University of North Carolina Athletics
Photo by: Rebecca Lawson
Lucas: Rapid Reactions
November 23, 2019 | Football, Featured Writers, Adam Lucas
Quick takeaways from the senior day game against Mercer.
By Adam Lucas
1. Carolina got what it needed in Saturday's 56-7 win over Mercer. Everyone in blue leaves feeling good, a win, and no injuries. Next week's game in Raleigh will be about as important a game as a 5-6 team can have. "This was a home run for us," Mack Brown told Jones Angell on the Tar Heel Sports Network after the game. "Everything we wanted coming into this one, we got."
2. One of the easiest ways to quantify the season Sam Howell has had is by looking at the quarterbacks ahead of him on the single season passing touchdowns list. Howell now has the Carolina single season record with 32 (passing Mitch Trubisky). Those ahead of him on the ACC list include Deshaun Watson, Jameis Winston, Philip Rivers, Tajh Boyd, Chris Weinke and Danny Kanell. That's incredible company for a freshman who still has one regular season game to play. Howell also set the FBS single season record for touchdown passes by a true freshman.
"Sam has been the same every week," Brown said. "He's been ready to play every week. You would think maybe the week before NC State week a freshman might not have the same focus. He had great focus."
3. Coming into the game, the Tar Heels had four rushing touchdowns for the season. They posted five in the game, including the first rushing score of the year for Michael Carter (who then added two more). Carter was the high individual with nine carries for 159 yards. Carolina dominated the ground game, rolling up 372 rushing yards (9.8 per carry) compared to 60 for Mercer.
4. Good to see the UNC defense force a couple of turnovers after some barren weeks in that category. The Tar Heels recovered an early fumble and also saw Storm Duck make an acrobatic interception. Both turnovers turned into Carolina touchdowns.
5. More welcome news: after some struggles in the red zone, Carolina was 4-4 in that department with four touchdowns.
6. Huge credit to the fans who showed up in a steady rain on a cold day (much colder than the alleged 50-degree temperatures. Even more credit to those who stayed the entire time even as fog rolled in throughout the second half. Fans who stayed the entire game were invited on the field afterward to celebrate with the players.
"There's a really cool moment going on in the stadium with all the fans who stayed going on the field with our players," Brown said. "We really appreciate them staying."
7. Quite a day for Josh Henderson in relief, as he accumulated 98 yards on 13 carries solely in the second half. Henderson is a freshman from New Jersey.
8. A couple nice moments you might have missed if you weren't in the stadium. When Howell set the Tar Heel single season touchdown record, the feat was announced on the Kenan video boards as his teammates crowded around him to celebrate. The stoic Howell was predictably the least excited player in the group.
9. A few minutes later, when Torin Dorn was announced as the game's Kenan Legend, he was able to get a big hug from his son, safety Myles Dorn. Even his former coach, Mack Brown, came over to give the elder Dorn a hug. Such are the perks of a 28-0 lead in the second quarter.
10. The younger Dorn was one of the seniors who played their last game at Kenan Stadium on Saturday. Brown was effusive in his praise for the senior class. "This senior class lost their coach and accepted the staff and me immediately," he said. "These guys have tried really hard to do what we ask, and they've done things right. This is a real emotional night for them and not only did they play well, but everyone on the team understood the importance of senior day and I was really proud of that."
1. Carolina got what it needed in Saturday's 56-7 win over Mercer. Everyone in blue leaves feeling good, a win, and no injuries. Next week's game in Raleigh will be about as important a game as a 5-6 team can have. "This was a home run for us," Mack Brown told Jones Angell on the Tar Heel Sports Network after the game. "Everything we wanted coming into this one, we got."
2. One of the easiest ways to quantify the season Sam Howell has had is by looking at the quarterbacks ahead of him on the single season passing touchdowns list. Howell now has the Carolina single season record with 32 (passing Mitch Trubisky). Those ahead of him on the ACC list include Deshaun Watson, Jameis Winston, Philip Rivers, Tajh Boyd, Chris Weinke and Danny Kanell. That's incredible company for a freshman who still has one regular season game to play. Howell also set the FBS single season record for touchdown passes by a true freshman.
"Sam has been the same every week," Brown said. "He's been ready to play every week. You would think maybe the week before NC State week a freshman might not have the same focus. He had great focus."
3. Coming into the game, the Tar Heels had four rushing touchdowns for the season. They posted five in the game, including the first rushing score of the year for Michael Carter (who then added two more). Carter was the high individual with nine carries for 159 yards. Carolina dominated the ground game, rolling up 372 rushing yards (9.8 per carry) compared to 60 for Mercer.
4. Good to see the UNC defense force a couple of turnovers after some barren weeks in that category. The Tar Heels recovered an early fumble and also saw Storm Duck make an acrobatic interception. Both turnovers turned into Carolina touchdowns.
5. More welcome news: after some struggles in the red zone, Carolina was 4-4 in that department with four touchdowns.
6. Huge credit to the fans who showed up in a steady rain on a cold day (much colder than the alleged 50-degree temperatures. Even more credit to those who stayed the entire time even as fog rolled in throughout the second half. Fans who stayed the entire game were invited on the field afterward to celebrate with the players.
"There's a really cool moment going on in the stadium with all the fans who stayed going on the field with our players," Brown said. "We really appreciate them staying."
7. Quite a day for Josh Henderson in relief, as he accumulated 98 yards on 13 carries solely in the second half. Henderson is a freshman from New Jersey.
8. A couple nice moments you might have missed if you weren't in the stadium. When Howell set the Tar Heel single season touchdown record, the feat was announced on the Kenan video boards as his teammates crowded around him to celebrate. The stoic Howell was predictably the least excited player in the group.
9. A few minutes later, when Torin Dorn was announced as the game's Kenan Legend, he was able to get a big hug from his son, safety Myles Dorn. Even his former coach, Mack Brown, came over to give the elder Dorn a hug. Such are the perks of a 28-0 lead in the second quarter.
10. The younger Dorn was one of the seniors who played their last game at Kenan Stadium on Saturday. Brown was effusive in his praise for the senior class. "This senior class lost their coach and accepted the staff and me immediately," he said. "These guys have tried really hard to do what we ask, and they've done things right. This is a real emotional night for them and not only did they play well, but everyone on the team understood the importance of senior day and I was really proud of that."
Players Mentioned
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