Good evening, Blue Devil faithful. Harrison Wexley-Moore IV here, pre-law, pre-med, pre-MBA, pre-architecture and, as of this morning, pre-astronaut. I've read the playbook, the LSAT prep book and the complete works of Shakespeare, usually in that order. I also passed that exam. Whichever exam you're thinking of. I passed it.
But this week, friends, I need to grade my own team. And as any good academic will tell you, an honest grade is the only grade worth having.
Part 1: The Bell Tolls for Someone Else
North Carolina beat us 24-20 at Wallace Wade Stadium on Saturday. We're 4-2 and 1-2 in the ACC. The Tar Heels ran across the field afterward and took back the Victory Bell. That's a painful sound, friends. I have three music degrees, and that was the worst note I've ever heard.
UNC led 17-0 early in the second quarter after a field goal, a 5-yard touchdown pass and a 4-yard run. Then our defense took over the lecture hall. Safety Andrew Pellicciotta returned a fumble 9 yards for a touchdown. Gavin Strange kicked field goals of 22 and 21 yards. AP says UNC managed only about 100 yards between its first 17 points and its final drive. North Carolina went more than 41 minutes without scoring.
And then, with 4:39 left, Walker Eget hit Nate Sheppard with a short pass, and Sheppard reached the end zone from 7 yards out. Duke led 20-17. My thesis was nearly complete.
But on fourth-and-4 from their own 28 with 3:48 left, UNC completed a pass to keep the drive alive. With 1:53 left, Jaylen McGill ran 24 yards for the winning touchdown.
Sheppard, the nation's leader in rushing yards per game, ran for 77 yards on 20 carries and caught 11 passes for 98 yards. Eget went 24 of 38 for 249 yards. And for the second straight week, AP noted, we took a late lead and gave up the winning touchdown inside the final two minutes. A week earlier, it was 28-25 at Georgia Tech. Duke had also won eight straight games against in-state opponents. Our coach called it two very tough results for a good football team. I concur, with honors.
Part 2: Friday Night in Charlottesville
Friday, 7 p.m. Eastern on ESPN. Duke (4-2) at Virginia (4-3) at Scott Stadium.
And let's be clear about the most recent meeting. Last December, in the ACC Championship Game in Charlotte, Duke beat Virginia 27-20 in overtime. It was Duke's first outright ACC championship since 1962. I wrote three dissertations about it. Virginia did beat us 34-17 in Durham during the regular season, and I respect that. But the championship is the final exam, friends. The final exam counts more.
Peer Review: Virginia
In the spirit of fair academic review, Virginia does several things well. Its pass defense allows 173.9 yards a game, 25th in FBS. It's plus-5 in turnover margin, 15th. Beau Pribula has thrown 13 touchdowns and just one interception. And Virginia went 11-3 last season.
Now the critique, in footnotes.
Virginia has been held under 300 yards in three straight games, according to AP. It finished with 258 yards in a 23-13 loss at SMU last Saturday. Its offense ranks 90th in yards and 96th in passing. It converts 33.0% on third down, 120th in FBS. It scores on 74.1% of its red zone trips, 124th. And earlier this month, Virginia lost 38-7 at Florida State. That's not a passing grade. That's a request for an extension.
Here's my most beloved footnote. Duke's defense allows opponents to convert just 29.2% on third down, ninth in FBS. Virginia's offense converts 33.0%, 120th. Those two numbers walked into the same seminar, and one of them is going to leave early.
Self-Assessment: Duke
Our defense allows 16.0 points a game, 19th in FBS, and 92.5 rushing yards a game, 18th. Our running game averages 209.5 yards a game, 22nd. Sheppard has 820 rushing yards and eight touchdowns, and he leads us in receiving too. Kevin O'Connor has three sacks, and Nick Morris Jr. leads us with 33 tackles. We control the clock, too, averaging 33:17 of possession a game, 13th in FBS.
Honest Grade
Here's my B-minus moment. Duke averages 73.8 penalty yards a game, 123rd in FBS. We need to finish games. Two late leads, two late losses. In academic terms, we keep writing brilliant papers and forgetting to put our names on them. Fix the flags, close the fourth quarter and this is an A.
The Syllabus for Friday Night
Week-by-week reading list, condensed into four lessons. Lesson one: feed Sheppard. Virginia's run defense ranks 88th, allowing 152.7 yards a game, and our running game is built for exactly that. Lesson two: win third down on defense. Virginia struggles there more than almost anyone in FBS, and our defense is among the best in the country at getting off the field. Lesson three: don't give the ball away. Virginia is plus-5 in turnovers, and it lives on mistakes. Lesson four, and this is the one that will be on the final: when we have the lead in the fourth quarter, keep it. Two straight weeks, we've learned that one the hard way. Third time's the lesson.
Campus Tour: Durham vs. Charlottesville
Durham. Durham is the fourth-most populous city in North Carolina, with 283,506 people at the 2020 census, and it anchors one corner of the Research Triangle. Duke Chapel, finished in 1935, stands 210 feet tall and is one of the tallest buildings in Durham County. And Wallace Wade Stadium, opened in 1929, hosted the 1942 Rose Bowl. That's right. During World War II, the Rose Bowl came to Durham. Pasadena needed a substitute teacher, and Durham was ready.
Our nickname even has a story. "Blue Devils" comes from "les Diables Bleus," the World War I nickname of the Chasseurs Alpins, the French Alpine light infantry. I also speak French. Naturally.
Charlottesville. Charlottesville is a pleasant city of 46,553. Durham has about six Charlottesvilles. And at Virginia, they don't call it a campus. They call it "the Grounds." Friends, I have a landscaping certificate too, and I can confirm "the Grounds" is what you call the area around a nice house. The University of Virginia has a lovely Rotunda, a famous Lawn and a word for campus that sounds like a coffee order.
Their nickname, "Wahoos," comes from the school's rallying cry, "Wah-hoo-wah!" I've studied linguistics extensively, and I can tell you that's not a word. It's the sound I make when I stub my toe on a Duke textbook.
And Scott Stadium, built in 1931, offers grass hill seating. Charming. At Duke, we sit in chairs. I have an ergonomics degree.
Final Exam
Here's my thesis. Virginia has a sharp passing defense and a quarterback who protects the ball, but an offense that has stalled for three straight weeks. Duke has a top-20 scoring defense, a top-10 third-down defense, a powerful running game led by Sheppard and the memory of a championship won against this exact opponent. If Duke protects a fourth-quarter lead this time, we'll be ringing our own bell on Friday night.
I also passed that exam. Go Duke.
My call: Virginia Cavaliers 25, Duke Blue Devils 23.