The struggles continue for Duke football. What we learned from the Blue Devils’ loss
Even a road venue where Duke had experienced a modicum of recent success couldn’t help the struggling Blue Devils end their ACC losing streak.
Duke dropped its 11th consecutive ACC contest as Virginia Tech, behind three touchdowns passes by Braxton Burmeister, routed the Blue Devils 48-17 at Lane Stadium on Saturday night.
Duke (3-7, 0-6 ACC) entered the game having won three of its previous four games over the Hokies in Blacksburg, Virginia. But Virginia Tech (5-5, 3-3 ACC) never trailed in this one.
The Blue Devils played without starting quarterback Gunnar Holmberg, who suffered upper body injuries to his left clavicle and ribs during a 54-29 loss to Pittsburgh last week. His absence left two true freshmen, Riley Leonard and Jordan Moore, to handle the quarterbacking duties.
As has consistently been the case during its losing streak, Duke fell behind Virginia Tech in the first half. The Hokies scored the game’s first 14 points and led 17-3 at halftime.
Duke reached the Virginia Tech 21 on its first drive only to see Charlie Ham miss a 39-yard field goal. The Hokies responded with a 79-yard touchdown drive with Raheem Blackshear scoring on a 20-yard touchdown run.
Early in the second quarter, Virginia Tech doubled its lead with a quick strike. On the first play after Duke turned the ball over on downs, Burmeister fired a 47-yard touchdown pass to running back Keshawn King putting the Hokies up 14-0.
Duke’s defense gave the Blue Devils a scoring chance when defensive lineman Ben Frye tipped a Burmeister pass and R.J. Oben intercepted it. But, after starting a drive at the Virginia Tech 11, the Blue Devils were unable to get a first down. So Ham booted a 29-yard field goal slicing the Virginia Tech lead to 14-3.
The Hokies restored their 14-point lead when John Parker Romo booted a 51-yard field goal with 3:16 left until halftime.
Virginia Tech added 10 points in the third quarter, including Burmeister’s 30-yard touchdown pass to Kaleb Smith, to open a 27-3 lead.
Quarterback questions unanswered
Holmberg made the trip to Virginia Tech with the team and was in uniform but Duke coach David Cutcliffe said he wasn’t healthy enough to take a hit and protect himself.
So Leonard got the start, making him the first true freshman quarterback to start for Duke since Thaddeous Lewis in 2006.
Leonard struggled, completing just 7 of 16 passes for 84 yards without leading the Blue Devils to the end zone.
Moore replaced him in the second half and spark the offense despite the score being lopsided. Moore completed 6 of 12 passes for 63 yards with a 28-yard touchdown pass to Eli Pancol.
But Moore did more damage with his running ability, leading Duke with 110 rushing yards on 16 attempts. He scored a touchdown on a 4-yard run in the fourth quarter.
Duke plays again on Thursday night at home with Louisville. If Holmberg is still unavailable, Moore appears to be the better choice.
Big plays hurt Duke defense again
The Blue Devils beleaguered defense entered the game having allowed more plays of 30 or more yards this season (33) than any other ACC team. Virginia Tech continued to light the Blue Devils up, ripping off six more of those plays.
That allowed the Hokies to ring up 573 yards of total offense. The Blue Devils have allowed a team to gain 500 yards or more five times this season, including in each of their last four games.
No bowl for Duke
The seventh loss of the season ensures that, for the third consecutive season, Duke will not qualify for a bowl game. The Blue Devils played in bowl games six times over a seven-season stretch from 2012-18, but have gone 10-23 over the last three seasons.
Duke has now lost 14 of its last 15 ACC games while going 4-19 in ACC play over the last three seasons.
