Duke stings previously undefeated Georgia Tech 31-25

David Cutcliffe was well aware that he and his staff were 0-for-6 against Georgia Tech in their tenure. And while it may have taken until the seventh year to figure out how to slow down the Ramblin’ Wreck from Georgia Tech, their first win over the Yellow Jackets couldn’t have come at a more meaningful time.

With the 31-25 victory over the previously undefeated, No. 22 Yellow Jackets on Saturday, the Blue Devils (5-1, 1-1 ACC) remain in fine position in the topsy-turvy ACC Coastal Division race. It’s also the third ranked opponent Duke has beaten in the past two seasons.

How does one stop the triple option? The secret is as old as that throwback offense.

“We were winning the battle of the line of scrimmage,” Cutcliffe said.

And, tellingly, the Yellow Jackets agreed on who was the more physically dominant team.

“I give credit to Duke,” Georgia Tech defensive end Adam Gotsis said. “They out-physicalled us and they ran the ball well today.”

Cutcliffe said the goal was to try to at least match the Yellow Jackets (5-1, 2-1 ACC) in terms of rushing effectiveness – no small task, considering the Yellow Jackets’ entire offensive philosophy is based on running the football. But Duke did pretty well on that front: through three quarters, the Blue Devils averaged more yards per carry (6.87 to 6.43). And at the end of the game, the time of possession was nearly even: 29:44 for Duke, 30:16 for the Yellow Jackets.

This was without starting running back Shaquille Powell, too, who was held out with a lower body injury.

“We just had the mentality coming into the game that we were just going to flat-out dominate them out front,” said Josh Snead, who finished with 102 rushing yards and a touchdown. “We have a great O-line.”

The final score made the game appear closer than was – Duke led 31-12 with 8:18 left. Reserve wide receiver Ryan Smith came up with two critical onside kick recoveries, so the Yellow Jackets were never able to seriously threaten Duke’s lead.

As for Georgia Tech’s running game, the Yellow Jackets still came close to their season-average of 297.2 rushing yards per game, racking up 282 yards.

The Yellow Jackets’ offense stays on schedule if it gains at least 3 yards per down (and they have no problem going for it on fourth-and-short). When the Blue Devils disrupted that schedule, they found success.

A Kyler Brown tackle for a loss of 1 yard on Justin Thomas at the Duke 9 derailed Georgia Tech’s first drive, forcing a field goal. A Jeremy Cash stop for 1 yard followed by an A.J. Wolf tackle for no gain set up the Yellow Jackets up fourth-and-3 from the Duke 46 early in the second – and then a false start by left guard Trey Braun forced a punt.

After a 77-minute weather delay, defensive tackle Jamal Bruce stopped Zach Laskey for a 1-yard loss on the first drive of the third quarter, and Cash recovered the ensuing fumble. Linebacker Zavier Carmichael came up with an interception at the Duke 4 after Jordan DeWalt-Ondijo stopped the previous play for one yard.

“Anytime you get into the red zone, you can’t afford to put yourself at second-and-11,” Laskey said. “You have to stay on track at second-and-7 or second-and-6.”

Duke modified its typical 4-2-5 defensive alignment into a 4-3, starting reserve safety Dwayne Norman at linebacker and moving Cash to a more traditional linebacker spot. Cash effectively ended the game early in the fourth quarter, when he picked off an ill-advised Thomas pass along the right sideline, setting up Duke’s final touchdown.

“I saw an interesting throw by the quarterback,” Cash said. “I was very surprised that he, in fact, threw that ball.”

Surprise was the theme of the day, as it would have been tough to predict Duke’s defensive line, down two ends, would be able to force the Georgia Tech run game inside to the waiting linebackers and safeties. That looked like it would keep the Yellow Jackets’ 10-year win streak against Duke intact.

But if the Coastal Division has taught observers anything this season, it’s to expect the unexpected. And so, Cutcliffe and his staff were able to defeat the only original division foe that still had Duke’s number dating back to his Dec. 2007 arrival.

“That always enters into your mind,” Cutcliffe said of the losing streak. “People say that you don’t think about it, but you do, if you’re honest.”

This story was originally published October 11, 2014 at 5:11 PM with the headline "Duke stings previously undefeated Georgia Tech 31-25."