Carolina-Wake Forest Football Game Notes

November 7, 2001 | Football

By: UNC Athletic Communications

Nov. 7, 2001

UNC-Wake Forest Game Notes (PDF Format)
Download Free Acrobat Reader

WAKE FOREST
at
NORTH CAROLINA

Date: Saturday, Nov. 10, 2001
Time: 12:10 p.m.
Site: Kenan Memorial Stadium (60,000, grass)
Series Record: Carolina leads, 65-30-2
Last Meeting: Carolina 35, Wake Forest 14 on September 9, 2000, in Winston-Salem
Rankings: Neither team is ranked
TV: JP Sports (Steve Martin, play-by-play, Rick Walker, analysts, Mike Hogewood, sideline)
Radio: Tar Heel Sports Radio Network, a division of Learfield Communications. Woody Durham (play-by-play), Mick Mixon (color) and Stephen Gates (sideline) provide the call. A live broadcast also is available on the University of North Carolina's official athletic website, TarHeelBlue.com
Websites: North Carolina (TarHeelBlue.com), Wake Forest (wakeforestsports.com)
Injuries: SS DeFonte Coleman (left shoulder), DT Will Chapman (left knee) and WR Isaiah Robinson (right knee) are out for the season

Carolina Returns To Kenan Stadium Seeking Sixth Win Overall
For the first time in nearly a month, Carolina returns to Kenan Stadium where it will face Wake Forest on Saturday, Nov. 10 at Noon on JP Sports. The Tar Heels, who last played at home on Oct. 13 vs. Virginia, will close out the 2001 season with three consecutive home games vs. Wake Forest, Duke (Nov. 17) and SMU (Dec. 1). It is homecoming in Chapel Hill and Carolina (5-4, 4-2 ACC), which needs to win two of its remaining three contests to become eligible for a bowl game, has not lost a home game this season.

Carolina is coming off a 28-21 loss at Georgia Tech last Thursday (Nov. 1) that ended its five-game winning streak. It was the Tar Heels first loss since falling at Texas on Sept. 8. Carolina will look to get back to its winning ways against a Wake Forest squad that is coming off a 34-30 victory at Virginia. Wake Forest (4-4, 2-4) is second in the ACC and 11th in the nation in rushing, averaging 231.8 yards per game.

North Carolina, Wake Forest Series Notes

North Carolina and Wake Forest will meet for the 98th time on Saturday, continuing the ACC's second-longest rivalry. Only North Carolina and Virginia (106 times) have met on more occasions that the Tar Heels and Deacons. Carolina leads the series with Wake Forest, 65-30-2 and has won 10 of the last 11 contests.

In the last meeting at Kenan Stadium, Wake Forest defeated Carolina, 19-3. Carolina has not lost two consecutive times at home to Wake Forest since the 1987 and 1989 seasons.

Carolina has more wins against Wake Forest (65), than it does against any other ACC opponent. UNC has 60 wins over NC State.

Carolina has scored at least 30 points in 10 of the last 11 meetings. The Tar Heels won all 10 games, falling only in 1999 when UNC had just three points.

UNC wide receivers coach Gunter Brewer was a two-year letterwinner at Wake Forest at wide receiver. Brewer then served two years on the Deacons coaching staff under head coaches Al Groh and Bill Dooley.

Last Time: Carolina 35, Wake Forest 14
Bosley Allen returned a punt 78 yards for a touchdown and caught a 60-yard scoring strike from Ronald Curry to lead the Tar Heels to a 35-14 win over the Demon Deacons. Allen compiled 264 all-purpose yards, including 153 on seven punt returns and caught two passes for 111 yards. The Bradenton, Fla., native broke open a six-point game in the fourth quarter when he caught a punt at the UNC 22-yard line and sprinted down the right sideline. Allen eluded a number of tacklers and scored an electrifying run. Willie Parker rushed for a two-point conversion to give UNC a 28-14 lead.

Curry was 6 of 12 for 143 yards and tossed two touchdown passes, including a 46-yard TD pass to Sam Aiken.

