UNC Tar Heels Football Team Put Their Foot On the Wahoos!
by Derrick Isaiah Clyburn
The North Carolina Tar Heels football team looked to break their four-game losing streak against the Virginia Cavaliers on Saturday night. The UNC offense came out and was explosive from the start of the game. The Heels scored 21 points on just 8 plays in the first quarter in just 2 minutes and 41 seconds of time of possession. The Tar Heels’ offense averaged about 30 yards per play in the first quarter and had touchdown passes of 59 yards, 37 yards, and 75 yards.
The Heels were up 24-7 in the second quarter before Virginia scored 21 unanswered points. The UNC defense struggled and had a few miscues that allowed Virginia to get back in the game. The Cavaliers threw for over 300 yards in the first half alone and led 28-24 going into halftime.
In the second half, the Tar Heels would regain the lead as the offense dominated and scored a touchdown on every single possession they had. The defense played much better in the second half but did not have a good showing overall, allowing Virginia to have over 500 yards of total offense. However, the North Carolina offense was the story of the game and led them to the second win of the season with over 600 yards of total offense, 392 yards rushing, and 307 yards passing.
UNC Game Stats
UNC Total Offense- 699 yards
Rushing 392 Passing 307
UNC Passing: Sam Howell 14-21-307 yards 5TDs 1INT
UNC Rushing: Ty Chandler 20-198 yds 2TDs, Sam Howell 15-112 yards, Caleb Hood 9-66 yards 1TD
UNC Receiving: Josh Downs 8-203 yards 2TDs, Khafre Brown 1-75 yards 1TD, Garrett Walston 3-15 yards 1TD, Kamari Morales 1-3 yards 1TD
Virginia Total Offense– 574 yards
Virginia Passing: Brennan Armstrong 39-54-554 yards 4TDs 1INT
Virginia Rushing: Jacob Rodriguez 3-14 yards
Virginia Receiving: Dontayvion Wicks 7-183 yards 1TD, Billy Kemp IV 8-106 yards 2TDS, Ra’Shaun Henry 4-66 yards, Keytaon Thompson 4-63 yards, Jelani Woods 6-47 yards 1TD
UNC Bright Spots
Sam Howell threw for 307 yards and 5 touchdowns. He also rushed for 112 yards.
Ty Chandler rushed 20 times for 198 yards and 2 touchdowns.
Caleb Hood rushed 9 times 66 yards and 1 touchdown.
Josh Downs had 8 receptions for 203 yards and 2 touchdowns.
Khafre Brown had 1 reception for a 75-yard and 1 touchdown.
Ja’Qurious Conley had one interception
Needs Work
The defensive backs have to do a better job covering the opposing team’s receivers. Defensive coordinator Jay Bateman needs to do a better job of calling more plays that will get pressure on the opposing team’s quarterback to alleviate pressure on the defensive backs.
The defense needs to also do a better job of tackling in space. They have missed too many tackles on the season thus far.
The defense also needs to do a better job of getting off the field on third downs. Virginia was 8-14 on third-down conversions.
Final Observations
The Tar Heels move to 2-1 on the season and end their four-game losing streak against Virginia. As expected, the Heels’ offense continues to get better and more explosive each week with more opportunities on the field to build up their chemistry. Sam Howell threw for over 300 yards and rushed for over 100 yards for the second consecutive game.
The defense struggled mightily against the pass tonight which is a scheme issue they will have to address going forward. The more aggressive they become defensively, the more successful I think the defense will be. If they are able to get to the quarterback more often, it will alleviate pressure on the secondary and cut down on the big plays allowed by the opponent.
The Heels’ defense has stepped up in the second half of each game stifling the opposing team’s offense but has yet to put together a full game where they dominate the entire game. Going forward the defense will need to continue to improve against the pass with the offense being as explosive as it was today if the Tar Heels will have a chance to reach their goal of winning the ACC. Next up is Georgia Tech next Saturday at 7:30 ET.