Box Score
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DURHAM, N.C. – North Carolina Central University junior quarterback Jordan Reid came off the bench to spark the Eagles with a career-best passing effort, but it was not enough as ACC foe Duke University scored touchdowns in all three phases of the game for a 54-17 win inside Wallace Wade Stadium on Saturday night.

An announced crowd of 22,829 witnessed the second meeting between Durham’s  Eagles and Blue Devils in a game tagged as the Bull City Gridiron Classic.

NCCU’s offense struggled early, failing to achieve a first down in its first three possessions with a total of negative-four yards in nine plays.

With Duke up 10-0, NCCU senior Arthur Goforth returned a kickoff 59 yards to the Duke 41-yard line, jolting life into the NCCU fans and the Eagles on the gridiron. Reid replaced starting quarterback Matt Goggans and completed 2-of-3 passes for 25 yards, converted two first downs and set up a one-yard touchdown run by sophomore Andre Clarke at 3:24 of the first quarter.

Thanks to Reid’s 121 passing yards in the first half, NCCU boasted 200 yards of total offense compared to 198 for Duke, even though the Blue Devils held a 27-10 halftime advantage.

Reid later led the Eagles on a 10-play, 73-yard scoring drive with the quarterback passing for 51 yards and ending the drive with a one-yard dive into the end zone at 11:54 of the fourth quarter.

The High Point, N.C., native finished the contest with a career-high 218 yards on 17-for-26 passing. Reid’s favorite target proved to be junior Marvin Poole, who posted career-highs of six receptions for 83 yards, while senior Decona Roberts added four catches for 62 yards.

Clarke charged the NCCU ground game with 59 yards and a score on 14 carries. Sophomore kicker Oleg Parent accounted for five NCCU points with a 33-yard field goal and a pair of extra-point kicks.

NCCU amassed 337 yards of total offense, an average of 4.8 yards per play. Even though Duke out-scored the Eagles by 37 points, the Blue Devils only had 71 more total yards (408) than their cross-town opponent.

NCCU junior linebacker Tyriqe Williams recorded a career-best 11 tackles to lead all defenders, while redshirt freshman linebacker Matt Willison chipped in eight takedowns, including a hit for a loss of six yards and a pass break-up.

Duke passed for four touchdowns, ran for one score, returned a punt to the end zone and took an interception back for six points, while adding a pair of field goals.

Senior quarterback Sean Renfree completed 24-of-34 passes for 274 yards and three touchdowns to top the Blue Devils’ offense. Duke cornerback Ross Cockrell collected six tackles and four passes defended, including two interceptions with one of them going 32 yards for a score.

With the win, Duke improves to 2-1, while NCCU falls to 1-2.

The Eagles continue their five-game road swing with a visit to Savannah, Ga., to play the Tigers of Savannah State University on Saturday, Sept. 22 at 7 p.m.