Chris Rumph II: "We pinned our ears back the whole game"

Duke defensive end discusses defensive performance

Duke’s defense had four sacks and 10 tackles for loss against Georgia Tech in the 41-23 win on Saturday. Defensive end Chris Rumph II was a big part of it. His six tackles were fourth most on the team, and he added a tackle for loss, two pass breakups and two quarterback hurries.

He credited teamwork for putting pressure on Tech quarterback James Graham.

“We knew if we just worked together as a group, we we’re gonna get him,” he said. “It happened big today with three sacks (by Victor Dimukeje), Trevon (McSwain had one sack). Everybody was getting in there.”

The win helped get Duke back on track after last week’s loss to Pitt.

“Obviously, coming off a loss, you want to get a win on the table,” he said. “We just bounced back and just put that one in the rear-view mirror. Focus on the next game. Just come out like we didn’t play that other team. Losing last week doesn’t matter.”

Getting up by 31 points certainly helped the pass rush pin their ears back.

“We pinned our ears back the whole game,” Rumph said. “But the offense put us in great position to where we could play even faster and take a couple shots if we wanted to.”

Tech moved the ball on its first drive before the Blue Devils put the clamps on the Yellow Jacket offense. The reason?

“Energy level,” he said. “I think we came out, and they punched us in the mouth, but we responded. The coaches did a great job getting us settled into the game and playing Blue Devil defense.”