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2014 Duke Football Season in Review
12/30/2014 12:18:00 PM | Football
DURHAM -- The Blue Devils concluded the 2014 season with a 36-31 loss to No. 15 Arizona State in the 81st Hyundai Sun Bowl on December 27 in El Paso, Texas. Duke finished at 9-4 overall with a 5-3 ACC ledger, good for second place in the ACC's Coastal Division.
Duke's appearance in the Hyundai Sun Bowl marked the program's third consecutive bowl appearance under head coach David Cutcliffe.
TV RATINGS
The Blue Devils continue to be a favorite of the nation's TV viewers as the Hyundai Sun Bowl posted a 2.6 rating to surpass last year's Sun Bowl (UCLA vs. Virginia Tech at 2.3) and also outdrew the Kentucky vs. Louisville men's basketball game (2.1) played at the same time last Saturday … The Hyundai Sun Bowl also greatly outperformed the Miami vs. South Carolina matchup in the Duck Commander Independence Bowl in a similar time slot on ABC.
SUN BOWL STARS
Despite the five-point loss to No. 15 Arizona State in the 81st Hyundai Sun Bowl, Duke had several standouts in the contest:
** Jamison Crowder: 7 receptions for 102 yards; 68-yard punt return for a TD; 12-yard touchdown pass to Issac Blakeney
** DeVon Edwards: 14 tackles, 1 sack, 1 caused fumble
** Shaquille Powell: 29 rushing attempts for a career-high 117 yards; 3 receptions for 52 yards and 1 touchdown
SUN BOWL RECORDS
Duke's DeVon Edwards set one record and matched another in the Hyundai Sun Bowl against Arizona State … Edwards established the bowl game's standard for kickoff return yardage (135) while equaling the mark for most kickoff returns (5) … Additionally, Jamison Crowder posted the fourth-highest single-game total for all-purpose yards per play (21.25) and matched the fourth-highest single-game record for punt return yards (68).
CROWDER JOINS ELITE COMPANY
Duke wide receiver Jamison Crowder closed out a sensational 52-game career with the Blue Devils with 283 receptions for 3,641 yards and 23 touchdowns … He had five additional touchdowns on one rush and four punt returns, and also threw a touchdown pass in the Sun Bowl against Arizona State … Crowder became just the second player in ACC history to record three 1,000-yard receiving seasons, joining former Duke standout and College Football Hall of Fame member Clarkston Hines … Crowder also matched the ACC record for career catches, a standard previously set by Duke's Conner Vernon … Crowder's 5,575 career all-purpose yards rank second all-time at Duke, trailing only Chris Douglas (5,753), and fourth-best in ACC history.
RECORDS FOR BOONE
Quarterback Anthony Boone closed out his Duke career holding or sharing 12 school records:
** Most wins as a starting QB in a career (19)
** Most wins as a starting QB in a season (9 in both 2013 & 2014)
** Most pass attempts in a quarter (26 vs. Miami, 2014 [4th])
** Most games with 100+ passing yards in a season (13 in 2014)
** Best pass completion-to-interception ratio in a career (22.50-1)
** Best pass attempt-to-interception ratio in a career (38.46-1)
** Most TD passes of 50+ yards by a combination in a career (4; to Jamison Crowder)
** Most total offensive plays in a season (547 in 2014)
** Most passing yards in a bowl game (427 vs. Texas A&M in 2013 Chick-fil-A Bowl)
** Most passing TDs in a bowl game (3 vs. Texas A&M in 2013 Chick-fil-A Bowl)
** Most total offensive yards in a bowl game (454 vs. Texas A&M in 2013 Chick-fil-A Bowl)
** Most total TD responsibility in a bowl game (4 vs. Texas A&M in 2013 Chick-fil-A Bowl)
RECOGNITION FOR TOMLINSON
Duke offensive guard Laken Tomlinson will be recognized at two bowl games later this week … On Wednesday night, he will be honored at the Capital One Orange Bowl (Georgia Tech vs. Mississippi State at 8 pm on ESPN) in Miami as the recipient of the Courage Award presented by the Football Writers Association of America and the Orange Bowl … Then, on Thursday night in New Orleans, Tomlinson will be recognized at the AllState Sugar Bowl (Alabama vs. Ohio State at 8:30 pm on ESPN) as a member of the Allstate/AFCA Good Works Team.
