DURHAM, N.C. -- Duke players figured the best way to combat No. 20 Georgia Tech was to turn physical.

Combined with big plays on special teams, it worked as Duke's defense held the Yellow Jackets in check in a 34-20 victory Saturday at rainy Wallace Wade Stadium.

"We took that on us," linebacker Dwayne Norman said of the defense. "We knew we had to stop them on the run almost every play. We made up our minds that we were going to make tackles and be the aggressive team.

DeVon Edwards returned a kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown and Duke took advantage of several special teams malfunctions by Georgia Tech. Running back Shaquille Powell scored on three runs for the Blue Devils (3-1, 1-0 ACC).

Duke limited Georgia Tech to 173 rushing yards, good enough to offset Duke's second-half offensive troubles.

"We wanted to play a complete game," Duke safety Jeremy Cash said, referring to second-half problems in a loss a week earlier to Northwestern. "We kept that chip on our shoulder and didn't want to have that same feeling."

The Blue Devils used two long returns in special teams to help bolster their point total. The breakdowns on coverages irked Georgia Tech coach Paul Johnson.

"When you do that against a team that's pretty good, you're not going to be very good," Johnson said.

Duke's defense limited Georgia Tech to a pair of field goals following three turnovers that appeared to put the Yellow Jackets in good shape.

Georgia Tech (2-2, 0-1), which lost last week at Notre Dame, held Duke to 75 yards of total offense and two first downs in the second half. Thirty of those yards came on Powell's game-clinching fourth-down touchdown run with 1:49 left.

"We showed we can step it up and how it needs to be to compete for championships," Powell said.

Johnson said the defensive effort should have been good enough.

"That's probably as good on defense has played in the second half since I've been here," Johnson said. "We're just not very good offensively right now. Especially defensively, (Duke) played their tails off."

Defensive back Lawrence Austin's interception set up Georgia Tech at the Duke 35 with about seven minutes to play. Duke made a fourth-down stop at the 26-yard line with 4:54 remaining, maintaining a 26-20 edge.

The Yellow Jackets fumbled with 2:12 remaining at their own 39, spoiling their last good chance when Cash forced the fumble on quarterback Justin Thomas' carry.

"I knew the game was on the line and I wanted to step up and make a play," Cash said.

Duke had Georgia Tech backpedaling at times. Thomas completed only 6 of 21 passes for 143 yards. Running back Patrick Skov had 75 yards on the ground, but the Yellow Jackets stalled too often with their normally efficient the rushing attack.

"In this offense, you're not going to win (doing that)," Johnson said. "Then the quarterback starts pressing and it gets worse. I understand where he's at. He's trying to make plays himself and gets frustrated."

Thomas ran for a 12-yard touchdown with 8:02 left as the Yellow Jackets closed within 26-20.

Defensive back A.J. Gray's interception gave Georgia Tech the ball at the Duke 32 in the third quarter, resulting in Harrison Butker's 48-yard field goal.

Edwards returned the ensuing kickoff 100 yards as the Blue Devils built their lead to 26-13.

Edwards, a junior safety, has five career kickoff returns for touchdowns, including two this season.

Duke led 19-3 after the first quarter, marking a larger offensive output than in last week's 19-10 loss to Northwestern.

Powell's 4-yard touchdown run capped a 12-play drive for Duke's first points.

A wayward punt snap by Georgia Tech helped set up Duke's next scoring possession, with Sirk connecting with wide receiver T.J. Rahming for an 11-yard touchdown pass.

Then Ryan Smith made a tackle-breaking, winding 69-yard punt return to the Georgia Tech 1 before Powell's plunge on the last play of the quarter.

The Yellow Jackets didn't respond until Thomas threw a 10-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Ricky Jeune with 30 seconds left in the half. That made it 19-10 at halftime.

Georgia Tech scored first on Butker's 52-yard field goal after Duke fumbled on the game's opening possession.

NOTES: Georgia Tech won 10 games in a row in the series until Duke prevailed last year in Atlanta. ... Former Duke coach Ted Roof is Georgia Tech's defensive coordinator. ... The loser of the Georgia Tech-Duke game ended up winning the ACC's Coastal Division the past two years. ... Duke was playing a nationally ranked opponent at home in consecutive games for the first time since the 1992 finale and the 1993 opener. ... This was the fourth year in a row that Georgia Tech opened ACC play on the road. ... Georgia Tech is 6-2 in ACC openers under coach Paul Johnson. ... The winner of the Duke-Georgia Tech game has scored at least 30 points in seven consecutive meetings. ... Duke RB Jela Duncan played for the first time since 2013 after he was sidelined with a preseason pectoral injury. He sat out 2014 with a suspension. ... Duke completes a four-game homestand next week against Boston College. ... Georgia Tech is home for North Carolina's ACC opener next week.