Staff photo by Ted Richardson
Duke players, including wide receiver Josh Trezvant, center, celebrate the Blue Devils' 28-17 win over Virginia at Scott Stadium in Charlottesville.
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. Duke senior quarterback Thad Lewis talked last week about being surrounded by a group of football players and coaches who give him the confidence to walk onto the field and say, "My guys are going to beat your guys."
He spoke about a team that has confidence and swagger - characteristics that hardly defined Blue Devils teams of the recent past.
"Just knowing," Lewis added. "Knowing that today it's going to be a long day for that guy across there. I'm going to make it hard on 'em."
Bolstered by that newfound fortitude and guile, the Devils turned Saturday into a long, hard day for Virginia, rallying in the fourth quarter to eke out a 28-17 victory at Scott Stadium.
Scoring 16 points in a 2-minute, 40-second fourth-quarter span, the Devils (5-3, 3-1) won three consecutive ACC contests for the first time since 1994. And they spoiled Halloween for the 41,713 orange-clad Cavaliers fans who were hopeful that the team's merciless defense could withstand Duke's conference-leading passing attack.
For a while, the Cavaliers seemed to dash all Devils hopes, but in the end it was a physical, mentally tough Duke team that responded with an unflappable air that has flowed into the program since the arrival of coach David Cutcliffe.
Lewis was sacked six times and threw an interception. The offense failed to move the ball. Not much seemed to work.
"The best part of it was that we were somewhat relentless," Cutcliffe said. "We kept playing."
Now, with four games remaining this season, the Devils are inching closer to playing in a bowl game, something their coach said they were good enough to do at the start of the season.
The Devils need two victories to become bowl eligible and will look to collect their fourth consecutive conference victory over North Carolina this week.
Players used the words "ecstatic" and "speechless" to describe the feeling of winning for this program. They are filled with confidence as they look ahead to facing their rival.
"If they were here we would go out and play them right now," Duke senior Leon Wright said. "We're taking on all challenges. We're on that downward slope."
The Devils stayed in this game with five field goals from junior walk-on kicker Will Snyderwine. But trailing by five points with 3:45 remaining, they scored their first touchdown of the game when Lewis connected with freshman Conner Vernon.
Facing third-and-9 from their 42, Lewis hit Vernon in stride as he cut to the middle of the field on a timing route in front of Virginia defensive back Chris Cook. Vernon raced into the end zone for an 18-17 Devils lead.
After struggling against the ACC's top passing defense, the Devils finally found the end zone in the air, with Varner finding space as he was covered one-on-one by Cook.
"It was beautiful," Duke sophomore Donovan Varner said.
Duke followed that drive with a crucial defensive stand. The Devils' Ayanga Okpokowuruk rushed Virginia quarterback Jameel Sewell while he stood in the pocket on his 13-yard line and forced a fumble. Duke nose guard Charlie Hatcher recovered the fumble and ran six yards into the end zone.
The Devils' defense kept the Cavaliers at bay from there.
The Devils opened the season last year with a 4-3 record before losing four consecutive games. They finished the season on a five-game losing streak and missed several opportunities to build on a strong first half of the season.
Players said they have learned from past mistakes.
"We're having fun right now," Okpokowuruk said. "We're enjoying every minute of it."
