Manny Diaz and Darian Mensah continue to stun ACC with nail-biter over Clemson

The Blue Devils have done it. For the first time since 2004, Duke defeated the Clemson Tigers in football, and it was due in large part to a dominant performance by veteran quarterback Darian Mensah.

Completing nearly 66 percent of his passes, Mensah earned 361 yards and four touchdowns through the air, causing Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney to experience a slight crash out during the first half.

Behind Mensah's leadership, the Duke offense was unstoppable, with running back Nate Sheppard earning 60 yards and a touchdown and wide receiver Sahmir Hagans converting a two-point attempt to give the Blue Devils the one-point lead.

When all was said and done, head coach Manny Diaz had pulled off a victory that Duke hadn't experienced in over two decades, and the Blue Devils continued to impress against ACC opponents.

Manny Diaz has figured out the ACC

With a 4-1 record against conference opponents, it looks like Duke could win out over the rest of the ACC schedule, only facing one more ranked team in No. 15 Virginia.

The Blue Devils' only loss in ACC play came against the then-No. 12 Georgia Yellow Jackets, who moved up to No. 8 in the nation following the win.

While everyone spent the offseason talking about Bill Belichick taking over at UNC, Florida State's abysmal last year, and Clemson's constant presence, it ended up being Duke that began surprising people as the season unfolded.

At the end of the day, Duke flew home with a 46-45 victory over the Tigers. With the win over Clemson, the Blue Devils improved to 5-3 on the season, with losses to the then-No. 11 Illinois Fighting Illini and the Tulane Green Wave earlier in the year.

Next week, Duke travels to Connecticut to take on the UConn Huskies in a game that should be an almost guaranteed victory for the Blue Devils. Duke and UConn are scheduled to kick off at 3:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, Nov. 8, and the game will be broadcast on CBS Sports.