Duke 28 UNC 27 Victory Bell Claimed

The Duke Blue Devils upset 15th ranked North Carolina Tar Heels 28-27 in Wallace Wade Stadium,  With the victory Duke claims the coveted Victory Bell and bragging rights for a year.

Duke came into the game as battered a football team as any team in the country.  Six starters were missing from the line up tonight and at the end of the game seven were missing.

Despite that, Duke played with  heart and that propelled them to their first ACC win of the season.  Not only that, they are still in contention for a bowl game but must win out for that to happen.

The Duke offense would outgain the powerful Tar Heels offense 467 yards to 403 in the contest.  Daniel Jones ended the game with one passing touchdown which went to tight end Davis Koppenhaver and he ran for another score gaining 94 yards on the ground.Shaun Wilson added 107 yards rushing and another score, whole T.J. Rahming pulled in 8 passes for 100 yards.

The Blue Devils defense intercepted Mitch Trubisky twice and that doubled his interception total for the entire season.  The Tar Heels pulled within 28-27 on a Nick Weiler field goal.  They were mounting a late drive as well, but a timely interception from Alonzo Saxton sealed the deal as the Blue Devils ran out the clock.

''After the game I was hit with the Gatorade which is always fun.  I told somebody my legs were shaking but it had nothing to do with the cold.  It was from watching our playrs, the joy, the deserved joy,'' stated David Cutcliffe who has now won three of the last five outings versus the Tar Heels.

The game ball went to Bob Harris, the long time voice of the Duke Blue Devils who was calling his last home game.  But that ball could have gone to multiple players on a team that came to play and made Duke fans proud.

''We've known all year that we're  a good team and we had to do what needed to be done and better than how Carolina did,'' said senior A.J. Wolf.

The Blue Devils would go down 14-0 in the game only to allow the Tar Heels one more touchdown and two field goals after the 1st quarter.

Duke defeats UNC for Victory Bell
Duke defeats UNC for Victory Bell

With his 240 passing yards, redshirt freshman Daniel Jones is now owns the Blue Devils all time passing yards record surpassing Thaddeus Lewis.

''He is an outstanding player, a fierce competitor,'' said Cutcliffe of his prodigy.

With the win Duke goes to 4-6 on the season where they travel to Pitt next week.  North Carolina drops to 7-3 and 5-2 in the ACC in a loss that could have knocked them out of a shot at the title game in Charlotte.

It was a good night for Duke and they gained a much needed win. And when you defeat your arch rival on national TV it is always a good recruiting tool.  The bottom line is a lot of young players showed that there is talent in Durham.  And that talent is getting better.

Duke still has plenty to play for this season, but regarless of the outcome, the program is in solid shape for years to come.