PITTSBURGH - Duquesne began the 2019 season right where it left off after a historic 2018 campaign, posting a 44-3 victory over visiting Walsh in the season opener on Saturday in front of a packed house at Arthur J. Rooney Field. The Dukes recorded a win in their home opener for the 12th consecutive year with the triumph.

Five different players found the end zone for Duquesne, which tallied 464 total yards in the victory and held the Cavaliers to just 73 total yards, including 55 through the air and 18 on the ground. DU held the Cavaliers to 19 yards in the second half,  In addition, the Dukes are now 28-3 in non-conference contests under 15th-year head coach Jerry Schmitt.

Preseason All-American A.J. Hines (Wilson, N.C. / Fike) got the Dukes on the board first with a pair of touchdowns on runs of two and 57 yards to put DU up 13-0 early in the second quarter.

The first touchdown of the season was set up by a Brendan Thompson (Germantown, Md. / Northwest / Millersville) forced and recovered fumble deep in Walsh territory.

Later in the second frame, Daniel Parr (Jupiter, Fla. / William T. Dwyer / FAU) hit Dominic Thieman (Fort Lauderdale, Fla. / St. Thomas Aquinas / Illinois) down the left sideline on a 26-yard touchdown connection to give the Dukes a 20-0 edge heading into the locker room.

On Duquesne's first drive of the third quarter, Davie Henderson (Winter Haven, Fla. / Winter Haven) hauled in a one-handed shoestring grab off a pair of deflections and sprinted to pay dirt for his first career touchdown by way of a 62-yard reception from Parr.

The Dukes extended their lead when DeWayne Murray III (Homestead, Pa. / Steel Valley) punched it into the end zone from three yards out for his first career touchdown, giving Duquesne a 34-0 advantage. Graduate transfer Mark Allen (Hyattsville, Md. / DeMatha Catholic / Penn State) set up the score with a 43-yard rush just two plays earlier.

After Walsh got on the board with a field goal late in the third, Duquesne countered with a three-yard strike from Brett Brumbaugh (McDonald, Pa. / South Fayette) to Aidan Cain (Pittsburgh, Pa. / Mt. Lebanon) to make it 41-3 with just under 12 minutes remaining. Kevin Lenz's (Mechanicsburg, Pa. / Bishop McDevitt) first career reception on a 72-yard gain led to the Brumbaugh-Cain score.

Ty Williams (Montclair, N.J. / Montclair / Milford Academy) registered his first career interception and returned it inside Walsh territory in the fourth quarter, setting up Jacob Gill's (Gibsonia, Pa. / Pine-Richland) first field goal since 2017 from 35 yards out capped scoring for the Dukes on the night.

Hines finished with 103 yards on 12 carries with the two touchdowns, his 21st career 100-yard rushing performance. Hines led seven different ball carriers for Duquesne as Allen added 51 yards on just three rushes.

Parr completed 13-of-21 pass attempts for 173 yards and two touchdowns. Kellon Taylor (Landover, Md. / DeMatha Catholic) recorded six receptions for 60 yards while Henderson tallied 60 yards on three catches for the Dukes.

Thompson paced the Duquesne defense with eight solo tackles including two tackles for loss and a sack to go with two forced fumbles and one recovery.

Spencer DeMedal (New Wilmington, Pa. / Wilmington Area) added an interception in the first quarter for DU in addition to a sack for the Dukes while graduate transfer Mason Williams (Pasadena, Calif. / St. Francis / Duke) added four stops in his DU debut.

Duquesne registered a total of seven sacks in the contest, including a team-high sack and a half from Chris Favoroso (Port St. Lucie, Fla. / Jensen Beach / Montana). Maxi Hradecny (Vienna, Austria / Evangelisches Gymnasium), Mike O'Malley (Lakewood, Ohio / St. Edward) and Matt Natale (New Castle, Pa. / Neshannock) each contributed a sack for the Dukes while Lucas D'Orazio (Cuyahoga Heights, Ohio / Cuyahoga Heights) tacked on a half sack.

Duquesne used a balanced attack of 248 passing yards and 216 rushing.

The Dukes held the Cavaliers to 1-of-13 on third downs while converting on all four of their trips inside the red zone.

Duquesne hits the road to take on Youngstown State next Saturday, Sept. 14 at 2 p.m. at Stambaugh Stadium.