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Duke Falls Short on Road in Loss at Georgia Tech
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- Duke Falls Short on Road in Loss at Georgia Tech
(REUTERS)
The Duke Blue Devils entered Week 6 with a 4-0 record and the opportunity to stay unbeaten and ranked in both polls. But Georgia Tech had other ideas.
The Yellow Jackets were able to preserve a three-point lead in the final minutes as Duke's 33-yard field goal from Gavin Strange fell short with just five seconds left giving Georgia Tech the 28-25 win.
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Before the field goal, the Yellow Jackets trailed 25-21 with just over two minutes left in the game. The Yellow Jackets drove 61 yards on eight plays and took 1:38 off the clock to claim the lead as Trelain Maddox found the end zone with 54 seconds left in the game. It was the third touchdown on the day for Maddox, rushing for 81 yards on 10 carries in the game.
Georgia Tech's offense wasn't spectacular by any means but it did enough to keep a really good Duke defense on its heels at times. Alberto Mendoza was efficient, completing 23 of his 30 attempts on the day for 218 yards and one touchdown. That touchdown pass was in the first quarter, giving Georgia Tech a 7-0 lead.
It was a slow start for the Blue Devils in this game. They fell behind 7-0 and didn't find the end zone until the second quarter when Nate Sheppard had a five-yard run. But Georgia Tech answered right back as Maddox found the end zone for a five-yard run to go back up 14-7.
A Strange field goal late in the second quarter cut the deficit to 14-10 at halftime.
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Maddox once again pushed the Yellow Jackets lead in the third quarter when he scored on a 60-yard run, knifing through the Blue Devils' defense. The running back found the end zone to extend the lead to 21-10.
Duke fought back as Walker Eget threw a touchdown pass and then got a two-point conversion late in the third. Then late in the fourth, Sheppard scored from five-yards out and Duke led 25-21.
That final drive did the Blue Devils in as they got deep into the Georgia Tech side of the field and threatened to even take the lead. But the efforts fell short.
Eget was 26-of-41 for 259 yards and the one touchdown. Sheppard finished with 99 rushing yards and 91 receiving yards in the game to lead the Blue Devils.
Duke now returns home to host North Carolina, who knocked off Pitt on Saturday, for their Week 7 battle.
