Loss for Orange may wind up costly
Quarterback Devito suffers severe leg injury on fourth-quarter sack
Duke coach David Cutcliffe did what he expected to do after that elusive first win — he danced with his team in a locker room full of joy.
Chase Brice threw for two touchdowns, Mataeo Durant rushed for 163 yards and two more scores, and Deon Jackson rushed for a career-high 169 yards as Duke held off Syracuse 38-24 on Saturday.
Orange quarterback Tommy Devito never found any sort of rhythm, misfiring repeatedly on long throws, and failed to capitalize on any of Duke’s four turnovers. He finished 13-for-26 passing for 255 yards and two touchdowns. He was injured when sacked — for the fifth time — early in the fourth quarter and replaced by Rex Culpepper.
Devito suffered an injury to his left leg and coach Dino Babers said afterward the injury was “not good.”
“Based off some of the stuff I’ve heard, it’s not good,” Babers said. “We’re all pulling for him and we wish him the best. But right now, it’s not good.”
When Devito was sacked early in the fourth quarter he left the field with help from two staff members. He watched from the sideline with a boot on and resting on crutches.
Duke (1-4, 1-4 Atlantic Coast Conference) won despite three lost fumbles and an interception, but Syracuse (1-3, 1-3) only turned the mistakes into seven points. The Blue Devils entered the game with 15 turnovers, the most in the nation, while Syracuse was second nationally in turnovers gained with 10.
“I think we all have been waiting for that moment,” Cutcliffe said afterward. “I can’t tell you the joy in my heart. There was a lot of emotion in that locker room. It’s a difficult time. It’s tough. It’s a pandemic. Things don’t go well, but nobody’s jumped ship.”
On this day all the mistakes finally didn’t matter for the Blue Devils, who used the backfield tandem of Jackson and Durant to wreak considerable havoc while the Syracuse offense sputtered against Duke’s imposing front line. Syracuse managed just 28 yards rushing to Duke’s 363.
Duke’s 645 yards of total offense is a high under Cutcliffe.
Duke came from behind with two touchdowns late in the second quarter to gain a 24-14 advantage.