Duke didn’t just beat William & Mary on Saturday. The Blue Devils turned Wallace Wade Stadium into a showcase for firsts, backups, and a runaway scoreline, rolling to a 62-7 win and pushing their winning streak to eight straight dating back to last season.
That run matches 2013 and 1954/55 for the program’s longest since Duke won 11 in a row across the 1940 and 1941 campaigns. Third-year head coach Manny Diaz has his 4-0 team off to a sharp start, and the ACC opener was as one-sided as the final number suggests.
The first spark came from Walker Eget, the graduate transfer quarterback who opened the day by leading Duke down the field and finishing the drive with a 24-yard touchdown pass to redshirt sophomore receiver Jayden Moore. It was Moore’s first career score, and it set the tone for an afternoon that kept producing milestones.
Duke’s defense kept the pressure on right away. After forcing a three-and-out, the Blue Devils missed on fourth down and briefly handed William & Mary a short field near the red zone.
That didn’t last long. Duke shut down the next push and then blocked a 53-yard field goal attempt, reclaiming possession at its own 36.
From there, Eget pushed past 100 passing yards just beyond the midpoint of the first quarter, and Nate Sheppard did what Nate Sheppard keeps doing. The sophomore star back ripped off a 19-yard touchdown run to make it 14-0.
William & Mary answered with its own burst, using a 63-yard pass and then a six-yard throw to get into the end zone with just under three minutes left in the first quarter. But that was as close as the Tribe would get.
Cosme Salas added a 32-yard field goal early in the second quarter, stretching Duke’s lead to 17-7. Then the Blue Devils started stacking more firsts. Redshirt freshman quarterback Dan Mahan threw his first career touchdown pass on a 29-yard strike to redshirt freshman receiver Kavon Simmons, who also logged his first receiving touchdown as a Blue Devil.
Mahan wasn’t done. A few minutes later, he found redshirt freshman wideout Jaivon Solomon on a 29-yard touchdown near the sideline for Solomon’s first career score. That pushed Duke ahead 31-7 and made the rest of the afternoon feel like a formality.
Before halftime, Eget connected on another touchdown, this time a 28-yard strike to graduate wide receiver Jared Richardson for Richardson’s first score as a Blue Devil. Duke went into the break with a 38-7 cushion, and the second half brought more of the same, including freshman wide receiver Brody Keefe’s first career catch and touchdown.
The quarterback numbers were clean and efficient. Eget finished 16 of 22 for 182 yards and two touchdowns. Mahan was even sharper in relief, going 6 of 7 for 126 yards and three scores.
Sheppard kept his own streak rolling, too. He ran for 116 yards and a touchdown on only nine carries, giving him his fourth straight 100-yard rushing game this season.
He now has 644 rushing yards on the year. Graduate running back CJ Campbell added 41 yards on nine carries, and freshman Jayvian Tanelus chipped in 69 yards and a touchdown on nine attempts.
Duke spread the ball around all afternoon. Twelve Blue Devils caught at least one pass, and graduate wide receiver Jonah Burton led the group with five receptions for 63 yards.
By the end, the stat sheet told the story as clearly as the scoreboard: Duke outgained William & Mary 638-169.
The Blue Devils now head into a bye week before traveling to Atlanta to face Georgia Tech on Oct. 10, with time and TV still to be announced.
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