NU blown away by Duke 41-17, slow start concerning.

DURHAM—Daniel Jones accounted for 413 total yards and four touchdowns, and Duke cruised to a 41-17 victory over Northwestern on Saturday afternoon. Jones shook off his first interception since the middle of last season to pass for 305 yards and two touchdowns and rush for a career-high 108 yards and two scores. Jones’ streak of 202 consecutive passes without an interception, longest in the nation, ended in the first quarter with a pick by Montre Hartage. Jones responded with touchdowns on the Blue Devils’ next three possessions-a 52-yard pass to Chris Taylor and scoring runs of 11 and 4 yards-to get Duke out to a 21-10 halftime lead. Jones added a 1-yard touchdown pass to Davis Koppenhaver in the second half and Shaun Wilson had a late touchdown run to turn it into a rout. T.J. Rahming made 12 catches for 127 yards and Mark Gilbert had two interceptions for the Blue Devils. Overall Duke outgained the Wildcats 538-191, including limiting them to 22 rushing yards. Justin Jackson’s 5-yard touchdown run at the end of the first half was all NU’s first-stringers could muster. Quarterback Clayton Thorson was 11 of 29 for 120 yards and two interceptions. The Wildcats’ early-season play continues to be concerning. They trailed Nevada 17-7 at home and 20-17 midway through the fourth quarter before rallying to escape in their home opener, and were downright non-competitive against Duke. Northwestern accumulated more than 15 yards on only three of its 13 drives. The Wildcats return home to face Bowling Green for their nonconference finale before opening Big Ten play at Wisconsin on Sept. 30.