For the first time in the Manny Diaz era, the Duke Blue Devils have a bowl game win to celebrate.

Duke football came away with a 42-39 victory over the Arizona State Sun Devils in the Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl on Wednesday at the Sun Bowl in El Paso, Texas.

What sealed the win for Duke football was the clutch interception by sophomore linebacker Luke Mergott off a pass by Arizona State quarterback Jeff Sims.

With the Blue Devils ahead by three points and the Sun Devils on a 2nd-and-10 at Arizona State's 39 with under two minutes left in the fourth quarter, Sims tried to complete a pass to keep his team's drive alive, but he ended up throwing a game-ending interception.

 

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The Blue Devils lost in their first bowl game under Ramirez back in January of 2025, when they were taken down by the Ole Miss Rebels in the Gator Bowl.

This time around, Duke football was not going to be denied a bowl victory, and the team has Mergott and its big offense to thank for the success.

Blue Devils quarterback Darian Mensah, who will return for another season with the ACC program, went 29-of-51 for 327 passing yards and four touchdowns against just an interception.

Wide receiver Que'Sean Brown lit up Arizona State's defense for 178 receiving yards and two touchdowns on 10 receptions, while freshman running back Nate Sheppard went off for 170 rushing yards and a touchdown on 22 carries for Duke, which racked up 539 total yards in the contest. The Sun Devils outgained Duke football with 619 total yards, but the Blue Devils' defense forced three turnovers. Duke also held Arizona State to only 3-for-10 on third downs.

With that win, the Blue Devils concluded their 2025 campaign with an overall 9-5 record.