University of North Carolina Athletics
Photo by: Jeffrey A. Camarati
Lucas: Rapid Reactions
October 13, 2018 | Football
Quick takeaways from a tough home loss to Virginia Tech.
By Adam Lucas
1. For about 58 minutes, that was one of the most fun nights in Kenan Stadium in a long time. Then, for about two minutes, that was about as tough a loss as Carolina has had in Kenan Stadium in a long time.
2. It doesn't take a lot of analysis to figure out what happened. The Tar Heels largely controlled the game…other than after a pair of ill-timed fumbles. The first came on the very first play of the game and led to a Virginia Tech touchdown. The second came with Carolina on the very doorstep of victory, only to cough up the ball and watch the Hokies march the length of the field for the winning score.
3. It was a little surprising that Carolina was ever in position to have a 19-14 lead with two minutes left to play. The Tar Heels missed two field goals, couldn't connect on a pair of touchdown passes that were essentially wide open, and couldn't convert a fourth-and-1 in the first half. But that speaks to the resiliency they played with for most of the evening, coming back from setback after setback to get into position for the would-be upset.
4. After all the talk about the quarterback situation, true freshman Cade Fortin did a solid job in his first half of action, becoming Carolina's fourth different starting quarterback in the past 17 games. "Cade practiced really well the last two weeks and we thought he deserved the opportunity," Larry Fedora told Jones Angell on the Tar Heel Sports Network after the game. "I thought he did a good job while he was in there. There were a couple throws he'd like to have back and also a couple of dropped balls that should've been touchdowns. I can't take anything away from how he played while he was in there."
5. Unfortunately, Fortin was in there for only one half. The freshman was injured on Carolina's final offensive play of the first half and did not return. That turned the game over to Nathan Elliott, who to his credit directed the Tar Heels within one fumble of what could've been a season-turning win (you can scoff now, but with a win, the Tar Heels would've been sitting at 2-1 in the Coastal and in very good position considering other outcomes around the league today). Elliott completed 11 of 15 passes for 147 yards.
6. Great stat from Tar Heel Sports Network statistician Jody Zeugner: Virginia Tech took its first possession, which came after a UNC fumble, and went 50 yards for a touchdown. The Hokies took their final possession, which came after a UNC fumble, on a drive that consumed 101 yards of offense (due to penalties) for a touchdown. Between those two drives, Tech had ten possessions which created just 224 yards of offense, with seven ending in punts and three in turnovers. But those two book-ending drives eventually decided the game.
7. Michael Carter had a career-high 165 yards on a night he will likely not remember fondly due to that fumble. Carter ran hard against a physical Hokie defense and averaged over nine yards per carry.Â
8. In addition to the turnovers, another UNC offensive problem came with sputtering red zone production. Carolina made seven trips into the red zone and got just one touchdown out of those trips. "We got behind the chains," Fedora said. "There were too many times we had mistakes. We had a holding call, we jumped off sides early, and we couldn't convert. When you score one touchdown in seven red zone attempts, you're going to have a hard time winning."Â
9. One of the biggest of those red zone plays came after Fortin hit Carl Tucker for a big 43-yard strike. The Tar Heels appeared to be prepared to snap the ball quickly and catch Virginia Tech on their heels, but a sudden Hokie injury--about which the Kenan crowd was very skeptical--created a stoppage. The Tar Heels then committed a false start, and three snaps later Fortin was injured before Carolina had to settle for a field goal.
10. Credit to the Carolina defense for keeping the team in position to win the game. The continued personnel shuffling continued when Malik Carney, who was supposed to serve out his suspension, received a waiver after the Tar Heels had other injuries. The defensive lineman had seven tackles and helped spearhead the solid defensive effort.