Julius Peppers scooped up a fumble that was forced by linebacker Sedrick Hodge and scored on a 12-yard fumble return that gave Carolina the lead for good. The Tar Heel defense made 16 negative-yardage stops during the game and sacked Wake Forest quarterback C.J. Leak 10 times.

Kenan Stadium Now In Its 75th Season
Carolina plays six home games this season at Kenan Stadium. The 60,000-seat stadium, which opened in 1927, is in its 75th season as the home of the Tar Heels. Carolina's all-time record at Kenan Stadium is 238-141-16. From 1990-1997, Kenan Stadium was one of the top home field advantages in the ACC as the Tar Heels compiled a 40-9-1 record at Kenan. Carolina is 3-0 at Kenan Stadium for the first time since winning its first four at home in 1997. The last time Carolina was undefeated at home was 1996 when UNC won all five home games.

Against In-State Opponents
Carolina has won 36 of 40 games against in-state rivals Wake Forest, Duke, NC State and ECU. The Tar Heels have an 11-game winning streak over the Blue Devils, have won 10 of the last 11 matchups against the Deacons, have won eight of nine against the Wolfpack and have won seven of nine against East Carolina.

Carolina is 226-94-17 all-time against in-state opponents.

Allen Against Wake Forest
Junior wide receiver Bosley Allen, who had nine catches for 114 yards at Georgia Tech last Thursday, had one of the best performances of his career last season at Wake Forest. Allen had 264 all-purpose yards against the Deacons, including a 78-yard punt return for a touchdown and a 60-yard TD catch in the fourth quarter. He finished the game with two catches for 111 yards and seven punt returns for 153 yards. As a freshman in 1998, Allen caught a 70-yard pass against Wake Forest to set up a field goal in a 38-31 UNC victory. In two games against Wake Forest, he has combined for three catches for 171 yards and nine punt returns for 154 yards.

Peppers Named Lombardi Semifinalist
Defensive end Julius Peppers has been named one of 12 semifinalists for the 2001 Rotary Lombardi Award. The award is given annually to the nation's best lineman. Peppers, also a candidate for the Bronko Nagurski Award (best defensive player) and the Heisman Trophy (best overall player), has 45 tackles this season, including 8.5 sacks and 17 tackles for losses. He is just three sacks shy of the Carolina record of 32.5 sacks established by former first-round NFL draft pick Greg Ellis (1994-97). Ellis, who was a finalist for the 1997 Lombardi Award, is now a starting defensive end for the Dallas Cowboys. Peppers is six sacks shy of the ACC record of 35.5 set by Virginia's Chris Slade from 1989-92. The other semifinalists are Alex Brown, Florida, Wendell Bryant, Wisconsin, Rocky Calmus, Oklahoma, Kalimba Edwards, South Carolina, Dwight Freeney, Syracuse, Toniu Fonoti, Nebraska, Joaquin Gonzalez, Miami, John Henderson, Tennessee, Bryant McKinnie, Miami, Robert Thomas, UCLA, Larry Triplett, Washington.

Durant Shines In First Career Start
Redshirt freshman quarterback Darian Durant made his first career start at Georgia Tech (Nov. 1) in place of Ronald Curry, who injured his left hamstring in UNC's win at Clemson. It is the first time a freshman has started at QB for the Tar Heels since Luke Huard made four starts in 1999. Against the Yellow Jackets, Durant was 22 of 37 for 286 yards and tossed three touchdowns in Carolina's 28-21 loss. He connected on a 30-yard TD pass to Kory Bailey in the second quarter, hit Sam Aiken on a 15-yard scoring strike and connected with Aiken in the fourth quarter on a 21-yard pass to pull the Tar Heels within seven points. He now owns the UNC freshman single-season record for passing yards, touchdowns and completions.

To access the UNC-Wake Forest game notes in their entirety, please download them in the convenient PDF Format.
Download Free Acrobat Reader

To keep up with everything going on in Carolina athletics - including last-minute ticket availability, special ticket offers, merchandise specials, and late breaking news - subscribe to the Tar Heel News Flash email newsletter. To subscribe all you have to do is send a blank email to uncathletics-join@listserv.unc.edu.