HELTON'S TRAVELS CONTINUE
Duke linebacker David Helton was a mainstay on the awards circuit immediately following the season, travelling a total of 7,552 miles during an 11-day stretch between December 5-15 with trips to Charlotte (ACC Championship Banquet), New York City (National Football Foundation Awards Banquet), Orlando (Home Depot/ESPN Awards Show) and Newport Beach, Calif. (Lott IMPACT Trophy Banquet) … He'll have one more trip – an appearance at the College Football Playoff National Championship Game (January 12 on ESPN) in Arlington, Texas – to be honored as the Campbell Trophy recipient and add another 2,376 miles to his travel log.
ALL-AMERICA HONORS
The Blue Devils have five All-America selections so far for the 2014 campaign, tied for the fifth most in a year in program history and the most in a campaign since five in 1970 … Duke has 11 All-America selections who have earned a total of 30 All-America honors in the seven years (2008-14) under head coach David Cutcliffe … In the previous seven years (2001-07), Duke had one All-American, Mike Hart, who was a Football News honorable mention selection at tight end in 2001 … Here is the list of this year's honorees:
Jeremy Cash
> 2nd team by Football Writers Association of America & Walter Camp Foundation
> 3rd team by Phil Steele
DeVon Edwards
> Honorable mention by Sports Illustrated
Ross Martin
> Honorable mention by Sports Illustrated
Will Monday
> Honorable mention by Sports Illustrated
Laken Tomlinson
> 1st team by Associated Press & Walter Camp Foundation
> 2nd team by Athlon, Sporting News & USA Today
> 3rd team by Phil Steele
> Honorable mention by Sports Illustrated
SENIOR CLASS ACCOMPLISHMENTS
With 28 victories in the last four years, the 2014 senior class tied the 1963 group for the winningest since 1956 and tied for the 12th winningest in Blue Devil history … The only Duke senior class to have more wins since 1944 than Duke's 2014 group was the 1955 unit, which tallied 30 victories … Duke's group of seniors was the anchor in helping the Blue Devils to their winningest two-year stretch in program history … Duke won 19 games over the last two years, surpassing the previous best of 17 wins in 1935-36 and 1938-39 … The Blue Devil seniors were also part of 25 victories in the last three seasons, tied for the winningest three-year stretch in program history. Only the 1936-38 seasons were equally as productive … Duke tallied 25 wins in the last three seasons -- in the previous nine seasons, from 2003-11, Duke had recorded 25 victories.
ALL-STAR GAMES
Five Blue Devils – Issac Blakeney, Anthony Boone, Takoby Cofield, Jamison Crowder & Laken Tomlinson – are scheduled to play in post-season all-star games next month:
** Blakeney has accepted an invitation to play in the 2015 Medal of Honor Bowl … The contest will kick off at 2:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, January 10 at Johnson Hagood Stadium on the campus of The Citadel in Charleston, S.C.
** Boone has accepted an invitation to play in the 90th East-West Shrine Game … This year's contest will kick off at 4 p.m. ET on Thursday, January 15 at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Fla., and will be televised live by the NFL Network … The game has been a launching pad for numerous NFL careers as 70 NFL Hall of Famers have played in the East-West Shrine Game in addition to more than 265 East-West Shrine Game alumni currently on NFL rosters.
** Cofield has accepted an invitation to play in the 2015 NFLPA Collegiate Bowl … The game will kick off at 4 p.m. ET on Saturday, January 17 at the StubHub Center on the campus of California State University Dominguez Hills in Carson, Calif. … The game's practices and game will be broadcast live on the ESPN family of channels … The game will air live on ESPN2 while the practices on January 14 and 15 will be televised on ESPNU … NFL coaching legends Mike Holmgren and Mike Martz will serve as head coaches for the contest.
** Crowder and Tomlinson have accepted invitations to play in the 66th annual Reese's Senior Bowl … The game will kick at 4 p.m. ET on Tuesday, January 20 at Ladd-Peebles Stadium in Mobile, Ala., and will be televised live by the NFL Network … Crowder and Tomlinson will be the 22nd and 23rd Blue Devils to participate in the Senior Bowl, and the first since Conner Vernon in 2012 … It's the fourth time Duke has had two in the Senior Bowl, joining Louis Allen and Paul Stephanz (1949),Wes Chesson and Leo Hart (1970) and Clarkston Hines and Chris Port (1989).
