The Duke football team won its fifth straight game to open the 2024 season on Saturday, a 21-20 rivalry triumph over the North Carolina Tar Heels, and the Blue Devils won in familiar fashion.
Head coach Manny Diaz and his team trailed by 20 points midway through the third quarter, and the Blue Devils were still behind 20-7 when the final frame began. Duke also trailed with 15 minutes to play against Connecticut in Week 3, and the team was tied with Northwestern through three quarters in Week 2.
Diaz said after the game that those consistent comeback victories aren’t an accident, but rather a byproduct of how confident the team feels in its preparation. The first-year Duke coach said the team refers to fourth quarters as “The Sewer,” and through the first five games, the Blue Devils haven’t given up a touchdown in there.
“We get the game to the fourth quarter, that’s our quarter and that gives us a chance to win,” Diaz said. “We kind of have another battle cry that we can catch you, you can’t catch us.”
So far, no team has been able to prove the Blue Devils wrong in that respect. Duke has outscored its opponents 40-6 across the fourth quarter this season, holding each of its last three opponents scoreless in the final 15 minutes.
Duke scored the final 14 points against UNC and the final nine points against Connecticut, staving off potential home losses in both games. Even in the Blue Devils’ 45-17 blowout victory over Middle Tennessee in Week 4, defensive coordinator Jonathan Patke and his unit didn’t surrender a point.
Beyond that advantage on the scoreboard, Duke has looked more physical at the end of contests. The Blue Devils defense ruined both of North Carolina’s potential game-winning drives, first with a tackle for loss and a hurried incompletion before a free rusher forced the game-ending interception.
The Tar Heels averaged 4.6 yards per play in the fourth quarter on Saturday. Duke’s offense averaged 6.7, rushing for 111 yards and two touchdowns on 15 attempts.
With seven games left on the conference schedule, it remains to be seen if Duke can keep up that form over the final 15 minutes. But it’s encouraging, and Diaz’s confidence in that stat reveals a solid understanding of why this team keeps erasing leads.