Duke QBs throw 5 TD passes in 62-7 romp past William & Mary

DURHAM, N.C. (AP) — Walker Eget and Dan Mahan combined to throw five touchdown passes as Duke rolled past William & Mary 62-7 on Saturday.

Duke running back Nate Sheppard, who entered the week with a nation-best 528 yards rushing, gained a season-low 116 yards, including a 19-yard touchdown. He had nine carries.

The Blue Devils (4-0), stretching back to last season, have won eight consecutive games for the first time since 2013.

“We’ve answered every challenge,” Duke coach Manny Diaz said. “We’ve done what we can do up to this point to give the team belief.”

Winston Watkins threw for 137 yards and a touchdown for William & Mary (2-3), which lost its third in a row. The Tribe had 170 yards of total offense.

“We have a lot of stuff we have to fix,” William & Mary coach Mike London said. “… We have to look at ourselves on with how we go about doing things. A lot of young players are playing right now. We have to just keep giving them opportunities to get better.”

Eget had Duke’s first and fourth TD throws and finished 16 of 22 for 182 yards.

Mahan, a second-year freshman, threw his first two career touchdown passes in the second quarter – both for 29 yards – to Kavon Simmons and Jaivon Solomon. Those were his only throws until late in the third quarter, when he lofted another TD pass and ended up 6 of 7 for 126 yards.

The Tribe didn’t convert after taking over at the Duke 26-yard line following the Blue Devils’ failed conversion on a fake punt midway through the first quarter. Luke Mergott then blocked Max Lipinski’s 53-yard field goal attempt.

William & Mary went 75 yards on its next possession, with Watkins throwing 6 yards to Jack Reuter for a touchdown.

William & Mary: The Tribe’s string of scoring at least 20 points in 13 consecutive games came to a halt. The team is a first-year member of the Patriot League for football.

Duke: The Blue Devils are 4-0 for the third time in a four-season stretch. They’ve held three of their opponents to seven points or fewer this year.

Duke racked up its most points in a game since a 67-0 victory against Richmond in 1949.

Eight different Blue Devils scored a touchdown, and no player had more than one.

“Future Duke got better with how many guys got in, scored their first touchdown, made their first plays,” Diaz said.

The Blue Devils drove 95 yards in 90 seconds late in the first half. That’s when Jared Richardson, a transfer from Penn, capped the drive with a 28-yard scoring reception from Eget.

“I looked up and I saw the sun,” Richardson said. “Beautiful ball.”

Richardson had both his catches on that drive.

“We have an elite running back and elite O-line, so when they get going, things open up,” he said.

William & Mary: Hosts Holy Cross next Saturday.

Duke: Oct. 10 at Georgia Tech.

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