Games like this always make me nervous. Its a game North Carolina should win, but against a motivated, fired up team on the road, alot of bad things can happen. The Tarheels went from an opponent in Georgia Tech that featured the triple option and rushed for over 300 yards to going against pass happy East Carolina that threw the ball 58 times and had over 400 yards passing.
On offense, the Tarheels achieved an almost Monk-like balance with 230 yards passing and 226 yards rushing with four of their five touchdowns coming thru the air. The Tarheels did not turn the ball over while forcing 4 East Carolina turnovers, all of those coming in the first half.
Several plays stood out. Dwight Jones two acrobatic touchdown catches, the athleticism that Defensive Tackle Sylvester Williams displayed on his interception at the end of the first half, and the pinpoint accuracy of Bryn Renner on his long TD pass to Eric Highsmith as well as the fourth down completion to Tight End Nelson Hurst that helped put the game away.
The gameplan that the Tarheels put together was a bit conservative but they utilized their strength and that was their massive offensive line. They outweighed East Carolina's defensive line by an average of almost 50 pounds a man and they continually blasted holes open for Gio Bernard, especially in the first half. They also did not allow Bryn Renner to be sacked. Offensive lineman Travis Bond also had his first career reception on a batted pass. He lost 7 yards on the play but at least he had the athletic ability to catch the ball.
The 'Heels improve to 4-1 on the season and only need two more wins to become bowl eligible in Interim Head Coach Everett Withers first season as coach. That is, if the NCAA allows them to go to a bowl game.
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