Duke football fans would be forgiven for experiencing a wave of déjà vu in the second half of Saturday’s game against NC State.
Seven days after the Blue Devils built a 28-17 lead in Miami only to watch the Hurricanes score five second-half touchdowns, Duke scored the first 12 points of the game in Raleigh.
“It set up the scenario that, if we could have scripted it, we really couldn’t have asked for it any better,” head coach Manny Diaz said after the game. “Up two scores on the road again in league play and could we close? And could we finish?”
When the Wolfpack tied the game at 12 points apiece with a fourth field goal midway through the third quarter, any Duke fans watching at home might have felt a pit in their stomach.
Instead, the offense and defense made the plays they needed on Saturday. [autotag]Maalik Murphy[/autotag] and [autotag]Jordan Moore[/autotag] converted a second-and-20, Murphy ran for a 3-yard touchdown, and safety Terry Moore intercepted a pass.
When Murphy and Sahmir Hagans connected for a 9-yard touchdown after Moore’s pick, the Blue Devils had a 14-point cushion with 14 minutes to play. Kicker Todd Pelino even expunged some demons with a 49-yard field goal with 2:06 to play, making it a two-score game and effectively icing the Wolfpack on their own senior night.
They could close and finish indeed.