Duke Tops UCF 30-13 in Military Bowl
The UCF Knights never found a true rhythm against the Duke Blue Devils. Seemingly a step behind during the vast majority of big plays, Duke came out on top 30-13.
Here are a few of the bigger statistics and points that stymied UCF and gave Duke the win.
The Knights came up with only 326 yards of total offense. Duke had 350 yards of total offense. Does not sound bad, but it was a bit misleading to look at the total offensive numbers by themselves.
Duke went 7-14 on third downs. That was huge. UCF was solid by going 5-14, but not enough good production once in Duke territory spelled doom for UCF. In conjunction, the Blue Devils won the time of possession battle, and the game flow more importantly, with a 34:28 to 25:32 advantage.
The Knights were also going against a player they just did not contain.
It was the Riley Leonard show. The Duke quarterback did not dominate with statistics, mind you, but with moxie. If the Blue Devils needed him to scramble, he did it. If Duke needed Leonard to make a precision pass for a first down against tight coverage, it was done.
Whatever was needed became a success by the sophomore Leonard. For the contest, Leonard went 19-28 for 173 yards and no touchdowns or interceptions. He also rushed for 63 yards and two scores.
Fittingly, Leonard finished off the scoring with a 3-yard rushing touchdown with 2:29 remaining in the contest. UCF, meanwhile, just could not get going on the offensive side of the football.
Quarterback John Rhys Plumlee and the Knights scored just seven points during the first half, and just another six points in the second half. Duke’s bend but don’t break cover-2 play calls were augmented by several all-out-blitz pre-snap looks that ended up being all sorts of calls, as the Duke defenders bailed at the snap of the football quite often.
The result was a UCF offensive front that struggled to keep Plumlee upright and a signal caller that often decided to leave the pocket before he honestly needed to. Both were problems from the first quarter and onward.
Give credit to Duke's defense and its staff, head coach Mike Elko included. A lot of credit.
Plumlee finished the last game of the 2022 season by going 21-34 for 182 yards, no touchdowns, and one interception. On the ground, Plumlee was held to 14 carries for 21 yards rushing, as well as losing a fumble in the second quarter. Those rushing totals ended up being misleading with Duke's defense having sacked him six times. Sacks count against rushing totals at the college level.
To say Duke’s defense executed head coach Mike Elko’s aggressive game plan would be a huge understatement. Duke dictated to UCF’s offense and it was not close. The Blue Devils were the hunters and the Knights were the hunted.
The passing game was the biggest disappointment for the Knights. Many of Plumlee's passing yards came after the Blue Devils had built a substantial lead. The Knights inconsistent passing game will be an area that will be hotly discussed among the UCF faithful though the off season and into spring practice.
UCF rushed for 128 yards and two touchdowns as a team. During his last game as a Knight, running back Isaiah Bowser came up with 39 yards on the ground and both of UCF’s touchdowns.
Duke's rushing attack produced 177 yards and three scores on the ground. While UCF's offense was the bigger problem, no question, there were some obvious moments where the Knights missed run fits and also missed tackles. Those hurt.
Speaking of pain, UCF's defensive lineup was truncated by Divaad Wilson having turned pro and opting out of the game. Additional players that missed include Tre'mon Morris-Brash with a shoulder injury, cornerback Davonte Brown had transfered to Miami, and Jeremiah Jean-Baptiste had also transfered and selected Ole Miss, among several missing Knights on defense.
Those players being out did allow some younger defensive players a chance to play like the twins, Demari Henderson and Ja'Cari Henderson, at safety and cornerback respectively.
On offense, with another transfer -- Ryan O'Keefe -- having opted to play at Boston College, freshman wide receiver Xavier Townsend caught seven passes for 25 yards.
Inside The Knights will have additional position and coaching commentary over the next several days.
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