PITTSBURGH – Running back Billy Lucas rushed for 136 yards and two touchdowns to lead Duquesne to a 34-14 win over Thomas More (NAIA) in the home opener Saturday afternoon at Rooney Field.
 
The Dukes (1-2) out-gained the Saints (1-2) 506-to-177 in total offense, including a 249-to-47 advantage in rushing yards alone.
 
Lucas, who was one yard shy of his career high, averaged 7.2 yards on 19 carries. Running back DeMarcus Ware finished with 77 yards rushing on 14 carries and added five receptions for 23 yards out of the backfield.
 
Quarterback Joe Mischler ended the afternoon 18 of 23 for 241 yards and two touchdowns with one interception. Wide receiver Dwayne Menders, Jr. was his favorite target with eight receptions for a career-best 165 yards and one touchdown.
 
The Dukes took the opening kickoff and drove all the way down to the three-yard line, but a holding penalty and a missed field goal derailed the drive and kept Duquesne off of the scoreboard.
 
Neither team got into the endzone in the first 15 minutes, sending the game into the second quarter scoreless. The Dukes were pinned at their own five-yard line, before a trio of rushes pushed the ball out to their own 32. Mischler connected with Menders on a short throw over the middle, but Menders made two Thomas More defenders miss and took the ball 67 yards for a touchdown to make the score 7-0 with 5:54 left in the first half.
 
The Dukes got the ball back after a punt and moved down to the Thomas More 19-yard line on five plays. Lucas finished off the drive with a 19-yard touchdown rush to increase the lead to 14-0 with just under two minutes to play in the opening half.
 
Duquesne's defense got the offense the ball back before halftime when safety Jon Muehlbauer intercepted a dropped pass near midfield with 17 seconds on the clock. After two pass plays pushed the ball down to the Thomas More 19-yard line, kicker Brian Bruzdewicz connected on a 37-yard field goal as time expired on the first half to make the score 17-0.
 
The Dukes extended the lead late in the third quarter when Mischler connected with Rafael McCoy on a seven-yard touchdown pass in the corner of the end zone that made the score 24-0 with 1:48 to play in the third quarter.
 
The Saints got on the board on their next drive to cut the deficit to 24-7 less than a minute into the fourth quarter. After a Bruzdewicz field goal from 37 yards out pushed the lead back to 27-7, Thomas More made things interesting with a second touchdown, that made the score 27-14 with 6:36 to play in the game.
 
The Dukes recovered the ensuing onside kick attempt and Lucas eventually found the endzone for his second touchdown of the day to put the game away at 34-14 with just over a minute left on the clock.
 
The Duquesne defense finished with 11 tackles for loss (TFL), including six sacks. Linebacker Todd Hill posted 2.5 TFL with 1.5 sacks and four total tackles. Defensive end A.J. Ackerman collected 1.5 sacks.
 
The Dukes are now 17-1 in home openers under Head Coach Jerry Schmitt. Duquesne has won 27 of its last 30 home opening games since joining the FCS in 1993. The Dukes are now 47-12 in non-conference home games under Schmitt.

Prior to kick-off, the Dukes honored the memory of former Head Coach Dan McCann with a moment of silence. His daughter was presented with a game ball and a helmet. The entire Duquesne football team will wear decals with the initials "JM" and the words "Big Guy" for the remainder of the season.
 
The Dukes will make the trip out to the Aloha State next week to take on Hawai'i. The game, which will kick-off in Hawai'i at 6:00 p.m., will technically kick-off locally in Pittsburgh on Sunday, Sept. 18 at midnight due to the six-hour time change. Duquesne lost the first-ever meeting in 2018, 42-21, to the Rainbow Warriors.
 
GAME NOTES: Duquesne held an advantage of over 10 minutes in time of possession … Menders' 67-yard catch-and-run touchdown was the longest completion by a Dukes receiver since Ryan Iacone hauled in a 68-yard touchdown pass in the 2021 season opener versus Virginia-Lynchburg … Menders' previous career-high was 146 yards receiving while playing for Marist in a game versus Bryant … He is the first Dukes' receiver with over 150 yards receiving since Cyrus Holder went for 211 versus LIU on March 21, 2021 … Duquesne improves to 3-1 all-time against opponents from the state of Kentucky.