RALEIGH, N.C. — Duke football cruised to a 41-3 victory vs. NC State on Saturday, Nov. 7, at Carter-Finley Stadium.

The Blue Devils (7-2, 4-2 ACC) jumped out to an early lead behind Nate Sheppard's 15th rushing touchdown of the season — good for Duke's single-season record — and never looked back against the Wolfpack. Duke led 31-3 at halftime before outscoring NC State 10-0 across the final two quarters for its third-straight win.

The Blue Devils are back in action on Saturday, Nov. 14, on the road at Miami.

Here's our report card for the Blue Devils in their win over the Wolfpack:

Offense grade: A

It took Duke four plays and just 43 seconds to find the end zone on its first possession. The Blue Devils' offense was rolling from there, finishing the first half with 342 yards and averaging 8.3 yards per carry.

Duke finished the game with 462 total yards of offense (6.7 yards/play), it's third-best output of the season. The Blue Devils also went a perfect 4-for-4 in their trips to the red zone.

Defense grade: A+

Duke has allowed just eight points in their last 10 quarters of play. The Blue Devils have not allowed a touchdown since the first quarter of the Virginia game on Oct. 23.

NC State was only able to muster up three points in the first half behind a 39-yard field goal. The Wolfpack went on to punt the ball away on seven of their 10 drives and finished with 217 total yards, averaging 3.9 yards per play.

Special teams grade: A+

Andrew Pellicciotta had a 100-plus yard kick-six return to close the first half after a missed NC State field goal try. Kade Reynoldson had four punts that averaged 36.5 yards, and Gavin Strange made all of his extra point and field goal tries.

Coaching grade: A

Manny Diaz gets his 25th win at Duke, now tied with Eddie Cameron for fifth on the program’s all-time chart, and remains undefeated against NC State. Diaz and company had Blue Devils ready to play in Raleigh.

Game MVP: Nate Sheppard

Sheppard's first touch was a 69-yard touchdown run that set the Duke single-season touchdown record and put him at more than 1,000 rushing yards for the second-straight season. Sheppard had 168 yards rushing by halftime and finished the game rushing for 217 yards and three scores. It's his second game of the year with more than 200 yards on the ground since he ran for 227 in Week 1 vs. Tulane.

Overall team grade: A+

Duke rolled to its third-straight victory and its second double-digit win. The Blue Devils dominated in all facets as they improved to 7-2 for the first time since an 8-1 mark in 2014.