Duke report card: Blue Devils improve — but still have work to do after win over Orange

Duke found what worked offensively for a complete football game, and earned its first win of the season with a 38-24 victory at Syracuse.

The Blue Devils churned out 645 total yards of offense and, if not for another four turnovers, could’ve run away with this game early.

Here’s how Duke fared:

Passing offense

B- There’s work to be done for quarterback Chase Brice, but this uneven performance at least shows there’s a high upside. Brice started 5-for-5 with a 26-yard touchdown pass on the opening drive, and then threw eight straight incompletions and was benched after his fumble was returned for a touchdown. Gunnar Holmberg replaced him for a possession and also fumbled. Brice seemed to find his rhythm afterward, throwing for a 52-yard touchdown at the end of the first half. A second-half interception thrown between four Orange defenders was another blemish, but overall Brice threw for 270 yards and two scores.

Rushing offense

A- A dominant performance from start to finish, the rushing offense’s only blemish was a couple of failed goal-line runs in the third quarter. Deon Jackson (169) and Matteo Durant (163) both had 100-yard games, and Duke churned out 363 total rushing yards. Jackson crossed the 2,000-yard plateau for his career, and all that was missing for the senior was a touchdown. Durant scored on runs of 15 and 3 yards.

Passing defense

B- Syracuse’s second play of the game, a 79-yard strike from quarterback Tommy DeVito to Taj Harris, is the only thing holding this one back. DeVito went 2-for-11 for the rest of the first half and was sacked three times; he only briefly got in the second half. The Orange clicked briefly in the third quarter with a 53-yard catch-and-run touchdown, but ultimately Duke held DeVito and later Rex Culpepper to 14-for-29 passing.

Rushing defense

A Duke held Syracuse to 28 rushing yards, which is skewed a bit by six sacks going against rushing yardage. But the Orange never got the run established early and abandoned any emphasis on it by the second quarter, despite the score staying relatively close.

Special teams

A- Credit kicker Charlie Ham with perhaps the most-important play of the first half for Duke. Ham missed a 47-yard field goal but drew a roughing the kicker penalty to extend a drive, which led to the first of Duke’s two second-quarter touchdowns. Duke’s kickoff coverage boosts the grade here, with two coverages in the third quarter that had the Orange starting from the 13- and 15-yard lines.

Coaching

A Not much to find wrong with the game plan or scheme when you outgain your opponent 645-286. More so, a winless Duke team overcame four turnovers to notch its first victory.

This story was originally published October 10, 2020 at 4:23 PM.