Durham, North Carolina — For North Carolina, there’s always a way when it comes to Drake May. May zipped a touchdown pass on a run to Antoine Green with 16 seconds remaining and the Tar Heels missed Duke 38-35 at Wallace-Wade Stadium on Saturday night.
After clearing away from Duke cornerback Joshua Pickett, Green walked a tightrope in the corner of the end zone for an eight-yard catch, and after a lengthy official review, the play was back on its feet. Plenty of green grass visible between
After teammate Noah Taylor hit a pass for Duke quarterback Riley Leonard, he sealed a dramatic victory for UNC, a diving pickoff.
So the Victory Bell remained in UNC’s possession for the fourth year in a row, and coach Mack Brown’s winning streak against the Blue Devils grew to 12 straight, with the Tar Heels qualifying for the bowl in mid-October.
May threw for 380 yards and three touchdowns, adding 70 rushing yards as North Carolina (6-1 overall, 3-0 ACC) clad first in the conference’s Coastal Division. On their way off the field into the night, the Tar Heels rang their rival prize, the victory bell.
Trailing 21-10 late in the first half, UNC led 31-21 and provided a four-down stop on defense late in the third quarter to take over Duke’s 30-yard line. However, the Tar Heels could not take the opportunity to hold off the Blue Devils (4-3, 1-2).
Leonard’s 20-yard touchdown pass to Samir Hagans and Jordan Waters’ 38-yard touchdown burst bounced back the Blue Devils 35-31 with 10:12 left in the game. Duke kicker Charlie Hamm’s missed field goal with his 2:09 cast a huge shadow in the second half of this seesaw night.
North Carolina gave the season a 6-1 start for the second time since 1997. Josh Downs (9 catches for 126 yards) and Green (4 catches for 112 yards) were May’s top his targets.
finish half early
North Carolina moved quickly late in the first half, scoring 13 seconds before halftime and staying within reach after Duke built a 21–10 lead.
Maye’s perseverance ended the rushed drive. He hit a 4-yard touchdown pass on a run to Caleb Hood, but looked like he had to throw the ball away on that third down.
Hood made a catch in the corner of the end zone and had a very tight window with Duke linebacker Cam Dillon. The Tar Heels used nine plays to move 75 yards in 85 seconds for a touchdown. Its quick drive down the field foreshadowed a game-ending winning drive.
Disruption, costly turnover
Hood looked confused in play after he imposed a fumble on May with about four-and-a-half minutes remaining in the first half.
May was looking to throw in the opposite direction Hood had arrived, as he expected a handoff or Rumpus option play. A contact from the hood while May reeled in knocked the ball out of May’s grip, and Duke quickly converted it with a Jakez Moore short-run touchdown with 1:38 remaining.
It marked May’s second fumble of the first half. Duke’s defensive lineman Dewayne Carter shoved the ball out of May on his third play of Saturday night’s game, allowing UNC to recover. His third fumble for May occurred in the fourth quarter.
build another stand
Early in the second quarter, the UNC defense came up with another 4-down stop on the goal line. Leonard’s passes on his 4th and his 2nd at North Carolina’s 3-yard line were incomplete, and Leonard may have still felt the effects of being popped on the previous play.
UNC defenders Cedric Gray and Camron Kelly brought Leonard’s boom down with a big hit and sent Duke’s quarterback on a third-down run that gained 3 yards.
Last week, the Tar Heels packed Miami with a goal-line stand — the Hurricanes went UNC 2-1, 1-3 — which proved to be a pivotal sequence in the first half. North Carolina then marched 99 yards for a touchdown.
unstable defensive start
It was a shaky start for the UNC defense, which has benefited from continued confidence-building efforts. Duke’s attack hurt the Tar Heels on the first drive of the game. The Blue Devils quickly left the gate with gains of 15, 5, 6, 15 and 14 yards in his first five plays.
Duke’s first seven plays of the game produced five first downs. Leonard then ran 16 yards down to his UNC 2 and Jordan Waters joined in for a touchdown to give Duke his 7–3 lead.
This proved to be a sign towards a UNC defense allowing Duke yards for a total of 542 yards.
next to the schedule
UNC plans its second open day next weekend, giving it another week and a run for the Tar Heels before the ACC Coastal Division’s fourth straight matchup when Pittsburgh visits Oct. 29. I have a break.
