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Duke Blue Devils © |
Clemson Tigers |
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Played October 19, 1974 at Frank Howard Field Clemson, South Carolina |
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Teams' Belt Records
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Team |
Belt Reigns |
Overall Record |
Home Record |
Away Record |
Neutral Record |
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W |
L |
T |
PCT |
W |
L |
T |
PCT |
W |
L |
T |
PCT |
W |
L |
T |
PCT |
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| Duke © | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 | ||||||||
| Clemson | 0 | ||||||||||||||||
Previous Belt Meetings: None
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1st |
2nd |
3rd |
4th |
Final |
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Duke |
0 |
7 |
0 |
6 |
13 |
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Clemson |
14 |
0 |
3 |
0 |
17 |
Clemson, coached by Red Parker, hoped to end the title reign of the Duke Blue Devils coached by Mike McGee. The Tigers brought a record of 2-3 while Duke was confident & holding The Belt with a record of 4-1. Clemson took a 14-0 1st quarter lead but had to fight off a furious comeback by the Blue Devils holding on for a 17-13 win to claim The Belt. Each of Duke’s first two possessions ended with a fumble. When Clemson's CB Mark Lee recovered a fumble by Duke's QB Hal Spears at the Duke 19-yard line. Four plays later, Clemson's QB Mark Fellers scored on a 7-yard touchdown run giving the Tigers a 7-0 lead. On the Blue Devils next drive, RB Larry Martinez tried an option pass but it was intercepted by Clemson's CB Dennis Smith at the Duke 49-yard line. A 35-yard pass from Fellers to WR Joey Walters highlighted the 49-yard scoring drive & the touchdown came on a 4-yard run by RB Don Testerman as Clemson now had a 14-0 lead with 7:23 still to play in the 1st quarter. Duke finally held the ball long enough to put together a drive but PK Rich McInturff missed a 37-yard field goal attempt that kept the Blue Devils shutout for the quarter. In the 2nd quarter, Duke drove to the Clemson 6-yard line only to be stopped by an incomplete pass on fourth down but the Tigers were unable to move the ball & a short punt with a 22-yard return by Duke's All-ACC WR Troy Slade put the Blue Devils back in scoring position at the Tigers’ 18-yard line. Spears connected with WR Randy Cobb for the 18-yard touchdown pass as the Blue Devils closed to within 7 points at 14-7 at halftime. Midway through the 3rd quarter, Clemson got a 33-yard field goal from PK Bob Burgess as the Tigers took a 17-7 lead. Early in the 4th quarter, Spears found Slade open for a 26-yard touchdown but the missed 2-point conversion attempt left the score Clemson 17 Duke 13. Duke's RB Art Gore fumbled on the next Blue Devil possession & Spears fumbled with 1:55 to play at the Clemson 12-yard line. The game ended on an incomplete “Hail Mary” pass as time expired. Fellers finished with 59 yards passing while Clemson's All-American TE Bennie Cunningham was held to 1 catch for 12 yards. For Duke, Spears threw for 209 yards with 2 touchdowns, Gore rushed for 102 yards, & Slade added 8 catches for 118 yards with his score. The Blue Devils finished the season 6-5 while the Tigers finished 7-4. Duke would play for The Belt again in 1999.
