DURHAM, N.C. (AP) — Gunnar Holmberg tied a school record with four rushing touchdowns and threw for a fifth as Duke overcame Kansas for a 52-33 victory Saturday, it’s third straight win.
The Blue Devils (3-1) struck for 21 points during a six-minute span of the third quarter, taking the lead on the way to eclipsing their 2020 win total.
Holmberg’s scoring runs came form 4, 1, 3 and 13 yards. He threw for 328 yards, completing 22 of 29 passes.
Duke’s Mataeo Durant ran for 124 yards on 21 carries. That included a 57-yard touchdown run for the game’s first points.
Kansas quarterback Jason Bean went 19-for-32 for 323 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions. Trevor Wilson had 122 receiving yards on five catches and Devin Neal ran for 107 yards and a touchdown on 17 attempts.
Kansas (1-3) led 24-21 at halftime courtesy of Neal’s 1-yard run on fourth down with 1:04 left. The Jayhawks boosted the margin on Jacob Borcila’s 29-yard field goal on the first possession of the second half.
Duke posted the next 24 points, aided by linebacker Shaka Heyward’s interception of Bean, setting up Holmberg’s 3-yard run two plays later.
Kansas had three possessions inside the Duke 25 in the first quarter. The second time, Borcila booted a 50-yard field goal for the Jayhawks’ first points. Bean’s swing pass to Torry Locklin resulted in a 20-yard touchdown.
THE TAKEAWAY
Kansas: The Jayhawks have been outscored 97-26 in the second halves of games this season after Duke held a 31-9 edge after the break.
Duke: The Blue Devils have won three games in a row for the first time since September 2019. Since then, six of the team’s seven victories have come in home games.
UP NEXT
Kansas: Saturday at Iowa State to begin a steady diet of Big 12 Conference play.
Duke: Atlantic Coast Conference opener Saturday at rival North Carolina.