Miami tailback Deejay Dallas led the Hurricanes with 114 yards and a touchdown on just 11 carries against the Tar Heels. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

Carolina doesn’t have a quarterback controversy; it’s more like a problem.

Without the 24 points that Miami scored off Tar Heel turnovers, the nationally televised blowout would have been 23-10. Until Miami’s last touchdown in mop-up time, it was a one-score game even with Carolina being shut out the last three quarters.

UNC gave the Hurricanes a chance to dance and prance with their turnover chain four times, two for pick sixes and one for a fumble recovery to the house. The latter was Nathan Elliott getting sacked and losing the ball, which resulted in the U’s second touchdown.

That’s when Larry Fedora took Elliott out and put in the erstwhile suspended Chaz Surratt, who is a better runner and supposedly a better passer than Elliott. After some early success and scoring a touchdown, things for Surratt got so bad that Fedora benched him and put Elliott back in the game.

Playing Surratt so early turned out to be a big mistake by Fedora, who obviously didn’t like Elliott’s early fumble and said afterward that he had planned to play two quarterbacks anyway. But the early move backfired.

Both quarterbacks want to play. Elliott has had more snaps and one good game in the win over Pitt. But he’s not much of a downfield passer and less of a runner. While Surratt may be more talented, he sat out the last half of last season with some injuries and a loss of confidence.

While Surratt had practiced with the first two units over the last week or so, playing against the fast and aggressive Miami defense in real time was not how to ease him back in. So Fedora ended up with a 47-10 loss, a 1-3 record and, likely, two quarterbacks who don’t know where they stand.

The turnovers for touchdowns were just bad plays, period. Elliott not holding on to the ball and Surratt throwing it to the wrong team three times, twice for pick sixes. Instead of going into their bye week on an uptick from the win over Pitt, the Tar Heels are looking down the barrel of another 3-9 season since they will be favored in maybe two more games.

And without a reliable quarterback, the three good running backs and three dangerous downfield receivers will have their own problems getting the ball into scoring position.

Fedora has no choice but to pick Elliott or Surratt and stick with him – unless he tries someone else and starts over.

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