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The Miami Hurricanes rolled the Duke Blue Devils by a score of 48-0 on Saturday, December 5th, in Durham, NC. The statistics are eye popping. Miami’s offense scored six times against the Devils. Compare that to the 17 point output in a 27-17 Duke in in 2019. The ‘Canes defense allowed 3.9 yards per pass attempt and 1.7 yards per carry with an interception and four fumbles.
This was a much cleaner game for Miami than say, NC State or Virginia. The ‘Canes had only three penalties (for 45 yards), one turnover, and didn’t look completely lost on offense or defense outside of the O’s first two possessions. Once the rust got knocked off Rhett Lashlee’s offense, the ‘Canes were ready for a boat-racing.
What left me with some concern heading into a match up, possibly, with UNC? Jose Borregales missed a field goal, Miami returners struggled with punts again, and the ‘Canes were only 4-of-10 on 3rd down. But in a 48-0 win, that’s all nitpicking.
The offense
Rhett Lashlee isn’t getting these results with N’Kosi Perry and Peyton Matocha. Not that we know more about Matocha than how he looks in a headset, but a 16-of-24 passing performance with 10.3 yards per attempt, three passing touchdowns, and one rushing TD for another 46 yards isn’t something any quarterback since Stephen Morris would have or could have done.
Above- King throws a dart to Brevin Jordan who stumbles into the end zone. Perfect placement for the tight end with 1st round NFL aspirations.
The fact that King performed that well coming off of COVID and a long layoff shows you the maturity, leadership, and overall ability of the ‘Canes QB. Let’s all hope Mr. King stays for another season because Tyler Van Dyke and Matocha haven’t been allowed to showcase anything, and Perry doesn’t have “it.”
Above- the Duke LB’s are terrible. The play side LB runs himself into the offensive line, and the back side LB never moves until it’s too late. Below- an end zone look of the play. The Duke LB thought his best bet was to run shoulder first into Navaughn Donaldson.
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Below- Harris has great running form in open space, absolutely perfect. Harris is on the left and not in 100% intensity as he broke away from the Duke defense. But his form remains beautiful. On the right is a baseball player (and D3 wide receiver) that I coached on speed. My guy needs to get his right elbow in tighter to his body.
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On the ground, Cam’Ron Harris and Don Chaney Jr. both had great nights. Harris ran for 96 yards (6.4 yards per carry) and two touchdowns. Chaney, a true freshman, ran for 62 yards (6.9 yards per carry) and hauled in four catches for 81 receiving yards.
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Mike Harley caught only two passes, but they went for 105 yards and a touchdown. Tight end Brevin Jordan caught four balls for 75 yards and a score, and Dee Wiggins hauled in Miami’s other passing TD.
The offensive line allowed only one sack, three tackles for loss, and two QB hurries. Knighton, King and Harley all fumbled, but only Knighton’s was recovered by the Blue Devils.
The defense
On the flip side, Miami’s defense smothered the Blue Devils offense. Duke has been turnover prone all season and five turnovers on Saturday night was another display of the Devils ineptitude on offense. Nesta Jade Silvera seemed to be causing havoc all over the backfield, even if the stat sheets don’t prove it. Jaelan Phillips and Quincy Roche lived up to the hype combining for three sacks and 6.5 TFLS.
Above- Phillips uses his inside move to get an early sack on Brice.
Former blue chip QB Chase Brice averaged 3.8 yards per passing attempt on 94 yards. Back up Gunner Holmberg averaged 4.5 ypa and threw a TD, and both lost a fumble on the night.
On the ground, Duke’s two running backs who split carries for the Devils averaged 4.8 and 1.6 yards per carry- which is a far cry from their 6+ yards per carry average.
Above- Duke really needs an RPO or pull read (not with Brice) on this G-T Counter. The Devils pull the tackle and the Miami defensive end chases, with no repercussions. As an OC you have to make that end pay for squeezing that fast (chasing down the RB).
Above- a real offense is going to abuse Roche if he can’t play in control, and stay 1 1⁄2 yards deep versus 5+ in the backfield. Duke can’t take advantage of that, but UNC can and will. Movement efficiency is a huge part of being a 2-3 year NFL player or making it 8-10 years. It allows the player to play better, deeper into games (less wasted energy) and helps cut down on injuries. Run smooth, stay healthy.
The Blue Devil’s longest reception went for 13 yards, while Jake Bobo and Eli Pancol both hauled in a team-high five receptions on the night.
The Blue Devils offensive line allowed three sacks, 13 TFL’s, and a QB hurry to go with the five turnovers for the team. Duke was only 5-of-15 on 3rd down, 1-of-2 on 4th down, and committed six penalties for 55 yards. The game was an utter disaster for the Devils coming off of a sorta-blowout loss to Georgia Tech.
Summary
As hard as it would be to fire David Cutcliffe after what he has done for the Duke program, he looks exhausted. Coach Cut is 66 years old. He’s just coached his way through a pandemic. He’s on his 19th season as a head football coach, including 13 in Durham. It might be time to hang ‘em up.
After back-to-back bowl wins Duke has slipped to 5-7 in 2019, and are currently 2-8. A new approach could be what the Devils ordered. You would have to think names like Rhett Lashlee, Costal Carolina’s Jamey Chadwell, UNC OC Phil Longo, and Georgia Tech OL Coach Brent Key could all be viable possible replacements for Coach Cut.
On the other sideline, Miami came out a little rusty on O, looked great on D all game, and same ol’ stuff in the kicking game. If Miami plays UNC next weekend, expect a better offense and defense across the field from the ‘Canes. Miami moved to 8-1 and that’s okay. The ‘Canes could wind up 10-1 if the game with UNC holds and there’s a bowl game for Miami.