How Duke Football defeated UNC and reclaimed Victory Bell with a historic comeback

DURHAM – There is a saying that Duke football has experienced an upswing under first-year coach Manny Diaz.

It’s a mantra that helped the Blue Devils remain undefeated with a historic 21-20 comeback win over rival UNC on Saturday night at Wallace Wade Stadium.

After winning the Victory Bell from the Tar Heels (3-2, 0-1 ACC), the Blue Devils (5-0, 1-0) revealed the key to their second-greatest comeback in program history.

Diaz always tells his team to send their opponents to the “sewers” ​​in the second half. Duke built a strong performance through more than two quarters, trailing 20-0 early in the third quarter before pouring in 21 points to end a five-game losing streak in the rivalry.

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“Honestly, (Diaz) just says, ‘Take them to the sewers and see if they stick,'” said Duke star running back Thomas, who scored two touchdowns and finished with a season-high 166 rushing yards.

“You know, the sewers smell so bad, I guess we’re the only ones who can sit in there and endure it.”

It wasn’t until 5:43 left in the fourth quarter that Duke took the lead. They didn’t return it. After gaining just 97 yards in the first half, Duke’s offense responded with 297 yards.

“I’m in awe of our guys. We couldn’t be prouder of what we’ve done,” Diaz said. “We talked at halftime about how we had the chance to do something legendary and that would require all of our belief in ourselves and in each other.”

The Devils, who averaged 2.1 yards per carry in the first half, averaged 6.4 yards per carry after halftime. The defense only allowed one field goal.

“Our guys were just remarkable. Even at halftime there were no throwing helmets, no loud voices. We just refocused,” Diaz said.

The goal, Diaz added, is to throw consistent “body punches” in the second half in hopes of wearing down the Heels.

“I also just felt like our guys believed when we got to the fourth quarter that we felt like we could dominate,” Diaz said. “It just looked like we got stronger as the game went on, and from my perspective it looked like they went the other way.”

After a victory clinched by a final-minute interception by linebacker Tre Freeman, Duke fans streamed onto the field and the Blue Devils began ringing the victory bell.

The party continued in the locker room.

“There’s a big old bell in there that keeps ringing,” Diaz said with a smile.

But as they prepare for a trip to Georgia Tech (3-2, 1-2), the Blue Devils hope to stay atop the ACC standings with No. 7 Miami (5-0, 1-0). Going back to last season, Duke has the longest winning streak in the ACC at seven games.

“This is a locker room right now that is really, really excited and really, really happy,” Diaz said.

“But he also knows that this evening is not what this season is about. We can do more. They really believe that.”

Staff writer Rodd Baxley can be reached at [email protected] or @RoddBaxley on X/Twitter.

This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: How Duke football took UNC into the “sewer” in its “legendary” comeback