Game Notes: Georgia Tech – Duke University

Durham – Duke heads to Bobby Dodd Stadium in Atlanta, Ga., for an ACC matchup against Georgia Tech on Saturday.

Kickoff is set for 4:00 p.m., and the game will be broadcast live on RSN.


Georgia Tech leads the all-time series between the two schools 53-35-1. In the last meeting on Oct. 9, 2021, a late performance by the Yellow Jackets separated them from Duke, 31-27, at Brooks Field at Wallace-Wade Stadium. Duke held a 27-24 lead late in the fourth quarter, but Georgia Tech’s six-play, 88-yard drive found the end zone with less than a minute left. The Blue Devils’ final drive was thwarted by an interception at the Yellow Jackets’ 20-yard line.

The Blue Devils are off to their first 4-1 start since 2018 and are 1-0 in the ACC since 2019 when they beat Virginia Tech 45-10 on the road. A Duke win Saturday would mark the Blue Devils’ first start to conference play since 2015, when they started 3-0.

Of the 26 teams nationally with one loss on the season, the Blue Devils are one of eight undefeated teams, joining Kentucky, Maryland, NC State, Oregon, South Alabama, Wake Forest and Washington.

Saturday’s RSN broadcast will feature Tom Werme, James Bates and Lauren Jabara on the call. The game can be heard on the Blue Devil Sports Network from LEARFIELD on the varsity app or goduke.com.

 

Television • RSN

Radio • Blue Devils Sports Network from LEARFIELD

Game notes • Duke Notes (PDF) • Georgia Tech Notes

Live statistics • RamblinWreck.com

Twitter • @DukeFOOTball

High Jacob Monk Following Duke’s 38-17 win over Virginia, he earned ACC Co-Offensive Player of the Week honors. The Clayton, NC, native played both center and guard, leading an offense that produced 38 points, 26 first downs and 377 total yards, zero turnovers. He turned around and turned around.

In four of five games this season, Duke has not been in the contest. He also scored points in 19-of-20 quarters, the lone blemish coming in the third quarter against Kansas on Sept. 24. Also, Saturday’s game against Virginia marked Duke’s second straight week without a turnover. .

The Blue Devils rank fourth in the ACC with 444.20 total yards per game. The Blue Devils find themselves ninth in the conference in rushing (200.40) and ninth in passing (243.80) offense.

After finishing the 2021 season with a winning streak in the ACC, the Blue Devils are first in the league and fourth in the division nationally with a +1.60 turnover per game. Duke is tied with LSU for the nation-leading eight rushing touchdowns.

Foreign opponents
The Blue Devils are outscoring their opponents 175-95. They are also outscoring their opponents in every quarter this year, including a 66-7 advantage in the opening frame.

End streams
Duke finished with two wins in its last game against Virginia. The Blue Devils defeated the Cavaliers for the first time since 2014 and the program’s first ACC game since Oct. 10, 2020 against Syracuse.

Tenure period
The Blue Devils held a 36:30-23:30 edge in the final possession against Virginia. In the second quarter alone, Duke had 10:31 of the ball to the Knights’ 4:29.

High power damage
Duke ranks third in the ACC with 2,221 total yards. The Blue Devils are followed by North Carolina (2,536) and Florida State (2,408). They are also fourth in the ACC in total offense, averaging 444.20 yards per outing.

Duke also ranks fifth in the ACC in scoring offense at 35.0 points per outing. Through the first five games, the Blue Devils scored 22 total touchdowns to finish sixth in the conference. It was the most in Duke’s opening five games since 2013, when the Blue Devils scored 23 touchdowns.

QB1
Duke Chart Second Level Riley Leonard It will return to quarterly in early 2022. During this Blue Devil tenure, Leonard saw action in 12 career games and completed 127-of-187 (.679) passes for 1,557 yards with eight touchdowns and three interceptions, 88 rushing yards for 434 yards (4.93 ) and six outcomes.

In his first year as Duke’s starter, the Fairhope, Ala., native ranks first in the ACC and is eighth nationally in passing completion percentage with a mark of 720 (90-of-125). Leonard is fourth in the ACC in total offense after compiling 1,176 passing and 260 rushing yards on the season. He sits behind North Carolina’s Drake Maye (1,849), Clemson’s DJ Yougalley (1,484) and Syracuse’s Garrett Schrader (1,438).

Fourth down conversions
Duke is tied for third in the league with Syracuse at 66.67 percent (6-of-9). A pair of trail Clemson (3-of-3, 1.000) and North Carolina (9-of-12, 75.00).

Easy recovery
In Duke’s first five games, he recovered a nation-leading eight fumbles, tied with LSU. Eight different Blue Devils accounted for those difficult rebounds. Freshman during Duke’s last trip to Virginia Terry Moore He recorded his first professional recovery.

Rush defense
Duke has held opponents to 132.80 rushing yards this season to rank seventh in the ACC. Opponents are averaging 3.95 yards per rush with just four.

Stand your ground
Duke has eight players led by a graduate student with 15-plus tackles on the year Join Darius (41), Red Dress Senior. Shaka Howard (34) and young Jaylen Stinson (30) The trio made Duke one of six schools in the ACC to have at least three student-athletes with 30-plus career starts on the year (Boston College, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Virginia, Wake Forest).

In Duke’s final road game against Virginia, Heyward tallied 13 tackles to lead all players. He had his first double-digit performance of the year in Dacula, Ga. It was the first against Miami since November 27, 2021.

Block the party
During Duke’s last road trip against Virginia, Jr Ryan Smith He blocked the Old Devils’ first year of the year. He joins his teammates Isaiah Fisher-Smith, Darrell Harding JrAnd Rocky Shelton II At least one blocked shot in his Duke career. Fisher-Smith leads the team after compiling a career-high three shutouts. In 2020, Duke added a blocked punt recovery against Charlotte.

#have a nice week