Notes: Duke 41, Elon 27

9/4/2010 11:44:00 PM | Football

By: Duke Sports Information

Pregame:

Game captains: Duke - Brett Huffman, Abraham Kromah, Bryan Morgan, Chris Rwabukamba
Elon - Scott Riddle, Terell Wilson, Brandon Wiggins, John Rubertone

Duke won the coin toss and deferred to the second half. Elon will receive and defend the South endzone.

Weather at kickoff: 80 degrees, sunny, wind northwest at 5 MPH

Duke Game Starters: Offense - QB Sean Renfree, RB Desmond Scott, WR Tony Foster, WR Donovan Varner, WR Conner Vernon, TE Brett Huffman, LT Kyle Hill, LG Brandon Harper, C Bryan Morgan, RG Brian Moore, RT Perry Simmons; Defense - DE Patrick Egboh, NG Charlie Hatcher, DE Kenny Anunike, SLB Damian Thornton, MLB Abraham Kromah, WLB Tyree Glover, CB Chris Rwabukamba, CB Ross Cockrell, CB Lee Butler, S Matt Daniels, S Jordon Byas.

Duke 41, Elon 27

Season Openers
Duke improved to 2-1 in season openers under head coach David Cutcliffe. The third year coach has led the Blue Devils to wins over James Madison and Elon in his three seasons.

Duke Scores Over 40 Points
The Blue Devils scored 41 points on Saturday. It is the fourth time under head coach David Cutcliffe that Duke has reached the 40-point mark. It is the 10th game with 30 or more points under Cutcliffe.

Blue Devils Record 542 Yards of Total Offense
The 542 yards of total offense (350 pass, 192 rush) is the most under Cutcliffe and second time the Blue Devils have notched 500 or more yards. Duke had 502 last season at N.C. State with 459 passing and 85 rushing.

First Collegiate Starts
Five Duke players earned their first collegiate starts against Elon. Offensive players starting for the first time were redshirt sophomore quarterback Sean Renfree, redshirt sophomore wide receiver Tony Foster and redshirt freshman tackle Perry Simmons. On defense the players who started for the first time were redshirt sophomore defensive end Kenny Anunike and redshirt freshman cornerback Ross Cockrell.

Renfree Throws For Over 300 Yards In Starting Debut
Redshirt sophomore quarterback Sean Renfree had an impressive debut as a starter, becoming the fourth Duke QB to throw for over 300 yards in a starting debut and the fifth Blue Devil with at least 300 yards in a season opener. His 350 yards are the most second most in a starting debut, behind only Dave Brown's 444 yards vs. Wake Forest in 1989. Renfree's total tied for the second most in a season opener with Thaddeus Lewis who threw for 350 against Richmond last season. Renfree was three yards shy of Anthony Dilweg's 353 yards in the 1988 season opener against Northwestern.

Two Touchdowns For Renfree
Renfree tied a career high with two touchdown passes. He matched the two touchdown throws he had against Army in his first career game.

Three Rushing Touchdowns By RBs
Duke's running back corps combined for three rushing touchdowns in the game. In all of last season, the Blue Devils' running backs scored only two combined rushing touchdowns in 12 games.

Scott Scores Second Touchdown
Sophomore running back Desmond Scott carried the ball five times for 52 yards on Duke's opening drive, capping off the series with a 34-yard touchdown run. The touchdown was the second of Scott's career. His 34-yard carry was the longest of his career. Scott finished the game with 77 yards on 15 carries.

Snead Scores First Career Touchdown
True freshman running back Josh Snead punched it in from three yards out in the fourth quarter for his first collegiate touchdown.

Hollingsworth Scores Second Career Rushing Touchdown
The final touchdown of the day for the Blue Devils came on a one-yard run by junior running back Jay Hollingsworth. It was the second career rushing touchdown for Hollingsworth. His first TD came against Wake Forest in 2008.

Varner Moves Into 10th In Receiving TDs
Junior wide receiver Donovan Varner caught an eight-yard touchdown pass from Sean Renfree to move into a tie for 10th on Duke's career receiving touchdowns list . He tied Stan Crisson and Wes Chesson with his 10th career TD grab.

Vernon Posts Ninth 100-Yard Opening Day Receiving Performance
Sophomore wide receiver Conner Vernon recorded his fourth career 100-yard game to mark the ninth time in school history a wide receiver has notched 100 or more yard in a season opener. Vernon hit the 100-yard mark with eight minutes remaining in the second quarter. He finished the game with 129 yards, the second most in a season opener behind Clarkston Hines' 131 yards on eight receptions against Northwestern in 1988.

Vernon Ties Career High
With his 10 catches, Vernon matched a career high for receptions in a game. He caught 10 passes last season at N.C. State for 86 yards.

Varner Goes Over 100 Yards Receiving
Varner tallied his sixth career 100-yard receiving game, moving into a tie with Doug Green and Eron Riley for third most in school history. His 123 yards are the third most in a season opener and one of 10 100-yard games in season openers.

Duo 100-Yard Receivers
Varner and Vernon both went over 100 yards to become first duo in school history to do so in a season opener. The duo has now each gone over 100 yards in three games over the last two seasons. The two each had over 100 yards in back-to-back games against Maryland and Virginia last year.

King Moves Up TE Touchdown Chart
Redshirt senior tight end Brandon King caught his sixth career touchdown pass from Renfree in the second quarter. King moved into a tie for fifth on Duke's career list for touchdowns by a tight end, matching the total set by Howard Pitt, Chuck Drulis and Mike Hart.

King Posts Career High
The five receptions for King are a career high, passing his previous best of four grabs against North Carolina in 2006.

Defense Snags Two Interceptions
Duke tallied two interceptions in the game while recording pass breakups on six other passes. Entering the season the Blue Devils had only three career interceptions among active players entering the season.

Daniels Tallies Second Career Interception
Junior safety Matt Daniels notched his second career interception in the third quarter. His first interception came during his freshman season at Virginia Tech.

Kromah Gets First Interception of Career
Redshirt senior linebacker Abraham Kromah intercepted a pass in the fourth quarter for his first career interception.

First Career Sacks
Two redshirt freshmen notched their first career sacks against Elon. August Campbell and Justin Foxx each came away with one sack while Duke had three quarterback pressures on the evening.

Snyderwine Makes Two Field Goals
The two made field goals for redshirt junior kicker Will Snyderwine give him 19 career made field goals, moving him into a tie for ninth on Duke's career list with Matt Brooks. Snyderwine is now 19-of-22 (.864) in his career.

Perfect On PATs
Snyderwine remained perfect in his career on PAT attempts, making all five of his kicks on Saturday. He is now 29-of-29 in his career and is tied for eighth with Tom Cochran for most consecutive made PATs.

Attendance: 33,941