield, two yards short of the first down marker.
The bench began jumping in excitement and players ran off the field with their arms raised in triumph. With the offense excelling as it had up to that point, racking up 283 yards in the game and having scored a touchdown on its previous possession, Duke felt confident it would pull the upset it could not a year ago.
"We had it," said senior cornerback Leon Wright, who had two highlight-reel interceptions in the contest. "We had the momentum and everything was going our way. We figured we'd just keep rolling."
The Blue Devils also got plenty of help from Miami as they marched down the field. Up by only a field goal on that crucial Duke drive, the Hurricanes committed two penalties that could have turned the momentum in the Blue Devils' favor.
Facing third-and-eight on Duke's 46-yard line, quarterback Thaddeus Lewis threw an incomplete pass to Jomar Wright, but a five-yard facemask penalty gave the Blue Devils the first down. Then, three plays later, it looked as if Duke would lose possession when Ronnie Drummer dropped Lewis' screen pass. Again, the Hurricanes bailed out the Blue Devils as defensive Vegas Franklin was called for roughing the passer and Duke was awarded a first down.
The Blue Devils generated their own opportunities as well. Duke's running game, typically one of the offense's weak points, came through on the drive, rushing for 22 yards on four carries.
Just like last year, however, the game came down to one play, and just like last year, Duke could not come through for the upset.
"I just know Coach said go for it and that's what we got to do," Lewis said. "He has faith in his offense and we've got to go out there and execute on that fourth down."
Throughout the game, the Blue Devils gave Roof reason to believe in their offensive capabilities. The running game had 120 rushing yards on 28 carries-not including sacks-thanks in large part to an effective option attack. The defense also turned in a solid performance. After giving up 10 early points, the Hurricanes scored only one touchdown before the game got out-of-reach in the closing minutes-and even that score did not come without some controversy.
Early in the fourth quarter, Miami, leading 10-7, had the ball at Duke's 17-yard line and faced third-and-16. Hurricane quarterback Kirby Freeman, who replaced Kyle Wright after the starter suffered a severe mouth injury, threw a pass into the end zone to Darnell Jenkins. Blue Devils safety Adrian Aye-Darko, however, had tight coverage as he reached in front of Jenkins and knocked the ball away.
The Miami crowd booed heavily, disappointed at the lack of a call in favor of its team. Several seconds passed and Duke prepared to send out its field-goal blocking unit when suddenly the back judge, who moments earlier had signaled an incomplete pass, threw a late flag. Pass interference was called on Aye-Darko, infuriating the coaching staff and the Blue Devil players. Roof said he never received an explanation for the call, and several players questioned it.
"I don't want to say it was wrong or right," Leon Wright said. "It was 30 seconds at least after the play had happened. It was an excellent play by Darko, and I give him all the respect and unfortunately, he didn't get the call."
Penalty or not, Duke put itself in the position to win another game, but, like last year and last week, it could not.
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