For the second straight week, head coach Mack Brown and the Tar Heels faced a stiff test on the road against a Sun Belt opponent. And for the second straight week, they passed… barely.

Carolina weathered a run of 25 unanswered points by Georgia State Saturday afternoon in Atlanta, utilizing an improved defense and clutch running by freshman Omarion Hampton to win, 35-28. For the second time in three years, UNC is 3-0.

Carolina opened up a 21-3 lead midway through the second quarter. Redshirt freshman quarterback Drake Maye was his usual sharp self, tossing long touchdown passes to Kamari Morales and Kobe Paysour to open up the 18-point advantage.

Georgia State scored its first touchdown with 5:32 remaining in the half, and then looked primed for more. The Panther defense stonewalled Maye and the Carolina offense on 4th down late in the quarter, setting up Georgia State in Carolina territory with a chance to slice into the lead even more. Fortunately for the Tar Heels, they got their biggest special teams play of the season just before halftime: a blocked field goal, which kept the lead at 21-10.

That lead would evaporate in harrowing fashion in the second half. Georgia State scored a 49-yard touchdown on its opening possession of the third quarter, and then picked off Maye on his first throw of the ensuing Carolina drive. It was Maye’s first interception of the season.

Though the Panthers took over near midfield, the Carolina defense was able to hold its ground, forcing Georgia State to try another field goal. This time, it split the uprights, and the Tar Heel lead was down to a single point.

A suddenly cold Carolina offense went three and out on its ensuing drive, giving the ball back to the Panthers. Though UNC punter Ben Kiernan booted the ball all the way to the Georgia State 2-yard line, quarterback Darren Grainger and a potent Panther rushing attack drove the ball 98 yards in 10 plays, capping the possession with a 29-yard pass from Grainger to receiver Robert Lewis. After a two-point conversion, Georgia State had its first lead of the day at 28-21.

UNC was facing a second-half deficit for the first time all season. It would last barely 90 seconds, as Hampton broke off a 58-yard rushing touchdown on Carolina’s fourth play of the next drive, knotting the game back up at 28.

Georgia State would not score again, as a suddenly stout UNC defense forced punts on the Panthers’ final four possessions of the game. Hampton scored again early in the fourth quarter, capping a 92-yard drive for Maye and the offense and giving the Tar Heels the lead back. The score was Hampton’s fifth touchdown in three games, and it was all UNC would need to ice the game away.

The finish was far from a clean one: Carolina fumbled and punted on fourth-quarter drives which could have bled the clock, and nearly fumbled again on its final drive of the game. But Maye was still able to kneel out the victory, and the final-minute shenanigans from Boone were nowhere to be found in Atlanta.

Ugly? Sure. But the Tar Heels are still 3-0, and already have two more road wins than they had all of last season (a big zero.) The bye week comes at a perfect time, as Carolina was playing without running back Caleb Hood, offensive lineman Spencer Rolland or wide receiver Josh Downs (for the second straight game). Brown would love to see all three, and possibly receiver Antoine Green as well, suit up for UNC’s next game in two weeks: a visit from No. 8 Notre Dame.

The Fighting Irish will likely still be highly-ranked when they step onto the Kenan Stadium turf. Carolina will almost certainly not be. If the Tar Heels manage to beat the Irish for only the second time in program history? Well, let’s not get ahead of ourselves.

 

Featured image via UNC Athletic Communications/Jeffrey A. Camarati

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