With those teachable moments they had earned the hard way, the Tar Heels improved enough to post a redemptive win over Georgia State, go 3-0 for only the second time in 12 years and get ready for their next 9 games — five of which are against teams that are currently ranked.
The biggest cleansing of last week’s narrow win at App State (who shocked the Texas A&M world Saturday) was Carolina shutting out Georgia State (0-2) in the fourth quarter after allowing the Mountaineers to score an embarrassing 40 points in the final period. Hopefully, that is behind the Heels now.
What lies ahead is an off week while Carolina prepares for the serious part of the schedule, beginning with formerly fifth-ranked but currently 0-2 Notre Dame after losing to (We Are) Marshall in South Bend.
Following the Fighting Irish on September 24, every other week are games against No. 15 Miami, No. 17 Pitt, No. 23 Wake Forest and No. 18 N.C. State. And the Heels certainly cannot sleep on surprisingly undefeated, if unranked, Duke, plus Virginia, Georgia Tech and Virginia Tech, all a combined 5-3 at this point.
The most impressive aspect of the 35-28 win on the site of the converted 1996 Atlanta Centennial Olympics Stadium was that Carolina scored the last two touchdowns after Georgia State scored 18 unanswered points to open the second half and go ahead 28-21 that looked like a repeat of last week.
The turning point came when UNC allowed a painful 98-yard scoring drive that gave Georgia State its only lead. Thankfully, the Tar Heels had answers.
Freshman Omarion Hampton replaced starter D.J. Jones and rushed for 89 of his 110 yards and two touchdowns. His 58-yard sprint to the end zone tied the score and a two-yard slam put the Heels ahead for good.
North Carolina running back Omarion Hampton dives over the pile for a touchdown in the second half of an NCAA college football game against Georgia State Saturday, Sept. 10, 2022, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Hakim Wright Sr.)
And the Heels did it without starters Josh Downs, Spencer Rolland and a bunch of banged-up guys who played their way through a prickly and prepared underdog opponent. Hardly another sensational performance for Drake Maye and his offense, but they did enough to score 35 and the defense bowed its collective neck to do the rest.
It wasn’t easy after taking an early 21-10 lead. Maye’s two touchdown passes were both pro throws, threading the needle to tight end Kamari Morales down the seam for 55 yards and dropping a 28-yard dime on Kobe Paysour, who made a spectacular, over-the-shoulder catch at the back of the end zone.
When Downs returns, hopefully against Notre Dame, Phil Longo will have to find ways to play both slot backs at the same time, which will be misery for defenses.
While the visit to rainy Georgia State didn’t have the hype or the crowd that rocked Boone the week before, the Panthers outplayed UNC for three quarters with a quarterback who finished 16-of-24 for 184 yards and three touchdowns. Maye went 19-of-24 for 284 yards and two TDs (11 on the season) but threw the first pick of his college career on an off-target bullet.
The restored defense, while still allowing 421 total yards, made some very big plays — such as Noah Taylor and Damian Rucker (the duo that stuffed App State’s last 2-point conversion attempt) sacking Georgia State’s Darren Grainger to thwart an early Panthers’ scoring threat.
And, in the fourth quarter, with Georgia State threatening to tie the game, defensive tackle Jahvaree Ritzie stopped a 3rd-and-3 rush up the middle that forced the first of four straight punts.
Cedric Gray led the team in tackles again with 14, and fellow linebacker Power Echols was also all over the field with 10. Coordinator Gene Chizik is known for bend-don’t-break defenses, and this game certainly looked more like that. After giving up a first down early in the fourth quarter, the Heels did not allow another while protecting a tenuous seven-point lead.
“The defense stepped up,” a relieved Mack Brown said after another great getaway. “Our offense had three turnovers and it wasn’t Drake’s best day. But we still scored 35 points.”
That is 154 scored on the young season. More importantly, the defense made sure the offense could win with only five touchdowns rather than the eight and two field goals needed to escape the mess in the mountains a week ago.
It is hard to tell what condition Notre Dame will be in when the Fighting Irish arrive at Kenan Stadium in two weeks. They have a home game with 2-0 Cal this Saturday after effectively kissing the College Football Playoffs goodbye by losing their first two games to third-ranked Ohio State and three-touchdown underdog Marshall. At worst, they will be in their save-the-season mode.
Carolina limited its penalties to four for 50 yards, although one was a targeting call that disqualified senior defensive back Obi Egbuna and an unsportsmanlike flag on sophomore starter DeAndre Boykins.
For UNC, it will be time to keep healing mentally and physically as the Heels head into the next nine games with only three more wins needed to be bowl eligible but wanting much more after an unimpressive, yet undefeated, start.
Featured photo via AP Photo/Hakim Wright Sr.
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