11. You'll never convince me that Carolina would've been in position to win that game if it had been a noon kickoff. The 7 p.m. start created a very lively and energetic Kenan Stadium crowd. A highlight came at the end of the third quarter, when the students lit up their cell phones for a rendition of Hell's Bells that prompted the entire team to sprint to the student section.Â
1. For about 58 minutes, that was one of the most fun nights in Kenan Stadium in a long time. Then, for about two minutes, that was about as tough a loss as Carolina has had in Kenan Stadium in a long time.
2. It doesn't take a lot of analysis to figure out what happened. The Tar Heels largely controlled the game…other than after a pair of ill-timed fumbles. The first came on the very first play of the game and led to a Virginia Tech touchdown. The second came with Carolina on the very doorstep of victory, only to cough up the ball and watch the Hokies march the length of the field for the winning score.
3. It was a little surprising that Carolina was ever in position to have a 19-14 lead with two minutes left to play. The Tar Heels missed two field goals, couldn't connect on a pair of touchdown passes that were essentially wide open, and couldn't convert a fourth-and-1 in the first half. But that speaks to the resiliency they played with for most of the evening, coming back from setback after setback to get into position for the would-be upset.
4. After all the talk about the quarterback situation, true freshman Cade Fortin did a solid job in his first half of action, becoming Carolina's fourth different starting quarterback in the past 17 games. "Cade practiced really well the last two weeks and we thought he deserved the opportunity," Larry Fedora told Jones Angell on the Tar Heel Sports Network after the game. "I thought he did a good job while he was in there. There were a couple throws he'd like to have back and also a couple of dropped balls that should've been touchdowns. I can't take anything away from how he played while he was in there."
5. Unfortunately, Fortin was in there for only one half. The freshman was injured on Carolina's final offensive play of the first half and did not return. That turned the game over to Nathan Elliott, who to his credit directed the Tar Heels within one fumble of what could've been a season-turning win (you can scoff now, but with a win, the Tar Heels would've been sitting at 2-1 in the Coastal and in very good position considering other outcomes around the league today). Elliott completed 11 of 15 passes for 147 yards.
6. Great stat from Tar Heel Sports Network statistician Jody Zeugner: Virginia Tech took its first possession, which came after a UNC fumble, and went 50 yards for a touchdown. The Hokies took their final possession, which came after a UNC fumble, on a drive that consumed 101 yards of offense (due to penalties) for a touchdown. Between those two drives, Tech had ten possessions which created just 224 yards of offense, with seven ending in punts and three in turnovers. But those two book-ending drives eventually decided the game.
7. Michael Carter had a career-high 165 yards on a night he will likely not remember fondly due to that fumble. Carter ran hard against a physical Hokie defense and averaged over nine yards per carry.Â
8. In addition to the turnovers, another UNC offensive problem came with sputtering red zone production. Carolina made seven trips into the red zone and got just one touchdown out of those trips. "We got behind the chains," Fedora said. "There were too many times we had mistakes. We had a holding call, we jumped off sides early, and we couldn't convert. When you score one touchdown in seven red zone attempts, you're going to have a hard time winning."Â
9. One of the biggest of those red zone plays came after Fortin hit Carl Tucker for a big 43-yard strike. The Tar Heels appeared to be prepared to snap the ball quickly and catch Virginia Tech on their heels, but a sudden Hokie injury--about which the Kenan crowd was very skeptical--created a stoppage. The Tar Heels then committed a false start, and three snaps later Fortin was injured before Carolina had to settle for a field goal.
10. Credit to the Carolina defense for keeping the team in position to win the game. The continued personnel shuffling continued when Malik Carney, who was supposed to serve out his suspension, received a waiver after the Tar Heels had other injuries. The defensive lineman had seven tackles and helped spearhead the solid defensive effort.
11. You'll never convince me that Carolina would've been in position to win that game if it had been a noon kickoff. The 7 p.m. start created a very lively and energetic Kenan Stadium crowd. A highlight came at the end of the third quarter, when the students lit up their cell phones for a rendition of Hell's Bells that prompted the entire team to sprint to the student section.Â
Players Mentioned
Defensive End
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Tailback
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Quarterback
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Tight End
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