University of North Carolina Athletics
Lucas: Rapid Reactions
November 7, 2015 | Football
By Adam Lucas
1. It's hard to know where to start with the video game numbers posted by Carolina in a 66-31 win over Duke, the rare 66-31 game that wasn't as close as the score indicated. The 66 points were the most the Tar Heels have ever scored against an ACC opponent. The 704 total yards were the third-most in school history (the record is 721 against Old Dominion in 2013).
"I knew we had it in us, but I didn't know when it was coming," Larry Fedora told Jones Angell on the Tar Heel Sports Network. "We have a lot of potential. We didn't play our best game today. Everybody in our locker room understands that. We have to get some things corrected and hopefully we'll be better next week."
2. After throwing for 404 yards in the first half, Marquise Williams very easily could have broken the ACC record of 566 yards. Because Williams mostly shut it down in the second half and didn't play in the fourth quarter, the record books aren't going to fully depict just how dominant he was in this game. Williams had set the school record for passing yards (breaking a mark held by T.J. Yates) just 150 seconds into the second half.
3. Not sure a play has ever set the tone for a Carolina game the way this one did the first time the Tar Heels touched the ball:
4. One of the many areas Williams did very well on Saturday: he looked off Duke's defenders with his eyes and then threw the ball to a different area of the field. There have been times this season when the senior QB has locked in on one receiver; he didn't do that against the Blue Devils.
"The thing I was so happy about is he took care of the football," Fedora said. "Everything he threw was on the money and he never put us in a bad situation."
5. It's now officially time to start computing some ACC Coastal Division scenarios. If Carolina beats Miami next week (the game time could be announced later tonight) and Duke beats Pitt, the Tar Heels will clinch the Coastal with two games remaining, which would be a nice cushion considering those contests are at Virginia Tech in Frank Beamer's final home game, and at always unpredictable NC State. Holding the head to head tiebreaker against Duke and Pitt will be a huge advantage.
Of course, if Carolina simply wins two more games, they win the Coastal no matter what. That's the best possible scenario--the Tar Heels control their own destiny and don't have to depend on anyone else for help.
6. And now the Tar Heels will also start to get some national attention. You can expect them to make a significant leap in this week's polls, and when the College Football Playoff rankings are released on Tuesday, they're very likely going to make an appearance there, possibly even in a relatively lofty spot. That will change the final three weeks of the season, because Larry Fedora's club has mostly gone unrecognized nationally. They're going to hear a lot about how good they are in the next few days. Fedora has done a terrific job motivating them this year; now the challenge becomes persuading them they haven't actually achieved anything yet.
"I hope they do what they've been doing all year," Fedora said. "We haven't listened to anybody else yet this year. We try to approach each day exactly the same. I expect our guys to come out tomorrow with the same attitude they've had every single week."
7. Great turnout from the Kenan Stadium crowd and especially the student section. In a season where attendance was much-discussed early in the year, the Tar Heel fans came out in large numbers on a day that was supposed to be rainy and nasty all afternoon. Mack Hollins, who had a huge day with five catches for 165 yards, said the atmosphere was so intense before the kickoff that Tar Heel players were commenting on it on the sideline. Carolina fans will have one more chance to create that environment at Kenan this season--tickets for next week's game against Miami are available.
8. Nice moment in the first quarter. After doing the first seven of nearly 400 push-ups after a UNC score, cheerleader Vinny Corwin proposed to fellow cheerleader Carol Desalva on the video board. She said yes, then caught a touchdown pass from Marquise Williams. Only the latter part of that statement is an exaggeration.
