Behind explosive offense, Duquesne closes in on NEC title, FCS playoffs bid
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In Pittsburgh, fans of football have largely been starved of exciting offensive action this fall.
Pitt, with its quarterback woes, has scored 21 points or less in six of eight games and is ineligible for a bowl for the first time since 2017.
The Steelers, despite a 5-3 record, have put together a similarly low-scoring offensive product throughout the course of the 2023 campaign.
But right under the nose of many football fans in town, there is an offense leading its league in scoring (29.3 points per game), with a top-ranked passing attack (208.4 yards) and an overall offensive production (375.9 yards) that ranks second.
That high-octane offense belongs to the Duquesne Dukes, who head into Saturday’s home matchup against Stonehill (3-5, 2-3) with a chance to capture an outright Northeast Conference title as well as an automatic bid to the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) playoffs.
The Dukes (6-3, 5-0) are winners of five straight and have already claimed a share of the NEC crown.
“I think the biggest thing for our group right now is the unselfishness,” offensive coordinator Anthony Doria said. “Those guys are genuinely happy for each other. … Complimentary football is really what we’ve done a good job of.”
Led by junior quarterback Darius Perrantes, who leads the NEC in passing yards (1,775), touchdowns (17) and yards per game (197.2), Duquesne’s offense has consistently put up points.
Perrantes has leaned on four primary targets at wide receiver: DJ Powell, Keshawn Brown, Tedy Afful and Joey Isabella, with Powell’s eight touchdowns and 601 yards leading the bunch.
At tailback, Duquesne has relied on three players who have at least 80 carries — JaMario Clements, Taj Butts and Edward Robinson.
Robinson has emerged as the workhorse of late, handling the lion’s share of carries against Sacred Heart and Wagner as a result of injuries to his position mates.
A freshman from Maple Heights, Ohio, he paces the team with 529 yards on 97 carries.
“I think the skilled athletes around a solid group of offensive linemen who are having a great season so far is the key to our success,” coach Jerry Schmitt said. “It’s the balance.”
Schmitt, who has coached Duquesne since 2005, has his team off to its hottest start since joining the NEC in 2008.
During his tenure, he has led the Dukes to five prior NEC titles as well as FCS playoffs appearances in 2015 and ‘18.
Last year, the Dukes went 4-7, finishing with their lowest win total (besides the covid-condensed spring 2020 campaign) under Schmitt since 2009.
Schmitt has not shied away from scheduling tough early-season matchups for his team.
The Dukes played at TCU in 2021 before facing Florida State and Hawaii on the road last year.
This season was no different. After a season-opening win at home against Edinboro on Sept. 2, the Dukes played at West Virginia and Coastal Carolina before a Week 5 showdown at Delaware, then ranked No. 9 in the FCS.
All those games ended in losses for Duquesne, but the team was still able to take lessons from them and generate momentum heading into NEC play.
“Going against those teams early in the season, how we were jelling, it definitely showed us that we can hang with the big cats,” Robinson said. “That gave us a lot of confidence heading into (the) NEC.”
“Having games like West Virginia, Coastal and then Delaware, if you go back and look at those games, we were actually hanging with those boys.”
The Dukes have not lost since Oct. 7. With a win Saturday and/or one more conference loss by second-place Merrimack, the Dukes will take sole possession of the NEC title and punch their ticket to the FCS playoffs.
“Last year, we had a tough season, (players) learned from it and became better off of the things that we needed to improve on,” Schmitt said. “And so really, the core is our players and our team.
“This group is really good to coach. They know what they want to do, they’re good learners, they’re good listeners and they just take it one day at a time and one game at a time.”