Duke Football: 3 takeaways from disappointing loss to Pitt

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DURHAM, NORTH CAROLINA – OCTOBER 05: Josh Blackwell #31 of the Duke Blue Devils breaks up a pass intended for Jared Wayne #82 of the Pittsburgh Panthers during the first half of their game at Wallace Wade Stadium on October 05, 2019 in Durham, North Carolina. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images) /

2. Turnovers galore

Just in case you don’t think an incredibly sloppy game can’t be entertaining, go back and watch the Cheez-it Bowl between TCU and Cal from last season. That game was sloppy, awful, and loads of fun. This game was as sloppy a game as we’ve had this season but, man, it was fun.

The Panthers forced six turnovers on Saturday evening. They picked off the Blue Devils three times, and recovered three fumbles. Pitt took advantage of the turnovers, scoring 17 points off them. The Pittsburgh defensive line did a masterful job of harassing Quentin Harris all night long. They forced him to throw before he wanted, and into some bad throws as well. The Panther tacklers were ripping at the ball as well.

Duke forced four turnovers of their own and three of them came in the second half. They scored 14 points off their turnovers. Duke wasn’t as dominant as Pitt was on defense, but they hung tough. It became obvious the Blue Devils’ defense was tire from being on the field as often as they were in the first half. Pitt miscues led to two turnovers as they muffed a punt and Kenny Pickett threw a head-scratcher of an interception.

Turnovers were the story of this game, and each one made this game very entertaining.

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