Wake Forest Drops Tight Contest at Duke, 24-21

DURHAM, N.C. -- Despite allowing just 267 yards of offense, Wake Forest football dropped a hard-fought contest at Duke, 24-21, on Thursday night inside Brooks Field at Wallace Wade Stadium.

The Demon Deacons (4-5, 1-5 ACC) and Blue Devils (6-3, 3-2 ACC) were locked in a back-and-forth affair on Saturday that came down to the fourth quarter. Duke's Todd Pelino won the game as time expired with a 26-yard field goal.

Wake Forest's touchdowns came on a pair of rushing scores by redshirt sophomore quarterback Mitch Griffis as he became the first quarterback at Wake Forest to post multiple rushing TDs in a game since Sam Hartman did so on Nov. 6, 2021 at North Carolina. The Deacs other lone score on Thursday night came on a three-yard plunge by redshirt freshman Tate Carney to give the Deacs the early lead.

Overall for the game, Griffis was 16-for-19 for 241 yards through the air and he tallied 55 rushing yards the two aforementioned rushing touchdowns. His top target inside Wallace Wade Stadium on Thursday was junior Ke'Shawn Williams, as he tallied a career-high seven catches for 90 yards, including a 25-yard gain in the first quarter to set up the Deacs' opening score.

Defensively, Wake was led by junior Malik Mustapha as he tallied a season-high 11 tackles. Additionally, the Demon Deacons dominated up front as junior Jasheen Davis and redshirt junior Kevin Pointer combined for two sacks, three tackles-for-loss, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery.

HOW IT HAPPENED

Duke won the toss and deferred to the second half.
Demond Claiborne set the Demon Deacons up at the 25-yard line following a 20-yard kick return on the opening kickoff.
Wake Forest was forced to punt it away on the first drive, as Ivan Mora booted it 38 yards to the Duke 21-yard line.
The Demon Deacon defense forced a quick three-and-out on Duke's opening drive and the offense took over on its own 24-yard line following the punt.
Wake Forest got on the board first with a three-yard touchdown run from Tate Carney at the 7:10 mark in the first quarter..
- The eight-play, 76-yard scoring drive was highlighted by three plays of 10-plus yards, including a 25-yard pass from Mitch Griffis to Ke'Shawn Williams to get to the three-yard line.
- Demond Claiborne tallied 34 rushing yards during the drive.
Duke started its second drive of the evening at the 25-yard line following a touchback from Tyler Black.
Jasheen Davis set the offense up at the Duke 15-yard line with a strip sack and recovery.
- It was Davis' first sack of the game which moved him to a team-high 6.5.
Duke took over at its own 17-yard line following a blocked kick with 4:17 remaining in the first quarter.
The two teams traded punts as Wake Forest took a 7-0 lead into the second quarter.
- Wake Forest outgained Duke 109-to-18 in the first 15 minutes, including 63-to-6 on the ground.
- Additionally, the Deacs picked up five first downs in the first quarter and allowed just one.
Duke tied the game with a 32-yard rush by Jaquez Moore at the 14:22 mark in the second quarter.
After Wake Forest failed to convert on fourth-and-short, the Deacs immediately got the ball back on the opposing 21-yard line following an interception by Quincy Bryant on the first play of Duke's drive.
Griffis took advantage of the Blue Devil turnover, as the redshirt sophomore quarterback ran it in himself for an eight-yard touchdown to make it 14-7 with 8:10 remaining in the first half.
- The score marked Griffis' first-career rushing touchdown.
The Blue Devils responded with a touchdown drive of their own capped off by a four-yard rush with one minute remaining in the second quarter.
Wake Forest ran out the clock as the two teams headed into the locker rooms tied at 14-14.
- Griffis went a perfect 8-for-8 for 95 yards, in addition to 22 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown, in the first half.
- Williams led the Deacs with four receptions for 57 yards.
- On the ground, Claiborne led the way with 53 yards on 10 attempts (5.3/carry).
- Defensively, Malik Mustapha had a team-high seven tackles in the first half.
Duke opened the second half on the 25-yard line after a Tyler Black touchback.
The Wake Forest defense forced its third three-and-out of the contest and took over at its own 34-yard line after a Taylor Morin fair catch.
Griffis remained perfect through the air as he picked up back-to-back first downs on Wake Forest's first drive of the second half, but Duke took over on its 29-yard line after a missed field goal at the 9:51 mark in the third quarter.
After another forced three-and-out from the Wake Forest defense, the Deacs took a 21-14 lead on another touchdown rush from Griffis (five yards) with 4:35 to go in the third quarter.
- The drive was highlighted by a 61-yard pass from Griffis to Morin all the way down to the three-yard line. It was the longest reception of Morin's career.
Duke started its following drive on its nine-yard line after an illegal block in the back penalty on the kick return.
Kevin Pointer forced the Blue Devils to punt with under a minute to go in the quarter with a four-yard sack on third down.
Wake Forest headed into the fourth quarter with a 21-14 lead.
- Griffis had just one incomplete pass through three quarters.
Despite a Wake Forest turnover at around midfield, the defense stepped up and forced its fifth three-and-out of the night.
After a Wake Forest punt, Duke tied the contest again with a 29-yard touchdown reception at the 11:40 mark in the fourth quarter.
Mora pinned the Blue Devils back at their own 13-yard line with 8:45 remaining in the game.
Duke punted the ball back to the Wake Forest 14-yard line before an interception set the Blue Devils up at their 40 with 4:12 to go.
Duke made a 26-yard field goal as time expired to win the game, 24-21.

