A look back: Tar Heels outplay No. 25 Blue Devils in 45-20 win

Peter Koutroumpis, Triangle Sports Network
Peter Koutroumpis, Triangle Sports Network

DURHAM, N.C. – The North Carolina Tar Heels overpowered the 25th-ranked Duke Blue Devils and put together an impressive 45-20 win and reclaimed the Victory Bell at Wallace Wade Stadium on Thursday.

“Tonight, we just got outplayed,” Duke head coach David Cutcliffe said.

“I don’t think there’s anything to explain. You gotta’ learn from it and see what you can do better. On the grass out there, in every aspect, they did a better job than we did.”

North Carolina quarterback Marquise Williams led an offensive barrage that ended with 591 total yards while he threw 18-of-27 for 276 yards and two touchdowns, and rushed the ball 21 times for 113 yards and another two touchdowns.

Running back T.J. Logan ran for 117 yards on 18 carries while Ryan Switzer made considerable gains for the Tar Heels, racking up 109 yards on three catches.

For the Blue Devils (8-3, 4-3), a 378-yard performance on offense led by quarterback Anthony Boone (22-40, 276 yards, 2 TD’s, 3 sacks) wasn’t enough to make the gains necessary to break through the Tar Heels (6-5, 4-3) defense.

Duke had a chance to get one step closer to repeating as Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Coastal Division champions in the nationally-televised featured match-up that pitted the two programs in their 101st matchup against one another – a rivalry which began in 1888 in Raleigh.

Coming off a 17-16 loss to Virginia Tech last Saturday, the Blue Devils had no margin for error.

The stakes for North Carolina were just as high as a win would make them bowl-eligible as well as regaining them possession of the Victory Bell, the symbol of gridiron dominance between the two schools.

On paper, the Tar Heels offense was ranked higher than the Blue Devils’, while Duke’s defensive numbers sat above North Carolina’s.

In the end, what mattered most was which team had more heart and determination to win and to execute effectively.

“It didn’t happen tonight,” Blue Devils linebacker David Helton said.

“Can’t really put a finger on it – they came out and they out-competed us. They outplayed us and it was pretty obvious.”

Early on, it looked as though Duke would assume control as the Blue Devils defense forced North Carolina to go three-and-out on its first possession.

Duke wide receiver/punter returner Jamison Crowder (6 carries, 73 yards) returned the ensuing 49-yard punt 30 yards to the North Carolina 46-yard line.

Backup quarterback Thomas Sirk the came in to keep moving the ball forward, but he fumbled it while running through the Tar Heels defensive line.

It was the Blue Devils’ first turnover of the game of four committed on the day, and gave the ball back to North Carolina on its own 22-yard line.

Logan eventually made a substantial catch and run of 22 yards during the drive that put the Tar Heels on the Duke 39-yard line.

Williams passed to Quinshad Davis (6 catches, 44 yards) to open the game’s scoring with a touchdown reception at the 8:34 mark that put the Tar Heels up 7-0 following the successful PAT.

The 12-play, 78-yard scoring drive was North Carolina’s longest of the season during the opening quarter.

Just 45 seconds later, another fumble by Duke, this time by Boone while getting sacked on his own 10-yard line, put the ball back in the Tar Heels’ possession.

North Carolina safety Tim Scott picked the ball up and ran the ball into the end zone unopposed for another score, pushing the lead to 14-0.

Duke’s next possession and drive yielded better results.

Following a 33-yard reception from Crowder that put the Blue Devils on the North Carolina 16-yard line, Boone eventually found a seam to lace a pass to wide receiver Issac Blakeney (2 catches, 17 yards) who ran into the end zone for the score.

Combined with Martin’s successful PAT, Duke cut the Tar Heels lead to 14-7 with 4:22 remaining in the quarter.

North Carolina kept its offense churning with its next possession as a 47-yard run by Logan put the ball on the Duke one-yard line.

The Blue Devils defense worked valiantly to deny the Tar Heels a touchdown scoring opportunity, forcing them to go for it on fourth down.

Williams met the challenge and tossed the ball to Mack Hollins in the end zone to put Duke behind by 14 points again.

The Blue Devils went three-and-out on its first possession to start the second quarter which then gave North Carolina the opportunity to keep its momentum rolling.

Williams moved the Tar Heels down the field and kept the ball himself to cross the goal line to complete the five-yard, 60-yard drive and pushed the lead over the Blue Devils to 21 points with 13:02 remaining in the half.

As Duke was forced to eventually punt on its next possession, Williams connected with Switzer for a 62-yard gain down to the Duke 13-yard line.

North Carolina couldn’t capitalize on it as Williams committed his and the Tar Heels’ first turnover of three on the day, fumbling the ball on the next down.

The opportunity went unrealized for the Blue Devils as consecutive incomplete passes by Boone forced another punt situation for Will Monday (5 punts, 36 yards/punt) to handle.

However, another turnover by North Carolina, a fumble by Williams while being sacked by Jordan Dewalt-Ondijo and Jamal Bruce, resulted in Helton (17 tackles, 0.5 TFL) pouncing on the ball to put it back in Duke’s possession.

Boone continued to struggle against the Tar Heels defense which he couldn’t outrun or outwit.

He tried to build momentum up with the Blue Devils offense, but couldn’t, and the Tar Heels lead remained 28-7 by halftime.

North Carolina held Duke to 156 offensive yards during the half while its offense took advantage of the Blue Devils defense in gaining 391 yards – 203 on the ground and 188 in the air.

“They came in ready,” Cutcliffe said.

“Obviously, I was impressed with what they were able to get done. We didn’t have the answers. I didn’t think they would run the football that well.”

The Tar Heels defense continued to wreak havoc with Boone as M.J. Stewart intercepted an intended pass for Crowder early in the third quarter.

Williams then marched North Carolina towards the Duke end zone, and ended the 15-play, 68-yard drive with a handoff to Logan who ran it in a yard to extend the lead to 35-7.

A field goal from Thomas Moore added to the Tar Heels’ dominance over the Blue Devils, just under three minutes later.

Duke finally ended its scoreless drought as Boone connected with Crowder on an 18-yard touchdown pass to modestly cut the North Carolina lead down to 38-14.

During the fourth quarter, Boone went to Johnell Barnes (6 catches, 85 yards) as a primary receiver to gain yards and Duke eventually scored again.

Sirk came in and ran the ball in for the one-yard touchdown.

Duke failed to score on the two-point conversion and trailed North Carolina 38-20 with 8:21 remaining.

Williams then ran the ball in and extended the lead to 25 points, 45-20, and made the final scoring play of the game.

Even as both teams traded possessions for the final six minutes of play, the Blue Devils eventually realized that the opportunity they had to earn another trip to the ACC Championship Game had been taken away from them.

“We couldn’t really find a rhythm,” Boone said.

“It wasn’t like they came out there, and you know, shocked us and kind of wowed us. We knew that they were a bunch of athletes and they were gonna’ play tough, physical, and well in this game. In a rival game, everybody’s gonna’ do that. We just went out there and when there were plays to be made on the field, we didn’t execute. That’s just what it comes down to.”

“In the end, we gotta’ play well as a team,” Cutcliffe concluded.

“In every area, when you don’t stay on the field offensively, you’re puttin’ your defense in astray. When our kicking game is not clicking as well as it possibly can, we’re not as good as we can be. Whether it’s stoppin’ the run or stoppin’ this, I think as a football team we have to play well in all three units. That’s when we’re at our best. When we stress one unit or both units, then I think it’s hard, and we didn’t manage it very well.”