Just when it all seemed to be going right for the No. 10 Tar Heels, the team took a hard left.
Unbeaten Carolina entered as heavy favorites against unranked Virginia Saturday night in Chapel Hill, but left shellshocked as the Cavaliers rallied from a 10-point second-half deficit for a stunning 31-27 win. It’s UNC’s fourth consecutive loss as a Top 10 team.
“We talked about the poisoned cheese,” said head coach Mack Brown after the game, “and we ate it.”
UNC’s inefficient special teams play hit the limelight in the worst way, as short punts from Tom Maginness – filling in for Ben Kiernan, who is out for the season – continually gave the Cavaliers excellent field position. In fact, one of Virginia’s drives in the second half lasted all of six yards, and yet it ended in a Cavalier field goal. The drive had started at the Carolina 45-yard line. Maginness averaged a paltry 32.6 yards per punt, while Virginia’s punter averaged more than 50.
Quarterback Drake Maye was unusually inefficient himself, completing only half of his passes and overthrowing receivers numerous times on the night. Maye still ended with 347 yards through the air, but threw the game-sealing interception in Virginia territory with less than a minute remaining.
“We came out a little flat,” Maye said. “Just didn’t play our brand of football, and it ended up costing us.”
Particularly surprising were several drops from sure-handed receiver Nate McCollum, who ended with only two catches for 11 yards. Tez Walker was by far the most productive Carolina receiver, hauling in a season-high 11 passes for 146 yards and a touchdown. It was Walker who Maye targeted on a 4th down deep inside Cavalier territory with 3:12 remaining, but the football fluttered just a few inches too high for even the six-foot, three-inch transfer from Kent State reel in.
Carolina should have considered itself lucky to even be in position to win the game at that juncture, as Virginia had fumbled on the one-yard line and through the back of the end zone after threatening to go up multiple possessions. Even that gift of a drive didn’t turn out to be UNC’s last, as the Tar Heels got the ball again with 1:12 remaining and no timeouts. The offense managed only 27 yards before Maye’s interception.
“I’m disappointed in me, and I’m disappointed in us as coaches,” Brown said. “Kids listen to us. They’re young people. It’s our job to get them ready to play.”
Carolina held a lead as large as 24-14 early in the third quarter after scoring 17 unanswered points. A three-yard rushing touchdown from Maye capped off the last touchdown drive, which came after the UNC defense had forced a turnover on downs.
But the Tar Heels wouldn’t reach the end zone again. They appeared to on a long ball from Maye to receiver J.J. Jones, but the play was called back due to holding in the backfield. Carolina settled for a field goal on that drive, a four-point swing which proved to be the difference on the night.
“All of this stuff goes in a box, and it’s a formula for losing,” Brown said.
That formula included allowing Virginia to rush for 228 yards on the ground. Running back Mike Hollins scored three of the Cavaliers’ four touchdowns on the night, and was a yard away from a fourth before the aforementioned fumble which kept UNC alive by a thread.
The loss drops Carolina to 6-1 on the season and 3-1 in ACC play. The Tar Heels will be back in action when they visit Georgia Tech next weekend.
Featured image via Associated Press/Chris Seward
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