Lucas: Rapid Reactions

Victory Bell
University of North Carolina Football v Duke
Wallace Wade Stadium
Durham, NC
Saturday, November 7, 2020

Photo by: Grant Halverson

November 7, 2020 | Football, Featured Writers, Adam Lucas

Quick takeaways from Carolina's battle for the Victory Bell.

By: Adam Lucas

By Adam Lucas

1. Continuing the trend started against NC State, Carolina was dominant against an in-state rival, outscoring Duke, 56-24. The chance to complete the in-state trifecta comes next week at Kenan Stadium at noon against Wake Forest. Don't forget that in-state dominance was a big part of the first Mack Brown era in Chapel Hill. "It's such an important game for our University and our fan base," Brown told Jones Angell on the Tar Heel Sports Network after the game. "I'm so proud that the players understood that. They dominated the game."

2. Carolina's first half offensive explosion essentially put the game out of reach in the first 30 minutes. The Tar Heels scored 42 points in the half, marking their first time scoring 40 points in a half against an Atlantic Coast Conference opponent since twenty years ago in a 52-point barrage against the same Blue Devils. For the game, the Tar Heels had a whopping 26 plays of at least ten yards.

3. Could it be time for Javonte Williams to start getting some attention for national awards? The Wallace, N.C., native piled on four more touchdowns against Duke. That gives him 17 for the season, tying him with Elijah Hood for fifth on Carolina's all-time single-season touchdown list. The record is Don McCauley's 21 touchdowns in 1970, a mark that has stood for half a century but appears in peril with four regular season games remaining.

4. Williams averaged an incredible 12.6 yards per carry on his 12 attempts, totaling 151 rushing yards. Just to show he's not one-dimensional--and to show off an area of his game he worked on this summer, pass receiving--he also caught four passes for 24 yards. Combine that attack with Michael Carter's 17 attempts for 85 yards and three catches for 46 yards and you have a very potent Tar Heel offensive attack out of the backfield.

5. There are definitely some areas to improve upon defensively from the win (more on that below), but one of the best signs was Carolina having the chance to get some snaps for younger players. That included Des Evans recording his first career sack in the second quarter, Myles Murphy recording a tackle for loss and Chris Collins recording a pair of sacks. Those are players who Jay Bateman will need to play a role in the final month of the season--both in making plays on the field, and in allowing the regulars to get more rest to be fresh for the end of the game.

"I thought they played really well," Brown said of his young defenders. "We felt like one of our problems had been our guys had gotten tired right before the half. We tried to play the younger guys earlier. This really helped us to be able to put guys in this game in the first half and a lot of the fourth quarter in a game that matters. They really gain a lot of confidence from those reps."

6. Carolina's secondary continues to be patchwork. Already without Myles Wolfolk, Storm Duck and Kyler McMichael, the Tar Heels were also missing Don Chapman--one of the secondary's most consistent performers--on Saturday. But against a Duke offense that has struggled, the Tar Heels were stout. The afternoon included the first career interception for sophomore defensive back Dae Dae Hollins (or, as he was deemed by Carolina Insider podcast listener Daniel Potter, "Not To" Dae Dae Hollins).

7. Another positive sign for the secondary: Patrice Rene had perhaps his best game of the 2020 season. The cornerback had five tackles, two for loss, showed firm tackling skills, and broke up a pass.

8. Give some credit to Carolina's offensive line. One of the biggest battles of the game was supposed to be Duke's excellent defensive ends, who had a combined 15 sacks this season, against the Tar Heel blockers. But even playing largely without Jordan Tucker, the line allowed just one sack. Sam Howell was mostly unbothered on the way to an 18-for-27 performance, throwing for 235 yards and three touchdowns. "Our offensive line handled that really well today," Brown said. Speaking of Howell, West Virginia's Jarrett Doege did not throw a scoring pass against Texas today, so Howell's 20 straight games with a touchdown pass is now the longest streak in the country.

9. When Ben Kiernan trotted out on the field late in the third quarter, you could be excused for wondering who he was. The play stopped a streak of 21 straight UNC drives without a punt. Just to make sure he was still contributing, Kiernan helped draw an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on Duke during his first game action since the NC State contest.

10. On November 18, 1989, Steve Spurrier and Duke steamrolled a young Carolina team, 41-0, at Kenan Stadium. The Blue Devils then posed for a photograph under the Kenan scoreboard. Since that day, Mack Brown-coached Tar Heel teams have beaten Duke ten straight times, outscoring their Victory Bell rivals 362-217. Brown was aggressive throughout the game on Saturday, and Carolina rewarded him by going 4-for-4 on fourth down after only converting two fourth downs coming into the game.

11. In a closer game, Carolina's penalties would have been a problem. The Tar Heels committed five different 15-yard infractions on Saturday, several of which led directly to Duke scores (although one was a dubious hands to the face call that prolonged a Devil drive). The quantity of penalties wasn't necessarily a problem--the Tar Heels were flagged just six times--but those six calls went for 80 yards.

12. The young players on defense will get much of the attention, because there is clearly playing time available there. But wide receiver Emery Simmons has played very well since Beau Corrales went down with an injury. Corrales grabbed two catches for 67 yards against Duke, including one that went for 51 yards. The Tar Heels also made sure Dazz Newsome was involved in the passing game, as he had six receptions.

13. Carolina can be as good as you saw on Saturday. Next week at Kenan, they need to prove they can do it consistently. A Wake Forest team coming off a bye week will be a difficult test. That's an important game for the storyline of the 2020 season.