IN THE SPOTLIGHT
Getting to the Duke quarterback in the first quarter for a 10-yard loss and forced fumble, Jasheen Davis moved into the top five in program history in sacks. With 6.5 sacks through nine games in 2023, Davis has now tallied 19 sacks in his career and that ranks tied for fifth in program history.

1. Mike McCrary (1989-92) 30
2. Calvin Pace (1999-02) 29
3. Duke Ejiofor (2014-17) 23.5
4. Carlos Basham, Jr. (2017-20) 20.5
T5. Bryan Ray (1997-00) 19
T5. Jasheen Davis (2020-Present) 19

STAGGERING STATISTICS

Wake Forest held Duke to 86 passing yards in the game. The total is the second fewest in the Elko era and fourth lowest total in the past 10 years for Duke:
- Elko Era:
  - 1. 76 yards vs. Florida State Oct. 21, 2023
  - 2. 86 yards vs. Wake Forest Nov. 2, 2023
  - 3. 107 yards vs. NCSU Oct. 14, 2023
  - 4. 129 yards vs. Virginia Oct. 1, 2022
  - 5. 134 yards vs. Notre Dame Sept. 30, 2023
  - 6. 136 yards vs. Georgia Tech Oct. 8, 2022
  - 7. 136 yards vs. Miami Oct. 22, 2022
  - 8. 151 yards vs. Louisville Oct. 28, 2023
  - 9. 158 yards vs. Boston College Nov. 4, 2022
  - 10. 173 yards vs. UCF Dec. 28, 2022
- Last 10 Duke Seasons
  - 1. 44 yards vs. Army Oct. 8, 2016
  - 2. 76 yards vs. Florida State Oct. 21, 2023
  - 3. 82 yards vs. Virginia Tech Oct. 28, 2017
  - 4. 86 yards vs. Wake Forest Nov. 2, 2023
  - 5. 97 yards vs. Alabama Aug. 31, 2019
  - 6. 102 yards vs. Notre Dame Nov. 9, 2019
  - T-7. 107 yards vs. NC State Oct. 14, 2023
  - T-7. 107 yards vs. Virginia Tech Oct. 26, 2013
  - 9. 114 yards vs. Georgia Tech Sept. 26, 2015
  - 10. 118 yards vs. Virginia Oct. 19, 2019

FROM COACH CLAWSON
"First off, credit to Duke and Mike Elko. They made plays in the fourth quarter and managed the game well. This one hurts. It really stings, because in terms of the scrimmage plays, I thought we outplayed them. We just made some really undisciplined and stupid penalties down the stretch that cost us the football game. We had some turnovers in the second half, which is a shame because that was one of the better offensive performances that we've had in quite a while. We couldn't finish drives and we didn't convert short yardage. We missed a couple of field goals. That's the football game. So again, credit to them, but this one stings. I thought we competed and, in a lot of ways, we outplayed them. They just played a lot smarter than us, and that's why they won the football game."

UP NEXT
Wake Forest returns home next weekend on Saturday, Nov. 11 for a 2 p.m. matchup with NC State. The contest will be nationally broadcast on The CW and will serve as Wake Forest's Senior Day with a special ceremony for those student-athletes prior to the game. Fans can purchase single-game tickets now for that contest on Nov. 11.

Next Event

Team Stats

Mitch Griffis

Players Mentioned

Tyler Black

Quincy Bryant

Tate Carney

Demond Claiborne

Jasheen Davis

Mitch Griffis

Sam Hartman

Ivan Mora

Taylor Morin

Malik Mustapha

Kevin Pointer

Ke'Shawn Williams

Wake Forest Athletics