After a horrendous start and a heartbreaking loss to Miami, Florida State will look to get back on track Saturday as it visits Wallace Wade Stadium to face the Duke Blue Devils. Duke is coming off of back-to-back losses after a 4-0 start.
Saturday’s contest will be the first between the schools since the 2013 ACC Championship, the first during the regular season since 2012 and the first in Durham since 2011. FSU won all three of those contests.
In fact, when the Seminoles joined the ACC in 1992, Duke was the only member at the time who has never defeated FSU. That’s a streak the Seminoles will look to keep intact. As usual, we look back on the good times and the bad times in the series between the schools:
All-Time Series: FSU leads 19-0.
Good Times: Florida State’s first victory as a member of the ACC came against Duke in Tallahassee on Sept. 5, 1992 by a 48-21 score. Although he did throw four interceptions, FSU quarterback Charlie Ward accounted for 353 yards of offense and five total touchdowns, including four through the air. Three of those touchdown passes went to Kez McCorvey. John Davis recorded a pair of sacks while safety Leon Fowler came away with two interceptions, including one he returned 94 yards for a touchdown.
Rather than host the Seminoles, Duke agreed to play the 1999 contest between the schools in Jacksonville. On Oct. 2, 1999, wide receiver Peter Warrick wasted no time stealing the show in a 51-23 FSU victory. Warrick caught three first quarter touchdowns from quarterback Chris Weinke and threw one to fellow receiver Laveranues Coles in the second quarter as the Seminoles took a 44-0 lead into the locker room. Weinke would cap off a 290-yard, 4-touchdown pass performance with an 84-yard scoring strike late to Ron Dugans. Brian Allen, Tay Cody and Chris Hope all recorded interceptions for a defense that held Duke to just 251 total yards.
The last meeting between the schools took place in Charlotte for the ACC Championship on Dec. 7, 2013. After a scoreless first quarter, FSU got second-quarter touchdowns from Kelvin Benjamin and Karlos Williams to take a 17-0 lead to the locker room. Quarterback Jameis Winston accounted for three of his four total touchdowns in the third quarter with scoring strikes to Benjamin and Kenny Shaw in addition to rushing for another. Winston finished the night with 330 yards passing while Benjamin finished with 119 yards receiving in addition to the two scores. Defensive tackle Timmy Jernigan recorded 10 tackles while senior linebacker Telvin Smith added a sack and an interception for a defense that carried a shutout into the final minute in a 45-7 romp.
Bad Times: Since FSU has never lost to Duke, there are no bad times in the series. The closest victory in the series came in Tallahassee in 2007 by a 25-6 score. That contest along with a 51-24 victory in Durham the year prior were vacated because of an academic cheating scandal.
Mike Ferguson is the editor of The Daily Nole. Follow Mike on Twitter @MikeWFerguson
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