Jamison Crowder knocks out Syracuse, 27-10
I like to think that the Duke Blue Devils’ win over the Syracuse Orange came down to one thing. I’d like to think that it came down to Jamison Crowder deciding that they just weren’t going to lose this one today. So when Syracuse punted to the senior wide receiver with 13:04 left in the game and a tie score, maybe Crowder knew they were doomed. Fifty-two yards later he ended up in the end zone and Duke took a 17-10 lead that it never looked back from. They only expanded it by ten more points to finish things off 27-10.
More from Duke Blue Devils
- Court alleges Zion’s Stepfather received $400k
- Four North Carolina players selected in first round of MLB Draft
- N.C. State at Duke: Staff Predictions
- N.C. State makes strong case for NCAA Tourney berth with win over Duke
- Duke vs North Carolina Staff Predictions
Syracuse got a surprise spark from fourth string quarterback Mitch Kimble, which led to a run heavy attack that slowed down the game and kept the score down. Kimble, fugitive that he was, even found his way into the end zone for his first career score.
Meanwhile Duke also had to contend with a series of runners with big names. While Prince-Tyson Gulley was expected to get a big shot, the back was held to just 42 yards. One of his fellow rushers was Adonis Ameen-Moore. Ameen-Moore also did not have a big game to match his big name.
Live Feed
Busting Brackets
For Duke, quarterback Anthony Boone had two touchdown passes and an interception. Shaquille Powell had four yards per carry. Isaac Blakeney had two touchdown receptions, but the game turned for good when Crowder returned that punt to break a tie game.
Duke needs to watch out for this kind of game. I would not call Syracuse a trap game, because it proceeds Virginia Tech on the schedule. Yes, the Hokies are better than the Orange, but they are not threatening enough that Duke’s coaching staff would have prioritized that game over this one. This win continues to let Duke lead the ACC Coastal into the homestretch.