"I was just searching for grass": Inside Andrew Pellicciotta's 100-yard touchdown

DURHAM, N.C. — The situation isn't one Duke football sees often.But it is one for which the Blue Devils prepare.NC State lined up to attempt a 50-yard field goal with one second remaining in the first half. The kick came up short in the wind, and waiting in the end zone was Andrew Pellicciotta.More than 100 yards later, he was celebrating one of the most memorable plays of Duke's 41-3 win at Carter-Finley Stadium on Saturday, Nov. 7."That was a first for me," Pellicciotta said with a smile following the Blue Devils' win to improve to 7-2 overall and 4-2 in ACC play. The return touchdown was the result of a scenario Duke installs during training camp, even if players rarely expect to see it in a game."We were planning on blocking the kick, but if it was short, Juice (Pellicciotta) has always been back there," defensive tackle Preston Watson said. "It's something you kind of sometimes walk through the motions in practice. You're like, 'Ah, this may not happen.' But then when it does, and it hits home, it hits."The Blue Devils recognized the opportunity as soon as NC State's field-goal unit came onto the field."As soon as we saw them lining up, we knew it was into the wind," coach Manny Diaz said. "It was right on the fringe of whether he'd have a chance to make it or not. At that point, we just said, 'Hey, Pellicciotta, you're deep.'"What followed felt much longer than a single play.Pellicciotta fielded the kick and began weaving through traffic while teammates searched for blocks, reversing the field twice. "I was just searching for grass," Pellicciotta said. "I know in a situation like that, last play of the half, just kind of do whatever you can to find room, search for blockers. They helped me out a little bit."By the time he reached the 15-yard line, running on fumes, Pellicciotta thought he might actually score."I was running out of gas pretty fast," he said. "We run a good amount of 110s in the summer. Other than that, it's been a while since 100 straight."It came after Pellicciotta missed the last two games for the Blue Devils. "I guess I'm an impatient person because it felt like a while," he said. "I felt great today."It was Pellicciotta's second touchdown of the season after returning a fumble for a score against UNC. He became the first Duke player since DeVon Edwards in 2013 to record both a defensive touchdown and a special teams touchdown in the same season.Pellicciotta didn't learn about the accomplishment until after the game."That's fun, that's awesome," he said with a smile. "That's cool."Anna Snyder covers Duke for The Fayetteville Observer as part of the USA TODAY Network. Reach her at asnyder@usatodayco.com or follow her @annaesnydr on X.This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: "I was just searching for grass": Inside Andrew Pellicciotta's 100-yard touchdown