D uke won its fifth consecutive season opener with a 17-3 win over the Tulane Green Wave. Running back Nate Sheppard was the star with 35 carries for 227 yards and two touchdowns. He also had three receptions for 19 yards. Quarterback Walker Eget never seemed to get into a groove as he completed 13 of 26 pass attempts for 131 yards.
Play Number One:With five minutes and seven seconds remaining in the 1st quarter, on the game's opening drive, Nate Sheppard rushed nine yards for a touchdown to complete a 17 play, 75-yard drive to give Duke a 7-0 lead. The opening drive set the tone for the game as Duke leaned on its running game to control the game.
Play Number Two:With six minutes and 56 seconds remaining in the 2nd quarter, defensive lineman David Anderson deflected pass attempts on back-to-back plays to prevent Tulane from making a 1st down and forcing a field goal attempt. The attempt was no good.
Play Number Three:On the opening drive of the 2nd half, on 2nd down and five, Tulane completed a pass but Duke linebacker Luke Mergott forced a fumble which was recovered by linebacker Nick Morris at the Duke 17-yard line to stop the drive.
Play Number Four:With 13 minutes and 41 seconds remaining in the game, on 3rd down and seven yards to go on the Duke 19-yard line, Duke cornerback Kyon Loud broke up a pass intended for Anthony Brown-Stephens to force a field goal. Tulane converted the field goal to cut Duke's lead to 10-3.
Play Number Five:With six minutes and 44 seconds remaining in the game, Nate Sheppard rushed 14 yards for a touchdown to extend Duke's lead to 17-3. The touchdown run capped a 12 play 75 yard drive which consumed six minutes and 53 seconds of clock.
Duke has a lot of things to clean up this coming week, especially in the passing game, but a win is a win and the coaching staff will watch tape and get to work preparing Duke for the trip to Illinois next Saturday afternoon.
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