The preview said this was the first real test of the Todd Goebbel interim era, and that it would show whether the 21-0 second half against Cal was a turnaround or a 1-week bump. It was a bump. NC State kicked a field goal in the 1st quarter and didn't score again. CJ Bailey, who threw 2 touchdowns against Cal, couldn't get the offense going in front of the home crowd, and the 3-point total says it more clearly than any passing line could. The box score search didn't show whether Duke Scott played after 3 missed games. If he did, it didn't change anything.
The 2nd quarter decided it. Duke led 7-3 after 1, then put up 24 straight points before halftime to go into the locker room up 31-3. Teams with 3 points don't come back from that, and NC State never really tried. Duke added 7 in the 3rd and 3 in the 4th and coasted home.
The preview's main bet on the shape of the game was that it would stay close until someone pulled away late, since both teams had lived in one-score games all month. That was wrong almost from the start. Duke's past 2 games are now 47-2 over Boston College and 41-3 at NC State, an 83-5 combined score. The Duke defense that held BC to 213 yards gave up 1 field goal to a Wolfpack offense that scored 31 against Cal a week earlier.
Duke has now won 3 straight and is 4-2 in the ACC. Losing kicker Cosme Salas for the season didn't matter on a day the margin was 38. For NC State, a home blowout against the in-state rival is about as bad as it gets for an interim staff, and the bowl push gets harder with every week that runs out. The weather was 59 and clear and played no part. Duke was simply better at everything.
