With plenty to play for, Duke wallops Wake Forest. What we learned in Devils’ win

There was no Victory Bell for Duke to claim Saturday.

But it was senior day for the Blue Devils at Wallace Wade Stadium. It was a chance for Duke to close the regular season with a sixth ACC win. It was a chance to sweep the Big Four football series for a second consecutive year. And, it was a chance to stay in the hunt for a backdoor invitation to the ACC Championship game.

With a 49-32 win over Wake Forest, Duke accomplished most of that Saturday afternoon, in a game filled with some splashy offensive plays mixed in with some timely defensive stops.

Then, the final piece of the ACC puzzle fell into place Saturday night, when Cal — playing under an interim head coach — shocked SMU, giving the Blue Devils a berth in next week’s ACC title game by virtue of a handful of tiebreaker scenarios.

“I’m immensely proud of this football team,” Duke coach Manny Diaz said. “In a way, I told them, I’m maybe even more proud of this team than last year’s team that won more games because of what this team went through, and what they had to overcome and how they had to stick together.

“The game was about as we expected, I think kind of similar to our season. It was never going to be about perfection. It was going to be about persistence.”

Duke led 14-3 after the first quarter, 21-17 at halftime and 35-25 after three quarters. The Devils never trailed on a chilly day, but the Demon Deacons (8-4, 4-4) maintained game pressure when they weren’t committing penalties or turnovers. Or giving up some big plays in the kicking game.

Duke’s Sahmir Hagans broke off an 80-yard kickoff return after the Deacs had gotten a rushing touchdown from quarterback Robby Ashford and then a two-pointer from Ashford to make it a 35-25 game.

Nate Sheppard’s 13-yard touchdown run, the freshman tip-toeing the left sideline, pushed Duke to a 42-25 lead, only to have the Deacons answer again. Wake Forest’s defense then forced an apparent three-and-out, only to have Duke punter Kade Reynoldson take off on a 26-yard run on a fake punt.

The Blue Devils used a fake field goal run by Todd Pelino – also a 26-yarder – to beat North Carolina a week ago. It didn’t follow up Reynoldson’s run for a touchdown against Wake, but extended the possession and used up some fourth-quarter minutes.

The Deacons lost three fumbles and Ashford had a pass picked off by Duke’s DaShawn Stone. The Blue Devils, in contrast, did not have a turnover.

Duke quarterback Darian Mensah had a workmanlike game. The ACC leader in scoring passes, he had a 30-yarder to Hagans, setting a school record with his 27th of the season, and added a late scoring pass to tight end Jeremiah Hasley for his 28th.

Mensah was 24-of-35 passing for 268 yards and the two scores as the redshirt sophomore capped a strong first season with the Devils after transferring from Tulane.

“I don’t think this was my best game,” Mensah said. “It definitely feels good breaking records but ...”

Ashford finished 27-of-43 for 342 yards and two scores but also had a pair of turnovers.

What was learned about the Blue Devils in the win?

Duke gets strong start

The Devils couldn’t have scripted a much better first quarter that had Duke take a 14-3 lead.

Mensah was 8-for-8 passing. Duke scored on their two possessions, both on well-executed 75-yard drives and had 10:23 in possession time. The defense gave up some yards but did its part.

It also helped Duke that the Deacons had four penalties in the period, including two defensive pass interference calls.

Wake Forest entered the game third in the ACC in total defense, but the Devils kept the Deacs off balance in the period and got rushing scores from Sheppard and Mensah — the first of the season for Mensah, who rolled out to his left and made a dash and dive for the pylon to complete the 4-yard run.

Sheppard develops into feature back

Nate Sheppard came into the season as a freshman looking to learn the offense and earn more and more playing time. Duke’s offensive coaches believed it might be closer to midseason before he hit his stride, but it didn’t take that long.

But senior Jacquez Moore was slowed by a few injuries. Anderson Castle, a transfer from Appalachian State, emerged as the Devils’ short-yardage power back. Sheppard kept making the most of his playing time, impressing with his elusiveness and his tough, second-effort carries.

Sheppard had a 168-yard game in the Devils’ 38-3 win at Syracuse, streaking to an early 49-yard score, and a second 100-yard game at Connecticut. Against North Carolina, the 5-10, 200-pounder had a 29-yard carry that had him carrying UNC defenders on his back.

Sheppard’s first carry Saturday went for 11 yards, giving him 801 for the season. That broke the school record for rushing yards by a freshman set by B.J. Hill in 1998.

Sheppard’s 5-yard scoring run in the first quarter came on an inside run that had him seemingly stopped for no gain, only to dance his way to the end zone. He finished with 75 yards on 23 carries.

Sheppard figures to go into the 2026 season as the Blue Devils’ feature running back. It could be hard to beat him out.

Devils defense does its part

Wake Forest ran its two-minute drill perfectly to end the first half with a 20-yard scoring pass from Ashford to Karate Brenson. That finished off a 75-yard drive that took the Deacs just 1:09 as Wake scored with 29 seconds left.

With Wake set to receive the second-half kickoff, it appeared the Deacons had snatched the game momentum. But the Devils defense, leaky at times in the opening half, forced a three-and-out. The next Wake possession: a three-and-out. The third: a Duke interception by DaShawn Stone.

The Blue Devils offense had cranked out a couple of scores, Mensah hitting Hagans with a well-thrown 30-yard pass and then Castle bulled in as Duke pushed the lead to 35-17.

This story was originally published November 29, 2025 at 7:20 PM.

Chip Alexander

The News & Observer

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In more than 40 years at The N&O, Chip Alexander has covered the N.C. State, UNC, Duke and East Carolina beats, and now is in his 15th season on the Carolina Hurricanes beat. Alexander, who has won numerous writing awards at the state and national level, covered the Hurricanes’ move to North Carolina in 1997 and was a part of The N&O’s coverage of the Canes’ 2006 Stanley Cup run.