Once again, Carolina held a multi-score lead in the second half against an underdog. Once again, the Tar Heels lost the game.

Georgia Tech rushed for 348 yards – its most in a game since 2020 – and scored 22 fourth-quarter points to erase a 35-24 UNC lead and win 46-42 on Saturday night. It’s UNC’s second straight loss this season and third straight against the Yellow Jackets. All three of those losses came when the Tar Heels were ranked.

Georgia Tech’s 46 points came despite not scoring at all in the first and third quarters. UNC shot out to an early 14-0 lead thanks to some powerful running from Omarion Hampton and a Drake Maye touchdown pass, but had to hold on for dear life in the second quarter as the Jackets scored 24 points. UNC had taken a 28-21 lead with less than a minute remaining in the first half, but a Georgia Tech field goal as time expired salvaged some momentum for the home team. The Yellow Jackets’ 360 total yards in the first half were already the fourth-most allowed in any complete game by Carolina all season.

The Tar Heels appeared to regain their footing in the third quarter, intercepting Tech quarterback Haynes King and scoring another touchdown to take an 11-point lead and forcing a punt on the next possession. But Carolina couldn’t push the lead any further, punting it right back to the Georgia Tech offense on the first play of the final quarter.

The final 15 minutes would prove to be the killing blow to UNC’s ACC title hopes, as Tech scored on three straight possessions to slingshot itself into the lead with 4:28 remaining on the clock. The final touchdown came less than three minutes after UNC kicker Noah Burnette missed his first field goal of the season.

Carolina still had a chance to answer on its next drive and looked primed to do so when Maye hit receiver Tez Walker over the middle at the Yellow Jacket 33-yard line, but Walker fumbled after a blindside hit from a Georgia Tech defender, and the Jackets recovered the ball. They would easily run out the clock from there. Georgia Tech’s 635 total yards of offense were its second-most against a Power 5 opponent in a non-overtime game in school history.

The loss drops UNC to 6-2 overall and 3-2 in conference play. The Tar Heels are a game behind Louisville for second place in the ACC, and since the team doesn’t play the Cardinals this season, any chance of returning to Charlotte for the conference championship seems to be a long shot.

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