The North Carolina football team fell behind 17-0 early and couldn’t recover in a 50-35 loss at Clemson Saturday night, dropping to 2-2 on the season.

With the win, the Tigers evened their record up at 2-2 on the year. For the third straight season, the Tar Heels have now dropped their conference opener

Clemson  freshman signal caller Deshaun Watson threw for 435 yards and set a school record with six touchdown passes in his first ever start to lead the Tigers to the victory.

The 19-year-old didn’t shrink in the spotlight. Watson completed 27 of his 36 passes.

Watson’s six TDs tied the ACC record and only Tajh Boyd has thrown for more yards in a game for Clemson.

The Tar Heel defense continued to struggle, giving  up 528 yards, and has now allowed its opponent to gain more than 500 yards in the past three games.

Mike Williams had six catches for 122 yards and two touchdowns for Clemson, which has scored 49 or more points in five of its last 10 ACC games.

UNC was clamping down on the run game, but Watson excelled.

Watson had a 50-yard TD pass to Hopper in the second quarter, waiting in the pocket until the last moment to drop the pass right into the receiver’s hands. Clemson gained 218 yards in the first half, with Watson’s two long passes accounting for more than half that total.

Elijah Hood led UNC in rushing yards (UNC Athletics)

Elijah Hood led UNC in rushing yards (UNC Athletics)

In the second half, Watson had two 33-yard touchdown passes and a 24-yard scoring throw before tight end Jordan Leggett jumped high in the end zone to pull in the freshman’s record-breaking TD pass.

Clemson needed Watson’s passing as the Tigers gained only 71 yards on the ground.

Artavis Scott had eight catches for 66 yards and a touchdown, while Hopper caught three passes for 139 yards and 2 TDs.

Ammon Lakip hit a 27-yard and a 45-yard field goal. Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney stuck with the junior kicker after he missed two field goals in last week’s overtime loss to No. 1 Florida State.

The Tar Heels are still struggling, a week after allowing the most yards, points and first downs in school history. On Saturday night, the Tar Heels had 15 penalties, one off the school record, for 130 yards, which was 20 yards away from their worst game.

Marquise Williams was 24-of-38 for 345 yards for North Carolina and threw to 13 different receivers. Elijah Hood ran 13 times for 71 yards to lead the team in rushing.

Next up for the Tar Heels is a home contest in Chapel Hill against ACC Coastal foe Virginia Tech on Saturday, Oct. 4.

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