NFL PLAYOFFS
Four former Blue Devils will represent their alma mater in the upcoming NFL Playoffs … Vincent Rey continues to start at linebacker for Cincinnati, which as the No. 5 seed will travel to face No. 4 seed Indianapolis on Sunday, January 4 at 1 p.m. (CBS) … Kenny Anunike (injured reserve) and Juwan Thompson remain on the roster for Denver, which earned the No. 2 seed in the AFC and will host a divisional round tilt on Sunday, January 11 at 4:40 p.m. (CBS) … In the NFC, Cooper Helfet and the top-seeded Seattle Seahawks will host a divisional round game on Saturday, January 10 at 8:15 p.m. (FOX).
JANUARY ENROLLEES
When the Blue Devils return to campus for the spring semester in early January, the program will welcome two additional members in Marquies Price and Reno Rosene … Both players graduated from high school early … Price is a 6-6, 220-pound defensive end from Fort Valley, Ga., while Rosene is a 6-7, 325-pound offensive lineman from Westlake Village, Calif.
DUKE FOOTBALL BANQUET
The annual Duke Football Banquet honoring the 2014 senior class will take place on Friday, January 23 at the Washington Duke Inn & Golf Club … Ticket information is available at GoDuke.com or by calling the Duke Athletic Ticket Office at 919-681-BLUE.
2015 SCHEDULE
Next fall, Duke is scheduled to host non-conference foes N.C. Central and Northwestern along with ACC opponents Boston College, Georgia Tech, Miami and Pittsburgh … The Blue Devils are slated to travel to face Army, North Carolina, Tulane, Virginia, Virginia Tech and Wake Forest … The official schedule with dates will be released in early 2015.
MISCELLANEOUS NOTES
** Running back Shaun Wilson broke the school single-season record for highest yards per rushing attempt average at 7.67, eclipsing the previous standard of 7.43 set by Ace Parker in 1935 … Wilson finished with 598 yards on 78 carries
** Wilson and Shaquille Powell combined to form the 13th duo in Duke history to each rush for 500+ yards in a season … Powell led the Blue Devils with 618 yards this season
** For just the fourth time in school history, Duke had three players rush for five or more TDs in a single campaign … Thomas Sirk led the way with eight while Anthony Boone and Shaun Wilson had five each
** Duke had three players – David Helton (134), DeVon Edwards (133) & Jeremy Cash (111) – register 100+ tackles for the second straight season
** Helton finished his career with 347 tackles – the 10th-highest total in Duke history
** Edwards led Duke with five caused fumbles this year, matching the second-highest single-season total in school history … David Hawkins owns the record with six forced fumbles in 1994
** Wide receiver Jamison Crowder finished his career with 16 100-yard receiving games to post the second-highest total in ACC history, trailing only former Duke standout Clarkston Hines' total of 17
** Crowder also finished his career with 168 points to match the ninth-highest total in school history
** Crowder departs Duke as the school's all-time leader in punt returns for TDs with four
** Crowder became the first player in Duke history to lead the team in all-purpose yardage in four consecutive seasons
** Quarterback Anthony Boone became the fourth player in Duke history to register 3,000+ total offensive yards in a season, joining Anthony Dilweg (3,713 in 1988), Thaddeus Lewis (3,378 in 2009) and Sean Renfree (3,084 in 2010 & 3,063 in 2012) … Boone finished the year with 3,075 total yards
** Running back Josh Snead closed his career with 1,769 rushing yards, good for 14th place on Duke's all-time chart
** Kicker Ross Martin broke his own school single-season scoring record with 107 total points on 19 field goals and 50 PATs … Martin previously set the Duke mark with 106 points in 2012
** With Duke's nine victories in 2014, David Cutcliffe moved ahead of Mike McGee (1971-78/37) and into sole possession of third on the all-time Duke coaching wins chart with 40 victories … Wallace Wade (1931-41; 1946-50) owns the school mark with 110 triumphs while Bill Murray (1951-65) is second with 93 wins
** Duke tallied 421 points in 2014 … The performance is the second-highest single season total in program history, behind only the 2013 squad's 459 points
** The top three single-season point totals have all come under the direction of Cutcliffe
** The Blue Devils averaged 32.38 points per game in 2014, surpassing the 30.00 or more points per game for the third straight year, and just the sixth time in program history
** Duke yielded just 33 punt return yards, or 2.54 yards a game and 2.06 yards per runback … In seven games the Blue Devils did not allow a punt return yard … In two contests, foes had negative punt return yards … Duke's average of 2.06 yards allowed a return is the nation's third-best mark
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