EL PASO, Texas (AP) — Duke's unlikely Atlantic Coast Conference title didn't get the Blue Devils anywhere close to the College Football Playoff berth that's supposed to go to every Power Four conference champion.
The consolation prize comes Wednesday in the Sun Bowl against Arizona State, a team just a year removed from winning the Big 12, making the CFP and nearly pulling a huge upset against Texas in the quarterfinals.
Defensive tackle Aaron Hall and his teammates figured their CFP hopes were dim despite the 27-20 overtime victory against No. 20 Virginia, and couldn't have been surprised when the upset opened the playoff door for a second Group of Five school in the 12-team field instead of the Blue Devils (8-5).
Now they move on to face the Sun Devils (8-4). It's the second meeting between the schools — both in the Sun Bowl. The first was a 36-31 ASU victory 11 years ago.
“The ACC title is definitely up there, right?” Hall said. “But at the end of the day, we were just talking about it, the joy of that has kind of faded just a little bit, right? You're always hungry for the next thing. So for us, we're just making sure that now it's about the bowl game, making sure we get that podium feeling again.”
A five-loss team was still alive for a spot in the ACC title game because of a five-way tie for second place that included the league's highest-ranked team, Miami.
The Hurricanes got a CFP bid and won at Texas A&M in the first round. They will kick off a Cotton Bowl quarterfinal against No. 2 seed Ohio State in the Dallas area a few hours after Duke is finished playing about 600 miles away in far West Texas.
“What we said we would do, we're doing,” said Duke coach Manny Diaz, whose two seasons of 9-4 and 8-5 have identically matched the previous two under Mike Elko, now coaching the Aggies. “They know they’re gonna be put on the stage here to be extraordinarily successful in all ways. But the neat thing is that there is still a tinge of disappointment in this team, despite winning the ACC title this year, of some things that could have been that weren't in our control. And hopefully that’ll be the fuel for the '26 Blue Devils.”
Sun Devils coach Kenny Dillingham will be on the sideline for the first time since signing a five-year contract extension that averages $7.5 million per season. He had been mentioned for several high-profile jobs in a busy coaching cycle.
Dillingham won't have the quarterback who played a big part in ASU's turnaround from 3-9 in 2023 to 11-3 a year ago. Sam Leavitt sustained a season-ending foot injury in early November and is in the transfer portal.
Jeff Sims, a former Georgia Tech and Nebraska quarterback, will start the bowl game, according to Dillingham. Sims has 886 yards passing with seven touchdowns and five interceptions in nine games.
There have been reports that Duke quarterback Darian Mensah is considering a move to the NFL, but Diaz has said Mensah is planning to play in the Sun Bowl. Mensah led the ACC with a Duke-record 30 touchdown passes, throwing for 3,646 yards with five interceptions. He had just one pick in nine conference games, including the title game.
“I hope it's a story every December, where either we've got a quarterback that's considering making the jump early or we've got a quarterback that's finished his eligibility that expects to be one of the top quarterbacks in the (NFL),” Diaz said. “We want to be a very quarterback-friendly offense.”
The biggest name choosing not to play in the Sun Bowl is Arizona State receiver Jordyn Tyson, who is headed to the NFL draft and projects as a first-round pick. Raleek Brown, who rushed for 1,141 yards, also isn't playing.
The biggest missing piece on the ASU defense is linebacker Keyshaun Elliott, who had seven sacks among 14 tackles for loss. Duke will be without defensive end Vincent Anthony Jr., who had 7 1/2 sacks among 13 tackles for loss.
Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here. AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football
FILE - Arizona State head coach Kenny Dillingham encourages his players prior to an NCAA college football game against West Virginia Saturday, Nov. 15, 2025, in Tempe, Ariz. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin, File)
FILE - Duke head coach Manny Diaz, left, celebrates with defensive tackle Aaron Hall (99) after Virginia missed a field goal in the first half of the Atlantic Coast Conference championship NCAA college football game Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Jacob Kupferman, File)
NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks edged lower in morning trading on Wall Street Tuesday as 2025 nudges closer to the finish line.
The S&P 500 fell 0.1%. The benchmark index is still on track for a gain of more than 17% for the year.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 120 points, or 0.3%, as of 10:40 a.m. Eastern. The Nasdaq composite fell 0.1%.
The biggest weights on the market remained technology companies and other companies focused on advancements for artificial intelligence.
Nvidia fell 0.3% and Apple fell 0.4%. Both companies have outsized values that have a greater overall impact on the market’s broader direction.
On the winning side,1Facebook parent Meta Platforms rose 1.9%.
Markets were mixed in Asia and higher in Europe.
With just two trading days left before the year ends, most big investors have closed out their positions and volume has been thin. U.S. markets will be closed on Thursday for New Year's day.
The more notable action was again in the commodities markets. Gold, silver and copper all resumed their ascent after steep declines a day earlier.
The price of gold rose 0.9% and silver prices gained 7.1% after slumping Monday when the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, one of the largest trading floors for commodities, asked traders to put up more cash to make bets on precious metals. Prices for both metals have surged in 2025 on a mix of economic worries and supply deficits.
Copper rose 2.5% and is up more 40% for the year on strong demand. The base metal is critical to global energy infrastructure, and demand is expected to keep growing as the development of artificial intelligence technology puts more of a strain on data centers and the energy grid.
Crude oil prices were relatively steady. The price of U.S. crude oil rose 0.4%. The price of Brent crude, the international standard, rose 0.3%.
Treasury yields mostly rose in the bond market. The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 4.13% from 4.11% late Monday. The yield on the two-year Treasury, which moves more closely with expectations for what the Federal Reserve will do, held steady at 3.46% from late Monday.
Overall, bond yields have fallen significantly through the year, partly because of the market's expectations for a shift in interest rate policy at the Fed. The central bank cut interest rates three times late in 2025, most recently at its meeting earlier in December.
The central bank has been dealing with a more complex economic picture. Consumer confidence has been weakening throughout the year as inflation squeezes consumers and businesses. The continued impact of a wide-ranging U.S.-led trade war threatens to add more fuel to inflation.
Inflation remains stubbornly high while the jobs market slows down. The Fed can cut interest rates to help the economy weather a slower jobs market. But, that could add more fuel to inflation that is still solidly above the Fed's 2% target. Hotter inflation could stunt economic growth.
The Fed has signaled more caution moving forward and minutes from its December meeting will be released later Tuesday.
Wall Street is betting that the Fed will hold interest rates steady at its next meeting in January.
Elaine Kurtenbach contributed to this report.
Participants perform a traditional hand clap at the end of a ceremony to conclude the year's trading at the Tokyo Stock Exchange Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2025, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
Japan's Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, right, delivers a speech as Hajime Moriyasu, left, the head coach of Japanese national soccer team, bows during a ceremony to mark the last trading day of the year on the Tokyo Stock ExchangeTuesday, Dec. 30, 2025, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
Hajime Moriyasu, the head coach of Japanese national soccer team, rings the bell during a ceremony to mark the last trading day of the year on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2025, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
Participants perform a traditional hand clap at the end of a ceremony to conclude the year's trading at the Tokyo Stock Exchange Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2025, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
Japan's Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi poses before ringing the bell during a ceremony to mark the last trading day of the year on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2025, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
A person stands in front of an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei index at a securities firm, Monday, Dec. 29, 2025, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
A dealer watches computer monitors near the screen showing the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
The screens showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), left, and the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won are seen at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
The screens show the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), left, the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won and the Korean Securities Dealers Automated Quotations (KOSDAQ) at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
A dealer watches computer monitors at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
