Northwestern
Duke
Football Team Drops Duke, 44-7
9/22/2001 12:00:00 AM | Football
Sept 22, 2001
By JOHN MARSHALL
Associated Press Writer
DURHAM, N.C. - Damien Anderson said he had something to prove after struggling in Northwestern's season opener. He did it against Duke.
Anderson rushed for 189 yards and tied a school record with four touchdowns as No. 16 Northwestern beat Duke 44-7 Saturday night.
"Two weeks ago we weren't as consistent as we normally are in the running game," said Anderson, who had 113 yards in the 37-28 victory over UNLV on Sept. 7. "But today was a great day to showcase our ability and prove to everyone that we can still run the ball."
Northwestern (2-0) struggled early against UNLV, but had no such trouble against Duke. Behind Anderson, the Wildcats scored on four of six first-half drives and had 332 total yards in building a 20-7 lead.
Anderson, who had just 14 yards in the first half against UNLV, had 89 yards and two touchdowns in the first half. He scored on runs of 11 and 5 yards in the half.
"It's no secret that we like to rush the ball and we're going to rush the ball," Northwestern coach Randy Walker said. "I've said all along that we have to get better throwing the football down the field, but anybody that knows me knows that we're going to try to run it if we can."
Duke (0-3) lost its 15th straight game, extending the nation's longest losing streak and tying a school record set in 1995-97.
Duke tied it at 7 on a 6-yard touchdown pass from D. Bryant to Mike Hart with five minutes left in the first, but managed just 190 yards the rest of the way. Duke finished with 308 total yards and had four interceptions.
"We started off OK, but didn't finish off well," Duke coach Carl Franks said. "We're a better football team than we showed tonight. We played a very, very good football team that exposed some weaknesses."
Northwestern needed just 59 seconds to build the lead to 27-7 after Kevin Lawrence opened the second half with a 45-yard kickoff return. Anderson had all three carries in the 49-yard drive, capping it with a 16-yard touchdown run off right tackle.
Anderson set up a field goal on the next drive with a 36-yard run, then added a 1-yard dive that put the Wildcats up 37-7 with 5:26 left in the third.
It was the third time Anderson scored four touchdowns in a game and fifth time in school history. Anderson scored four touchdowns against Indiana and Illinois last season, and has 34 for his career - one behind Darnell Autry's school record.
"Running the ball has a positive effect on the team," said Anderson, who also caught three passes for 61 yards before sitting out the fourth quarter. "When the offense is playing well, the defense is going to feed off you. A lot of guys on our defense are upset they gave up seven points."
Northwestern's Zak Kustok completed 21 of 31 passes for 318 yards and a touchdown. He hit Jason Wright on a 3-yard touchdown pass to put the Wildcats up 44-7 early in the fourth.
Northwestern finished with 638 total yards.
"They have an explosive running back and a great scheme, and to truly stop them, you have to have your offense out there in long, sustained drives," Hart said. "We didn't do that tonight."
Northwestern's David Wasielewski, who didn't know if he'd be able to play because of a groin injury, had three field goals, including a 47-yarder at the halftime buzzer.
Northwestern players wore a U.S. flag patch on their right shoulders and a "RAW" patch on their left in honor of Rashidi Wheeler, who died Aug. 3 during a conditioning drill. Duke players had a flag decal on the back of their helmets.
A moment of silence was held just before the opening kickoff, followed by a video on the scoreboard with a montage of images from the crash scenes, firefighters and police officers in New York and President Bush's speech last week.
