University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina
Georgia Tech (Homecoming)
Carolina Falls Just Short in Upset Bid, Losing 7-0 to No. 19 Georgia Tech
November 11, 2006 | Football
Nov. 11, 2006
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CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (AP) - Tashard Choice ran for 119 yards and a touchdown to help No. 19 Georgia Tech beat North Carolina 7-0 on Saturday, clinching a spot in the Atlantic Coast Conference championship game.
Choice had 32 carries and also had 32 yards receiving on a sluggish offensive day for the Yellow Jackets (8-2, 6-1 ACC), who have won three straight to wrap up the Coastal Division title. Georgia Tech will face the Atlantic Division winner in the league's second title game in Jacksonville, Fla., on Dec. 2.
This should have been an easy win for the Yellow Jackets against a program that has already announced coach John Bunting will not return next season. But the Tar Heels (1-9, 0-6) fought the entire way, making Georgia Tech work for just about everything.
Ultimately, Choice's 3-yard touchdown run early in the second quarter to cap a 20-play, 83-yard drive - which spanned 10 1/2 minutes - proved to be enough. The drive was the longest this season in the ACC in terms of number of plays and time.
The Yellow Jackets finished with 221 yards - the fewest allowed by North Carolina's defense all year - but converted 9 of 19 third-down opportunities to extend drives when they needed to most. That came in spite of a 10-for-24, 78-yard passing performance from Reggie Ball, who connected just three times for 13 yards with big-play wideout Calvin Johnson.
The Tar Heels couldn't take advantage of their defense's solid performance. Joe Dailey, who came in with seven interceptions in seven games, threw a two in the end zone on consecutive drives late in the first half on what proved to be the Tar Heels' best scoring chances.
The Tar Heels had one last chance to tie the game, getting the ball back at their 18 in the final minute. But Dailey's fourth-down deep ball down the sideline for Hakeem Nicks sailed out of bounds, sealing it with 20 seconds left.
"We had a lot of opportunities to win that game," Bunting said. "It was frustrating again to lose it the way we did. The locker room is not a fun place to be after a game like that."
This loss marked the first time North Carolina has been shut out twice in one season since 1989, and came as rumors swirled that the Tar Heels were pursuing former Miami and Cleveland Browns coach Butch Davis as Bunting's successor.
"Until somebody else is sitting in that corner office with their name on that plaque, he's our head coach," senior receiver Jesse Holley said of Bunting. "It's my job and the other seniors to keep our heads on straight and keep the program going in the right direction."
