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Manny Diaz rolled the dice with a gutsy trick-play that ended Duke's late-game woes

A Nate Sheppard touchdown pass to Brody Keefe lifted Duke to the win
ByJohn Mitchell
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Oct 23, 2026; Charlottesville, Virginia, USA; Duke Blue Devils running back Nate Sheppard (20) throws the game-winning touchdown pass against the Virginia Cavaliers during the second half at Scott Stadium.
Oct 23, 2026; Charlottesville, Virginia, USA; Duke Blue Devils running back Nate Sheppard (20) throws the game-winning touchdown pass against the Virginia Cavaliers during the second half at Scott Stadium. | Mandatory Credit: Amber Searls-Imagn Images

For the third straight week, Duke found itself in a dogfight late in the fourth quarter. Unlike the last two weeks, the Blue Devils came out on top thanks to a gutsy roll of the dice by Manny Diaz and offensive coordinator Jonathan Brewer.

Trailing 16-13 with under 90 seconds to play, Duke dialed up a double pass. Walker Eget tossed the ball on what looked like a swing pass to star RB Nate Sheppard, but he was behind the line of scrimmage. Sheppard faked like he was going to run, and then unleashed a perfect throw into the end zone to a wide-open Brody Keefe for a 28-yard touchdown:

Of course, Duke fans still had a sinking feeling in their stomachs after the touchdown, especially after Gavin Strange missed the extra point and left the door open for Virginia to drive for a game-tying field goal.

We'd seen this exact script two straight weeks: the offense scores a late touchdown, and then the defense can't make a stop. This time, however, the football gods smiled on the Blue Devils.

On a 4th-and-6, Beau Pribula's desperation pass was intercepted by Patrick Smith-Young to seal the deal for Duke and snap the two-game losing streak:

Duke set up the game-winning touchdown pass by Nate Sheppard perfectly

After the game, Diaz spoke with ESPN's Dana Boyle and discussed the Sheppard touchdown pass:

"We knew it was there," Diaz said. "We actually talked about it. We threw the play to set it up two plays before and we said we want to throw that for the win. We threw that for the win."

Two players before Sheppard hit Keefe to win the game, Duke ran what looked like the same play to the other side of the field. Eget tossed out a swing pass to Sheppard, and he picked up 13 yards to move the sticks. It was the perfect gain to set up the game-winning play.

Naturally, Sheppard is going to command a lot of attention. Virginia did a good job taking him away for most of the evening. He finished with just 55 rushing yards on 15 carries, but his gravity and the threat of him with the ball in his hands in open space sucked in the entire Virginia defense and allowed Keefe to get behind everyone for the game-winning score.

And unlike the last two weeks, Duke's defense made the stop it had to make with the game on the line.

It was a pivotal road win for the Blue Devils, who are now 5-2 overall and 2-2 in ACC play. Next up, Duke returns home on Halloween to take on Boston College.

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