Duke and Florida State Football have now faced each other 23 times. In the first 22 games, the team from Tallahassee, Florida, had the upper hand, often by wide margins.

Heading into Friday’s game after a much-needed bye week, Blue Devil fans certainly wished this streak would end. They got exactly what they were looking for; Duke took a 7-3 lead in the first quarter on a pick-6 by Chandler Rivers and never looked back, and three more Seminole turnovers cemented the Blue Devils’ 23-16 victory over Florida State in Durham.

On the opening drive of the fourth quarter by the Blue Devils (6-1, 2-1 in the ACC), a would-be interception by Maalik Murphy was nullified by a defensive holding call. Running back Star Thomas then found a seam and rushed for a 44-yard gain, the longest run of the night for either team. Shortly thereafter, junior kicker Todd Pelino made a 39-yard field goal, his third of the night, giving Duke a 23-16 lead with under nine minutes remaining.

The Seminoles looked ready to start their next drive. Florida State (1-6, 1-5) running back Lawrance Toafili gained 17 yards in two plays and the away team’s offense looked poised to score with under six minutes remaining.

Defensive lineman Christian Rorie had other plans, however, and took the ball away from Kam Davis. Rorie, a sixth-year senior, had played just 16 snaps all season when he entered the game. Fellow lineman Preston Watson secured it, putting the Blue Devils back on the offensive with 5:18 left in the game.

The Blue Devils couldn’t ice the game thanks to a Caleb Krings penalty, and the Seminoles’ offense got going with 2:43 left. On a fourth-and-4 after the two-minute timeout, quarterback Brock Glenn found Ja’Khi Douglas for a 15-yard gain, keeping Florida State’s hopes alive. A sack and a false start penalty forced a fourth-and-24, and a desperate lateral play by Glenn was unsuccessful, sealing the Blue Devils’ victory.

Duke’s special teams had a disastrous start to the second half, as Seminole returner Samuel Singleton Jr. took a Ryan Degyansky kickoff 95 yards to the house to cut Duke’s lead to 17-13. For the second time in two years, Florida State earned a return touchdown against the Blue Devils.

However, the offense remained unaffected. On a second-and-5 on the ensuing Blue Devil drive, backup quarterback Henry Belin IV took the snap and passed it off to wideout Sahmir Hagans, who threw the ball back to Murphy. The transfer from Texas then threw a jump ball back to Hagans to convert the first down. Five plays later, Pelino scored a 44-yard field goal to give Duke a 20-13 lead.

The Seminoles’ offensive woes were just beginning, as linebacker Ozzie Nicholas knocked the ball out of Glenn’s hands and graduate defensive end Ryan Smith recovered the ball for the second takeaway of the night on the very next play. Defense turned to offense, as Murphy led a methodical 10-play drive that ended in a Thomas touchdown on fourth-and-1, giving the Blue Devils a 14-3 lead early in the second quarter.

The night got even longer for Glenn on Florida State’s next drive, when his errant pass ended up in the hands of Nicholas on the second big play of the night for the Princeton transfer. Four plays later, Pelino kicked a 27-yard field goal to extend Duke’s lead to 17-3.

Three drives, three takeaways.

Head coach Mike Norvell benched Glenn and brought in third-string quarterback and true freshman Luke Kromenhoek in the second quarter. The backup couldn’t do much more, and a 52-yard field goal by Ryan Fitzgerald resulted in a 17-6 halftime score.

The Blue Devils stay home to take on SMU on Oct. 26 at 8 p.m