The easy thing to do for Duquesne Football and those who support the program is to play the blame game. A 21-14 loss to Central Connecticut State Saturday afternoon ended the team’s season as this caused the Dukes to lose the tiebreaker which would have given them an automatic berth to the FCS Playoffs.
Instead, there is plenty to reflect on now that the campaign has come to a close.
“It’s unfortunate that we probably didn’t play our best football game in all three phases,” Duquesne coach Jerry Schmitt stated after the game. “Congratulations to Central Connecticut State, they played well. I told the guys they earned this victory, and we didn’t play well enough to earn it. We’ll learn from that and move on. It was a great season for our guys, we would have liked to cap it off with the outright championship, but we do share.”
Duquesne came into this contest having won eight straight contests, its most since joining the NEC and best output since 2002. The Dukes did not hit either of their season averages this season which were 41.2 point scored, and 17.8 points surrendered. Even so, Duquesne was a co-champion in the NEC, which saw them have a piece of the title for the second consecutive season.
Perhaps the biggest gripe about the game was quarterback Darius Perrantes remaining in the game after throwing a career high seven interceptions in this contest.
Those who feel that way are reacting emotionally instead of focusing on the results which got Duquesne in this position to begin with.
Perrantes, especially these last two seasons has come such a long way and did achieve 29 passing touchdowns, tying the best single season total in program history. Heading into this game he was unquestionably the NEC’s Offensive Player of the Year and despite an early-season injury, he built such a strong connection with the receiving core. When Joey Isabella got healthy, both saw their respective numbers go off to the races.
Mind you, Isabella has the FCS’s longest streak at eight games with a touchdown, while also setting a career high of 149 receiving yards.
Given his season, there is little question that Perrantes took all of the first-team reps in practice, so making a switch would have been a knee-jerk reaction. Of course, loyalty plays a big role as well, but the defense was holding its end of the bargain, and it was a one-score game down the stretch.
If there was anyone in the NEC that would be called upon with the game on the line to score a touchdown to keep a season alive, Darius Perrantes is that guy. With all of that said, it is absolutely fair to say Perrantes’s last interception was not the wisest whether a play call or personal decision.
The idea was a decent one, as Perrantes had just connected with Ty Arrington for 40 yards, bringing the ball to the CCSU 41, and perhaps another deep ball could have caught the opponent off guard, but the pass got stuck in the wind too much.
In terms of time and score, the idea might have been an ambitious one and of course the execution will leave it to be second guessed.
Even still, take nothing away from Perrantes who had a spectacular season, his best in a Duquesne uniform.
Mickey Jacobs had a banner year in his first season as Duquesne’s defensive coordinator. The defensive points allowed were mentioned earlier, but Jacobs took on the job and made it his.
The defense was splendid all year with so many breakthrough performances. Jack Dunkley for example had 9.5 sacks, seven Dukes had an interception after TJ Jones grabbed one in this contest and Ty Howard has five consecutive games with at least five tackles and three with a sack.
Further, Antonio Epps paced the Dukes both on the game with nine tackles and his 55 on the season.
While many seniors were honored during Duquesne’s first home game, Schmitt made it seem like the door was open for a lot of them to return, but he did express gratitude for those who are departing.
There could be a case made for Duquesne to get in as an at-large, after all it came into the week ranked 19th in both the Week 12 Stats Perform Poll and the AFCA Coaches Poll, presented by Hudl. This ranking is the best for the Dukes since becoming members of the NEC and best by a team in the conference since 2019.
The ride back to Pittsburgh will be long, and frustrating because some have played their last football game, not to mention all that was accomplished this season.
This football team made the Duquesne community proud and in time that will not be lost on them. It was a fantastic effort with the Dukes getting each team’s best shot on a weekly basis.
Now, it will be learning from this and going back to the drawing board to win the NEC in 2025.
“We had an opportunity here where we learned from it,” concluded Schmitt. “We’ll digest it more as we move on here with things we could have done better. I’m proud of the team and how it handled itself down the stretch. Didn’t give up until that last play trying to get a safety and the ball back.”
