courtesy GoDuke.com
EVANSTON, Ill. – Duke junior safety JaylenStinson forced a fumble that was recovered by the Blue Devils at the 1-yard line to halt Northwestern’s final drive and claim a 31-23 victory at Ryan Field on Saturday afternoon.
With 1:18 remaining in the game, Northwestern used six plays to drive 58 yards to the Duke 12 yard line. Running back Evan Hull rushed up the middle to the Blue Devil one but was met by Stinson. The Opelika, Ala., native forced the fumble and sophomore Brandon Johnson recovered the loose ball in the end zone to secure Duke’s second win of the year. The turnover marked Duke’s third of the game.
Graduate student Darius Joiner and Stinson led the Blue Devil defense with 14 and 11 tackles, respectively. Duke also finished with 14 pass breakups, including three each from Joshua Pickett, Shaka Heyward and Datrone Young.
On the offense side of the ball, Duke scored 21 points in the opening half and 10 in the final frame. Redshirt junior Jordan Waters found paydirt twice for his first career multi-score game. He finished with a career-high 91 yards rushing on 10 carries.
Sophomore quarterback Riley Leonard recorded his second career 200-yard passing game after finishing 13-of-24 for 240 yards and one touchdown. Seniors Jalon Calhoun and Eli Pancol both had 100 yards receiving with 108 and 106 yards, respectively, to become the first duo since T.J. Rahming and Anthony Nash Jr. did so against Virginia in 2015.
How It Happened
- The Blue Devils jumped out to a quick 21-0 edge following a rushing score by redshirt junior Jaylen Coleman and two from Waters.
- Northwestern found the end zone midway through the second quarter after a six-yard rushing score by Hull, cutting into the Duke advantage at 21-7.
- The home side then added a 34-yard field goal with 30 seconds left in the half to pull within 21-10 at the break.
- With two minutes remaining in the third quarter, the Wildcats rushed in from 39-yards out to bring them within 21-16 … Northwestern failed its two-point conversion attempt.
- The Blue Devils responded with an eight-play, 77-yard touchdown drive, capped by an eight-yard reception by sophomore Jordan Moore to extend their lead to 28-16.
- The Wildcats answered with a 14-yard catch-and-score to cut the edge down to 28-23 with 5:49 remaining.
- Duke was forced to punt on its ensuing drive, but Johnson intercepted Northwestern quarterback Ryan Hilinski at the Wildcats’ 25-yard line to hand the Blue Devils good field positions with under four-and-a-half minutes left to play.
- Redshirt junior Charlie Ham would convert on an 18-yard field goal for Duke to extend the lead to eight points.
- Northwestern would try to counter on its final drive, but Johnson’s fumble recovery would secure the win for the visitors.
Notables
- Saturday’s game marked the second consecutive in which Duke scored a touchdown on its opening drive … the Blue Devils are now 12-1 since 2017 when that happens.
- Coleman’s 16-yard rushing score was the second touchdown of his career.
- Waters earned his first career multi-score game after scampering in from 42- and 3-yards out.
- Leonard and Pancol connected on an 81-yard reception at the end of the first quarter which set up Waters’ second touchdown of the game … both the pass and reception were career highs.
- For the second-straight game, Leonard surpasses 200 yards passing.
- Joiner’s 14 tackles marked the 11th time the Roanoke, Ala., native recorded double-digit tackles.
- Stinson finished with a career-high 11 tackles for his first double-digit tackle performance.
- Heyward posted 2.0 tackles for loss to pull within one of breaking into Duke’s top 15.
Up Next
- Duke is back in action Saturday, Sept. 17 when it welcomes North Carolina A&T to Brooks Field at Wallace Wade Stadium at 6 p.m. The game will be broadcast on ACC Network Extra.
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