2008 Week 6

Duke was foolish to think that the rest of the ACC would take a look at what they had done against the likes of Navy, Northwestern and even Boise State, and decide they had something to fear in this edition of the Blue Devils.

Since entering ACC play Duke has looked almost exactly like they have every other year. Certainly they've given the bottom feeders like Georgia Tech and Virginia a good battle, but in the end, mistake prone football has sunk the team, and had head coach Victor Bonnell searching for answers.

Yesterday was no different as Duke managed to fall behind 21-0 to the Yellow Jackets thanks to turnovers, a punt return, and a breakdown in defense. The scoring began when Duke seemed to be knocking at the door of the GaTech endzone, until an errant Zack Asack pass found it's way into a defender's hands. One play later Josh Nesbit hit Jonathan Dwyer on a short screen pass that turned into a 69 yard touchdown pass.

When Duke couldn't muster an offense on their next drive and had to punt, James Johnson was able to put the Blue Devils further on their heels with a 66 yard punt return for a score, and a 14-0 lead. Duke continued to struggle, while Georgia Tech continued to press their advantage, and Jamaal Evans was able to break around the right side for the Yellow Jackets third score, which put them up 21-0.

Lost in this was coach Bonnell's patience with his starting quarterback. Since the Blue Devils have entered ACC play. Asack has turned from someone who looked like he might win ACC player of the year, to one who might lose his starting job. Asack has thrown 6 interceptions, and no touchdowns in the last two games, and has also amassed 3 fumbles.

After the game, coach Bonnell announced that Thadues Lewis will get the start in Duke's next game against Miami. Lewis wins the job in large part because of his efforts to lead the Blue Devils back. Despite numerous mistakes, and falling behind early, Duke had a very good chance to win this game. With just over 1 minute to play in the game, Duke had rallied back to within 1 touchdown, 24-17 and had gotten themselves to the Georgia Tech 5 yard line. Unfortunately Lewis fumbled on a failed option pitch, the fumble was picked up by Malcolm Monroe of the Yellow Jackets, and returned for the decisive touchdown 94 yards later.

While a chance at the ACC title game have most likely gone by the boards, the team is still harboring bowl game hopes. In order to do that, they'll need to find a way to get their offense moving the ball consistently, and stop settling for field goals once they get into the redzone.

Thanks to Thadeus Lewis making plenty of his own mistakes, there have been rumblings that freshman Sean Renfree would have his redshirt removed, but coach Bonnell has said it would take a catastrophic injury to one of his top two quarterbacks before that became a real option