Nate Sheppard set a single-game school record with five rushing touchdowns, leading Duke to a 47-2 blowout victory over visiting Boston College Saturday afternoon in Durham, N.C.
Sheppard accounted for 97 of Duke’s 149 rushing yards on 20 carries, including two scores in both the first and third quarters and a 54-yarder in the second. The sophomore running back’s 18 single-season touchdowns are also a new Blue Devils (6-2, 3-2 Atlantic Conference) standard.
Walker Eget (11-of-18) racked up 201 yards and a touchdown through the air, leading a Duke offense that had a 382-213 advantage in total yards.
Boston College (4-4, 2-3) scored its only points on Carter Davis’s blocked PAT return to the end zone in the first quarter. The Eagles were whistled for 15 penalties for 132 yards, including 11 in the first half alone.
Starting quarterback Mason McKenzie threw for just 87 yards (9-of-17) and ran for 24 as the Eagles’ offense fumbled the ball twice and turned the ball over on downs four times. Freshman Femi Babalola threw for 49 yards on a fourth-quarter drive.
The Blue Devils marched 80 yards in 10 plays on their second offensive series to open the scoring halfway through the first. A 44-yard toss from Eget to Javen Nicholas helped set up Sheppard to punch in a 1-yard touchdown.
After Duke’s next series began in plus territory, Sheppard’s 2-yard score extended its lead, with the Davis blocked PAT following.
Duke needed only three plays to score its next touchdown, as Sheppard’s 54-yard burst capped an 81-yard drive, making it 20-2 with 9:06 left before halftime.
Duke’s lead reached 27-2 with 2:14 to go in the half. A pair of 30-yard tosses from Eget, including a 32-yarder to Sheppard, led to Hasley’s 5-yard touchdown catch after a fake handoff to Sheppard.
After the Blue Devils forced a 3-and-out in 55 seconds after halftime, a 7-play string ended with Sheppard taking a direct snap for a 4-yard run to the end zone.
Sheppard’s fifth score — a 1-yard plunge with 6:44 to go in the third quarter — concluded another 7-play drive after Jaedn Skeete could not handle McKenzie’s backward pass. Kobe Smith recovered the resulting fumble.
Boston College’s Kaelan Chudzinski, who led all freshman tight ends in receptions and yards in 2025, made a 16-yard catch in his return from an Achilles injury expected to keep him out all season.
–Field Level Media
