The Duke Blue Devils found a way on Saturday, scoring three second-half touchdowns to outlast the North Carolina Tar Heels in front of a sold-out home crowd.
The most notable pieces of school history attached to the win stemmed from the rivalry and the record, as Duke beat UNC for the first time since 2018 and improved to 5-0 for the first time since 1994. However, the comeback itself also found its place in the annals of Blue Devils history.
Duke trailed North Carolina by 20 points midway through the third quarter on Saturday, making the victory tied for the second-largest comeback in program history. The only larger recovery came against the Florida Gators in 1962 when the Blue Devils trailed 21-0 at halftime before winning 28-21.
Head coach Manny Diaz spoke after the game about his team’s confidence in the fourth quarter, which Duke calls “The Sewer.” So far this season, the Blue Devils have outscored their opponents 40-6 over the last 15 minutes of the game, a statistic helped by Saturday’s final two touchdowns.
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Duke’s next opponent, Georgia Tech, also fell victim to a major Blue Devils surge. Duke erased a 20-point deficit against the Yellow Jackets in 1954, the only other 20-point comeback in program history.