LDN - Sports

Duke pulls away from Northern Illinois

[December 27, 2017] By Keith Dunlap, The Sports Xchange

DETROIT -- Sophomore quarterback Daniel Jones accounted for 338 yards and three touchdowns to lead Duke to a 36-14 win over Northern Illinois in the Quick Lane Bowl on Tuesday.

Jones finished 27 of 40 for 252 yards and two touchdowns and rushed for 86 yards and a touchdown on 16 carries for the Blue Devils (7-6), who ended the season on a three-game winning streak after losing six in a row.

Duke amassed 466 yards of total offense and scored four touchdowns in the first half to take a 26-14 lead at halftime.

The Blue Devils separated themselves further in the third quarter, taking a 33-14 lead with 6:31 remaining on a 7-yard touchdown run by freshman running back Brittain Brown.

Duke capped the scoring with 7:37 left in the game on a 24-yard field goal by William Holmquist.

After falling behind 14-0, Northern Illinois (8-5) tied the game at 14-14 with 12:22 remaining in the first half on a 25-yard touchdown run by freshman running back Tre Harbison and a 67-yard touchdown pass from freshman quarterback Marcus Childers to junior wideout Jauan Wesley.

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But after that it was all Duke, which scored the final 22 points of the game.

Childers completed 15 of 26 passes for 234 yards and the touchdown. Harbison finished with 59 yards and a score on 13 carries for the Huskies.

NOTES: Duke earned its fourth winning season in last five years. The last time Duke had four winning seasons in a five-year stretch came in 1960-64. ... Northern Illinois made its ninth appearance in a bowl game in the last 10 years but now has a five-game losing streak in bowls. ... Duke won seven games for the fifth time in 10 seasons under head coach Dave Cutcliffe. Before Cutcliffe's arrival, Duke hadn't won seven games in a season since 1994. ... Northern Illinois sophomore DE Sutton Smith became just the second consensus All-American in school history. The only other one was LeShon Johnson in 1993. ... Duke won consecutive bowl game appearances for the first time since 1945 and 1955. The Blue Devils beat Indiana 44-41 in the 2015 Pinstripe Bowl.

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