UNC Football Moments After – UNC vs. West Virginia 30-10 Loss

UNC Tar Heels Football Team Allows Miscues Turnovers and Penalties to Doom Their Chances for a Victory in Dukes Mayo Bowl

by Derrick Clyburn

The North Carolina football team faced off against the West Virginia Mountaineers in the Dukes Mayo Bowl. No one knew what to expect with all of the opt-outs on offense and defense but we would get a chance to see Conner Harrell and some of the younger players get a chance to compete.

On the first play from scrimmage West Virginia quarterback Garrett Greene hit Traylon Ray for a 75-yard touchdown and the Mountaineers were up 7-0 with only 11 seconds off the clock in the first quarter. There was a pick-and-crossing route that allowed Ray to get behind the secondary. It looked like it would be a long night with the way the game started for the Tar Heels.

Conner Harrell showed some quickness and athleticism at quarterback with some nice runs for first downs. He also showed great touch on a 47-yard pass to Gavin Blackwell. Harrell seemed under control and had command of the offense. The problem for North Carolina was that the offensive line could not hold up against the blitzing and stunting defense of the Mountaineers. The Tar Heels offensive line allowed 7 sacks for the game.

The North Carolina defense played reasonably well for most of the game but they were on the field too long and gave up a few big plays. The special teams had blunders from allowing a 65-yard punt return on one series to having the ball hit one of the receiving team’s players on the back of the leg when McCollum should have yelled code red to warn his teammates to get out of the way.

The Tar Heels offense got in the red zone 7 times and only came up with 10 points. There were 2 interceptions and 3 sacks in the red zone. Those miscues allowed the Mountaineers to extend their lead and took a toll on the Tar Heels defense. West Virginia was able to go on a cruise to a 30-10 victory.

UNC Game Stats 

UNC Total Offense- 353 yards 

Rushing 199 Passing 154

UNC Passing: Conner Harrell 18-27-199 yards 1TD 2 INTs

UNC Rushing: Omarion Hampton 19-74 yards 2TDs, British Brooks 3-57 yards 

UNC Receiving: JJ Jones 4-53 yards 1TD, Gavin Blackwell 3-78 yards, Nate McCollum 5-41 yards

WVU Total Offense- 379 yards 

WVU Passing: Garrett Greene 21-32 219 yards 1TD 

WVU Rushing: Garrett Greene 9-75 yards, Jaheim White 12-50 yards 1TD 

WVU Receiving: Traylon Ray 3-91 yards 1TD, Hudson Clements 5-89 yards 

UNC Bright Spots 

Conner Harrell had 18 passes for 199 yards and one touchdown.  He also ran for 39 yards.

Omarion Hampton had 19 carries for 74 yards.

JJ Jones had 4 catches for 53 yards and one touchdown. 

Needs Work

The offensive line needs an overhaul. The pass blocking has been atrocious all year. They have allowed too many sacks and quarterback hurries. Mack Brown and his coaching staff need to hit the transfer portal hard to find new offensive linemen.

The defensive line needs some upgrades that can actually control the line of scrimmage and wreak havoc in the opponent’s offensive backfield. also, the coaching staff needs to find depth for the defensive line, linebackers, and the secondary.

Final Observations 

North Carolina finishes the season 8-5 with a 3-game losing streak. Mack Brown and his staff have to do a better job preparing their team to finish the end of the season strong. The last two seasons they have fallen apart down the stretch. North Carolina has lost 4 straight bowl games.

There are some big decisions and changes that Mack needs to make on his coaching staff and they need to bring in some great transfer portal talent to go along with their 25th-ranked 2024 recruiting class. Mack has talked a lot about getting the players to reach the next level as a football team but time is running short and things must improve drastically for that to happen.