Whatever rock bottom the UNC football program had managed to plumb in bleak seasons past, Saturday’s game against James Madison in Kenan Stadium managed to go deeper. The Dukes rolled into Chapel Hill and dominated Carolina in every phase of the game, scoring 53 points in the first half on their way to a 70-50 win.

It’s just the second time in head coach Mack Brown’s second tenure that the Tar Heels have lost to a team from the “Group of Five” leagues outside the traditional power conference. The Sun Belt Conference produced both results: Appalachian State in 2019 and James Madison today.

“Embarrassing day. Shocking day,” said Brown afterward. “You shouldn’t be at North Carolina and lose to a Group of 5 team. There are no excuses.”

The 53 points were the most given up by any Tar Heel team in any half in program history and the 70 total points were the most points ever allowed by Carolina in any game. Both were solemn footnotes in a morose afternoon for UNC fans.

“I thought we’d win at halftime,” Brown said. “I really did. I’m stupid enough.”

James Madison scored touchdowns in all three phases of the game in the first half: multiple offensive touchdowns were joined by an interception returned for a touchdown and a blocked punt run into the end zone. Boos rained down on the Tar Heels as they entered the locker room at halftime.

“I told them we deserved it,” Brown said. “They probably didn’t hear it. There weren’t many [fans] left.”

In all, the Dukes amassed 611 yards of total offense and averaged 17.6 yards per pass completion. The Tar Heel offense turned the ball over five times.

UNC quarterback Jacolby Criswell made just his second career start and finished with 475 passing yards and three touchdowns. Running back Omarion Hampton added three touchdowns on the ground to notch his second three-touchdown game this season.

The 120 combined points broke the Kenan Stadium record by two points, surpassing a 68-50 UNC loss to Georgia Tech in 2012. The 70 points allowed equals a dubious UNC record set against East Carolina in 2014, and are more than the Carolina defense allowed in the first three games combined (47).

“It can only come back to one person, and that’s me,” said Brown. “I’ve hired everybody on this staff. I hired everybody that works in this building. And I signed every player on this team. The people that want to blame me, they should. I am at fault, one hundred percent.

“We didn’t do anything right. It’s hard to have a game where you do nothing right on defense. I’d say, in this one, we did very little to nothing right.”

Saturday’s loss drops Carolina to 3-1 entering ACC play. The Tar Heels will travel to Duke next Saturday at 4 p.m.

 

Featured image via UNC Athletic Communications

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