ATLANTA – All Georgia Tech H-back Zach Laskey had to do was pick up a few yards to tie the game before halftime and put the Yellow Jackets back on track.
In previous years, the tough and pesky runner had been almost guaranteed a chunk of yards on every run against Duke when he blasted through the middle of his offensive line play after play.
But this time it was different.
All-ACC linebacker David Helton quickly plugged a hole on the left side, stuffing Laskey and denying the Georgia Tech two-point conversion attempt.
The Blue Devils walked into the locker room with a 14-12 lead thanks to a strong effort from its injury-plagued defense. The unit would assure that the lead only got bigger in the second half.
Unlike previous years when Georgia Tech ran its spread-option offense with ease against defensive coordinator Jim Knowles’ squad, racking up 500 or more yards without a turnover most games since 2008, the Blue Devils were in the right spots Saturday, making the Yellow Jackets for the yards they did pick up. The performance not only affirmed that Duke is very much in play to repeat as ACC Coastal Division champions, but also verified the validity of the Blue Devil defensive unit, which has only given up 15.5 points per game this season, good for seventh in the nation.
“The way we had a chance to manage ourselves out there, was we got good play from the interior and our linebackers,” head coach David Cutcliffe said. “Our [defensive] ends did the things they needed to do. Then the ability of our safeties and corners to make some plays. We consistently were in the right places.”
Duke’s defense definitely looks sharper and improved this season, with the results coming on the scoreboard. But how can a team giving up almost 400 yards per game, hold a team to so few points?
It starts with turnovers.
Cutcliffe knew that going into the Georgia Tech game that one of the few ways to stop the Yellow Jacket offense was to stall their drives by forcing the handful of Georgia Tech backs to fumble or pressuring Justin Thomas into poor throws.
On Thomas’ first interception, his offensive unit had stormed down the field inside the Blue Devil 10-yard line and looked poised to score when All-American safety Jeremy Cash had to come off the field, pressing true freshman Zavier Carmichael into action. But on the next play, the Eight Mile, Ala., native read Thomas' eyes, and jumped up to pick off an errant pass and force a crucial turnover late in the third quarter.
On the next Georgia Tech drive, the defensive line, which was already without two experienced starters, pressured Thomas into a bad throw that ended up in Cash’s breadbasket.
After a 77-minute weather delay following halftime, the Duke defense forced three turnovers on the Yellow Jackets' first four second-half possessions and took control of the game.
“Creating turnovers was huge. Our offense staying on the field,” Cutcliffe said. “We were a physical football team today, which we knew would be our best chance to win.”
In fact, the last three times the Blue Devils have knocked off ranked opponents, it has forced at least one turnover. Its one loss to a ranked team during that span came Dec. 31, 2013 in the Chick-Fil-A Bowl against Texas A&M. Duke failed to force any fumbles or pressure now-Cleveland Browns quarterback Johnny Manziel into bad throws, blowing a big halftime lead and eventually losing 52-48.
But motivated by how last season ended, this season the Blue Devils are 12th in the nation and first in the ACC with a plus-seven turnover margin. The difference has played a major role in Duke’s five wins this season, as the Blue Devils know they don't have to rely on their offense to produce big plays. The squad has eight interceptions this season, including two apiece from Cash and Carmichael.
Duke does not have to be a great team in terms of total defense to win every game. If it can keep causing other teams to make mistakes, it will keep points off the board. This was the case Saturday, when Georgia Tech racked up 282 rushing yards on 6.1 yards per carry, but was unable to create the big play and eventually shot itself in the foot when it got in the red zone.
The Blue Devils defended in the red zone with greater tenacity, forcing the Yellow Jackets into two short field goals and an interception inside their 20-yard line. But even with a good performance under its belt, Duke’s red zone defense is still among the worst in the country.
Taking this into account, Cutcliffe was very pleased with his team’s defensive performance in the red zone, understanding that his defense can build upon its gritty performance Saturday as it plays the heart of its ACC schedule.
“It’s huge,” he said. “We played better in the third down circumstance than we have against them. A year ago they were pretty successful against us. Our guys understood the area [of the field], the importance. I thought Jim Knowles did a great job of managing calls, changing up calls and putting people in a position to be successful. We felt like we had to be aggressive in those circumstances and our players responded to that.”
The Blue Devils played solid defense through the beginning of the season when they jumped out to a 4-0 start, but the unit was questioned after it dominated a barrage of weak offenses. But after holding a Miami team that scored 55 points this past week to 22 points Sept. 27 and limiting an explosive Georgia Tech offense to 25 points—including two late fourth-quarter touchdowns—the defense is beginning to anchor a team that is on the brink of bowl-eligibility for the third straight year.
But just like it did when it stuffed Laskey before halftime, Duke's defense knows the only way to continue reversing the trends that have historically haunted the unit is simply by executing when it needs to.
“People are going to talk,” Cash said. “But ultimately, it is going to be them against us. We are going to line up and play our game.”
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