Duke topples No. 9 Clemson for first top-10 victory since 1989

Duke stunned No. 9 Clemson 28-7 to kick off their season on a high note. The win is good for the Blue Devils’ first top-10 victory since 1989 and is the largest win over the Tigers since 1936.

Back then, the Blue Devils came away with an upset victory over then-No. 7 Clemson during Steve Spurrier’s third and final season as head coach. Until Monday, Duke had lost 28-straight games to top-10 ranked teams, according to On3’s Jesse Simonton.

According to the ESPN broadcast, Duke has never won a game against a ranked opponent to begin the season.

Overall, this improves Duke’s record against Clemson to 17-37-1. The Tigers had won 25 of the last 30 wins historically — including the last five before Monday — and the Blue Devils also lost by a 31-point average during that stretch.

Duke’s Riley Leonard was the star of the game for the Blue Devils. Amassing 273 all-purpose yards and one touchdown, the Tigers had no answer for the starting quarterback on Monday. Jordan Waters made an impact in the rushing and receiving games as well, logging 109 total yards on offense as well. He sealed the deal with a 36-yard touchdown to put Duke up 28-7 with 3:15 remaining in the fourth quarter.

For Clemson, things did not go as planned for Cade Klubnik — who threw a costly interception with just over five minutes remaining in regulation. It was the third turnover for Clemson on the night and led to the Waters touchdown mentioned above.

This sets the tone for the rest of the season for Duke, who moves on to a lesser schedule against Lafayette, Northwestern and UConn from now until they take on No. 13 Notre Dame during Week 5 on Sept. 30. All of a sudden, it’s looking like a lot tougher of a matchup for the Irish as they meet Duke on the road.

The feeling in Durham is that last year’s 9-4 finish was just the start. Duke hasn’t made an appearance in the top 25 since appearing toward the back of the polls in 2018 — it’s not farfetched to say they could make an appearance when the new list comes out on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, Clemson will drop in the AP Poll as it also heads toward a softer non-conference slate against Charleston Southern and FAU, respectively. The Tigers have a ton to clean up during the next two weeks before hosting No. 8 Florida State for a date during Week 4.