It looked dire for the first two quarters, but thanks to three late touchdowns and a career day from running back [autotag]Star Thomas[/autotag], the Duke Blue Devils took down the North Carolina Tar Heels for the first time in six years on Saturday.
Last week, the Tar Heels allowed 53 points to James Madison before the end of the first half. In the first two quarters on Saturday, UNC didn’t let Duke score a single point.
Blue Devils quarterback [autotag]Maalik Murphy[/autotag], who’d thrown for at least 210 yards with multiple touchdowns in all four non-conference games, completed seven of his 19 first-half passes for 60 yards with two sacks.
The offense took nearly 30 minutes to drive deep into North Carolina territory, only managing to do so thanks to a fourth-down pass interference call, but even that possession came up empty. Kicker Todd Pelino clanked one off the right upright from 47 yards out to keep Duke entirely off the board.
On the other side of the ball, North Carolina running back Omarion Hampton roamed all over the field for 71 yards on 17 attempts in the first 30 minutes. UNC outgained the Blue Devils 220-97, and thanks to two passing touchdowns from fifth-year senior Jacolby Criswell, the Tar Heels took a 17-0 lead into the locker room.
Duke’s comeback effort was dealt a crucial blow on the first possession of the third quarter as well. The Blue Devils’ special teams blocked a UNC punt deep in Tar Heels territory, seemingly setting up the offense within striking distance.
However, instead of falling on the ball, Duke defensive end Ryan Smith let it roll around for a few seconds before trying to jump on it, and it still popped out of his grasp. The ensuing North Carolina recovery, somehow, gave the Tar Heels the ball back, and UNC added a field goal to their lead by the end of the possession.
While the momentum of the blocked punt didn’t take hold, the offense did finally start to churn in the third quarter. Running back Star Thomas charged the team down the field, breaking off runs of 10 and 19 yards to lead the team deep into North Carolina territory.
Two plays later, Murphy dumped the ball off to the former New Mexico State back and watched some magic happen. Thomas raced to the boundary, shrugging off a would-be tackler and finding a way to keep his cleats on green grass all the way to the end zone for a 29-yard score.
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Smith got some redemption on the next North Carolina drive, bringing down Criswell for a third-down sack to give the offense the ball with three-and-a-half minutes left in the third quarter. Murphy and senior wideout Jordan Moore capitalized with back-to-back connections, the second one gaining a full 43 yards to set the offense up in scoring position again.
After another UNC pass interference penalty set the Blue Devils up right outside the end zone, Thomas burst in for the score to make it a 20-14 ballgame.
One drive later, with the Blue Devils facing first-and-20, Thomas fought his way through tackler after tackler for runs of 16 and 19 yards to put Duke in the red zone. The two carries put the transfer running back above 100 yards for the third straight game, but it was sophomore Peyton Jones who broke free for a 20-yard touchdown run to give Duke the lead.
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Thomas finished the game with 166 rushing yards, 45 receiving yards, and two total touchdowns. Murphy completed eight of his last 14 passes, finishing the game with 209 yards and a touchdown.
Two drives later, with North Carolina driving near midfield with a chance for a game-winning interception, safety Jaylen Stinson and linebacker Tre Freeman teamed up for the play of the game. Stinson got a free rush at Criswell, forcing a back-footed throw that sailed helplessly into Freeman’s waiting arms.
The Blue Devils get off to their first 5-0 start since 1994, and Duke head coach Manny Diaz got his first victory over former boss Mack Brown. Duke travels to Georgia Tech for a chance at 6-0 next Saturday.