Sept. 26, 2009

Final Stats

DURHAM, N.C. - Duke University blew open a seven-point, second-quarter contest by scoring 28 unanswered points for a 49-14 victory over North Carolina Central University in the first football meeting between the two Durham universities.

Tagged as the "Bull City Gridiron Classic," a crowd of 26,390 braved a steady rain to witness the historic event inside Wallace Wade Stadium.

Duke (2-2) amassed 487 yards of total offense, including a balanced 254 yards passing and 233 yards rushing. The Blue Devils' 28 first downs is the second-highest total allowed by an Eagles defense (31 by Western Kentucky on Oct. 27, 2007).

NCCU (0-4) recorded 181 total yards with 111 yards through the air. The Eagles were held to a season-low eight first downs.

Sophomore quarterback Michael Johnson completed 5-of-15 passes for 82 yards, while fellow sophomore signal caller Keon Williams entered the contest in the fourth quarter to throw for 29 yards on 3-of-4 passing for the Eagles.

The Blue Devils were topped by senior quarterback Thaddeus Lewis with 189 yards and two touchdowns on 17-of-25 passing, while also rushing for his second touchdown of the season.

Sophomore Donovan Varner caught six passes for 76 yards and two trips to the end zone for Duke, while freshman running back Desmond Scott rushed for 100 yards and a touchdown in his first college start.

Duke scored on its first three possessions to jump out to a 21-0 lead. Patrick Kurunwune dashed 14 yards to close out a five-play, 59-yard drive to put the Blue Devils on the scoreboard just two minutes, 27 seconds into the contest. Scott rushed 23 yards for the second score at 8:42 of the first quarter, followed by an 18-yard connection from Lewis to Varner at 3:19 of the first quarter to put Duke up 21-0.

NCCU responded with a seven-play, 70-yard drive to post its first points on the board with a one-yard dive into the end zone by junior Tim Shankle at the 1:27 mark of the first quarter. The drive was highlighted by a 55-yard pass play from Johnson to sophomore Geovonie Irvine, the Eagles' longest play from scrimmage this season.

With Lewis out of the game due to a temporary injury, Duke back-up quarterback Sean Renfree was hit by NCCU junior lineman Teryl White on his first pass attempt. The wobbling ball was picked off by junior safety Jeffery Henderson, who raced 83 yards for a touchdown at 13:33 of the second quarter to narrow the NCCU deficit to 21-14, giving the upset-minded Eagles a spark of energy.

Duke, however, answered with a 13-play, 80-yard drive, capped by a 14-yard touchdown reception by Varner with 33 seconds left before halftime, to go up 28-14 at intermission.

The Blue Devils scored two touchdowns in the third quarter, including a fumble recovery on a punt return, and one more in the fourth quarter to finish the scoring.

The NCCU defense was led by Henderson with 10 tackles plus his 83-yard touchdown scamper, which equals the ninth-longest interception return in school history.

"First of all, tonight was a very historic night," said NCCU head coach Mose Rison. "It was a tremendous feeling to have an opportunity to be a part of something so special.

"In terms of our effort, I thought early on we were sluggish," Rison said. "Once we got our feet under us and started to understand what they were doing, we were able to make some things happen on offense. All in all, I am extremely proud of our football team and thought we played extremely hard."

Up next, NCCU travels to Greensboro, N.C., to face rival North Carolina A&T on Saturday, Oct. 3 at 6 p.m.