Duke holds off Troy
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Freshman quarterback Grayson Loftis threw for 183 yards and Duke’s defense came up with a final stop as the Blue Devils secured a winning season Saturday with a 17-10 Birmingham Bowl victory against Troy.
The Sun Belt Conference champion, Troy (11-3), tried to finish the season on an 11-game winning streak for the second straight year. But against a Blue Devils (8-5) lineup decimated by transfer portal departures, the Trojans couldn’t find an offensive rhythm.
A lack of syncopation wasn’t unexpected. Both teams played with interim coaches. Duke’s Trooper Taylor filled in for Texas A&M-bound Mike Elko while Troy defensive coordinator Greg Gasparato stepped up when Jon Sumrall took a job at Tulane.
Both programs have already hired replacements — former Miami coach Manny Diaz takes over at Duke and Notre Dame offensive coordinator Gerad Parker is the new hire at Troy.
Since taking over for the injured Riley Leonard, who later transferred to Notre Dame, Loftis has been effective without much to show for the understudy work. In four starts, he delivered victories against Wake Forest and Pitt in between narrow losses to North Carolina and Virginia.
Against Troy, Duke built a 17-3 fourthquarter lead and looked to put the game out of reach. But Troy intercepted Loftis deep in Trojans territory then replied with an 87-yard drive to cut the margin to one score.
But Duke would need one final stop to secure victory and got it when Jeremiah Lewis intercepted Gunnar Watson with just over a minute remaining in the game. A senior, Watson finished the game with 230 yards passing.
TAKEAWAYS
Troy: The Trojans faced the Sun Belt’s first Power 5 bowl opponent in Birmingham. While Troy failed at claiming a historic win, the program has still won 21 of its last 24 games.
Duke: The Blue Devils have won five straight bowl games dating back to 2015.
CAMELLIA BOWL
NORTHERN ILLINOIS 21, ARKANSAS STATE 19: Rocky Lombardi passed and ran for a touchdown and Northern Illinois held on when the Red Wolves couldn’t convert a late two-point pass in Montgomery, Ala.
Antario Brown ran for 132 yards for the Huskies (7-6), who won six of their final eight games. Neither team scored in the second half until Jaylen Raynor’s 13-yard touchdown pass with 1:14 left to Corey Rucker, who broke a tackle at about the 6. Raynor’s potential tying two-point pass sailed out of the end zone.
Arkansas State (6-7) couldn’t convert the onside kick, getting called for offsides on the first of two attempts to prompt a heated protest from coach Butch Jones.
The 25-year-old Lombardi completed his seventh and final college season by going 18 of 29 for 200 yards despite a pair of interceptions. He spent four years at Michigan State and three at Northern Illinois, receiving a medical redshirt last season.
Grayson Barnes had 105 yards and a score on five catches. Brown ran 25 times.
Arkansas State’s Raynor, the Sun Belt Conference freshman of the year, matched his older counterpart. Raynor was 16-of-30 passing for 250 yards with a pair of TDs and an interception. Rucker had five catches for 107 yards and two touchdowns.
The game was a matchup of two of the seven teams that made bowls after winning three or fewer games in 2022.
TAKEAWAYS
Arkansas State finished with a losing record but doubled last season’s win total.
Northern Illinois wasn’t successful on every gamble, opening with a failed twopoint attempt and failing on an onside kick. But the Huskies held onto the ball for more than 40 minutes.