UNC Football Moments After – UNC vs. UConn 27-14 Bowl Loss
UNC Tar Heels Football Team Ends the Mack Brown Era in Another Ugly Bowl Game Loss
by Derrick Clyburn
Many wanted to see how this North Carolina Football team would respond in the Wasabi Fenway Bowl against the UCONN Huskies with the end of the Mack Brown era and the beginning of the Bill Belichick era. There were many variables in play with the departure of players entering the transfer portal and the NFL draft. The Tar Heels had to depend on a make-shift offensive line and defensive line for the game.
In the second series of the game, North Carolina lost their starting quarterback Jacolby Criswell to a shoulder injury which added more adversity to a game in the cold frigid Boston winter. The offense led by 4th-string quarterback freshman Michael Merdinger didn’t get a first down in the whole first half which meant that the defense had to stay on the field after many 3-and-outs. They couldn’t stop the run consistently or the flare routes to the sidelines which allowed the Huskies to convert 10 first downs and score 24 points before intermission. The only bright spot for the Heels in the first half was a 95-yard kick return for a touchdown by Chris Culliver.
In the second half, the Tar Heels had to continue to play their 4th-string quarterback freshman Michael Merdinger who was pretty ineffective so they went to their 3rd-string running back Caleb Hood to run the offense from the wildcat position. He was much more effective running the ball and doing option-pitches. Caleb Hood even threw a 17-yard touchdown pass to tight end John Copenhaver to cut the lead down to 27-14 with six minutes left in the fourth quarter. The defense would give the offense another chance with a big stop with less than four minutes remaining in the game but the offense would turn the ball over on downs driving the ball down the field for another score due to tight end John Copenhaver dropping the ball at the first-down marker. The Huskies would then run out the clock to secure the victory 27-14.
UNC Game Stats
UNC Total Offense- 206 yards
Rushing 96 Passing 110
UNC Passing: Michael Merdinger 9/12 86 yards 1 Int, Caleb Hood 1/17 17 yards 1TD
UNC Rushing: Caleb Hood 11-78 yards
UNC Receiving: John Copenhaver 3-46 yards 1TD
UCONN Total Offense- 361
UCONN Passing: Joe Fagnano 16/23 151 2TDs
UCONN Rushing: Mel Brown 11-96 yards, Cam Edwards 17-75 yards 1TD
UCONN Receiving: Skylar Bell 3-77 yards 1TD, Alex Honig 2-10 yards 1TD
UNC Bright Spots
Caleb Hood rushed for 78 yards and threw one touchdown pass.
Chris Culliver had a kick return for 95 yards and one touchdown.
John Copenhaver had 3 catches for 46 yards and one touchdown.
Needs Work
North Carolina continues to struggle to stop the run. They allowed the Huskies to rush for 210 yards. Bill Belichick has to come in and rebuild the offense and defense to play at the caliber of a team that can compete as a top-10 program
Final Observations
The Tar Heels finished the season with a 6-7 record. They haven’t won a bowl game since 2019. The nation will be anxious to see how Bill Belichick and his staff can take this North Carolina program to the next level. They have a good start with early commitments. It will be interesting to see how the Belichick era unfolds. Here’s to the off-season and Spring Practice.