SportsDirect Inc. staff
Jan 1, 2014
No. 20 Texas A&M 52, No. 22 Duke 48: Toney Hurd Jr. returned an interception for a touchdown with 3:33 remaining and Johnny Manziel threw four touchdown passes and ran for another in what could have been his final collegiate game as the Aggies erased a 21-point halftime deficit to win the highest-scoring Chick-fil-A Bowl in Atlanta.
Manziel, who became the first freshman to win the Heisman Trophy last season, was 30-of-38 for 382 yards and four touchdowns - three to Travis Labhart, and must decide whether to enter the NFL draft by Jan. 15. Manziel added 73 yards rushing and a touchdown as Texas A&M (9-4) won its third consecutive bowl game.
Anthony Boone threw for 427 yards with three touchdowns and two interceptions and rushed for a score for Duke (10-4), which scored on all six first-half possessions while amassing 365 yards before the break in the program's 1,000th game. Jamison Crowder had 12 catches for 163 yards and a touchdown.
Crowder became the first ACC player to record 100 catches in a season when he hauled in a 59-yard touchdown pass to put Duke on top 28-10. Manziel displayed his magic when he backpedaled between defenders out of trouble before finding a wide-open Labhart for a 19-yard TD pass to make it 38-24 in the third quarter.
With Duke nursing a 48-45 lead, Hurd Jr. stepped in front of a pass intended for Johnell Barnes and raced 55 yards into the end zone. The Blue Devils drove to the Texas A&M 38-yard line before Boone was pressured and intercepted by Nate Askew on second-and-10 with 1:19 remaining.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Duke was without leading rusher Jela Duncan, who was suspended earlier this month for academic reasons and will also miss the 2014 season, while Texas A&M freshman LB Darian Claiborne, tied for the team lead with 89 tackles, did not play after he was arrested on drug possession charges. ... The Blue Devils, who are 475-494-31, recovered an onside kick after Josh Snead's 25-yard run made it 35-17 with 2:31 left in the first half and converted it into an 18-yard field goal by Ross Martin's and a 38-17 lead at intermission. ... Manziel finished the season with 4,114 yards, breaking the school record of 3,744 set by Ryan Tannehill in 2011.