The North Carolina Tarheels won ugly against the Virginia Cavaliers or as Head Coach Larry Fedora described it, a very "sloppy" game to improve to 6-1 on the season and 3-0 in the Coastal Division with a showdown Thursday night against and fellow Coastal unbeaten, #25 Pittsburgh.
The Tarheels turned the ball over twice in the first half and had 135 yards in penalties for the game. These penalties most often came at the most inopportune times and the penalties either brought back long Tarheel plays or killed momentum and on the defensive side of the ball, extended Virginia drives and kept the Cavaliers in the game. The Tarheels came up with five turnovers of their own in the second half (two fumble recoveries and three interceptions) to keep the Cavaliers in check.
The Tarheels were only up 16-13 when they received the ball at their own seven yard line after a punt bounced off the leg of Tarheel defensive back and punt return blocker Mike Hughes. Ryan Switzer alertly dove on the ball to keep the possession for the Tarheels. What happened next may have been a record for a Larry Fedora coached Tarheel team. The Tarheels went 93 yards in 13 plays and consumed 5:58 off the clock to give the Tarheels a 23-13 lead. If the Tarheels have a drive that lasts more than two minutes, it is considered a long drive. The Tarheels used short passes from Marquise Williams and a running game that largely featured Williams and Elijah Hood to cover this much ground.
Williams finished with 297 yards of total offense (226 yards passing, 71 rushing) and Hood finished with his fourth 100 yard rushing game on the season, totaling 101 yards and two touchdowns. It was a win for the Tarheels in what I considered a "trap" game and it doesn't matter if they won ugly or won sloppy, the Tarheels still won.
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