Lucas: Duke Rapid Reactions

By Adam Lucas

1. Very solid win--maybe the most solid of the season in all phases of the game considering the opponent--in a 38-7 win over Duke. The Blue Devils are down from their peak under David Cutcliffe, but Carolina was firmly in control of that game throughout.

2. Strong praise from Mack Brown for his team's defensive effort. "Defensively, that's the best we've played since we've been here," he told Jones Angell on the Tar Heel Sports Network after the game. "Stopping the fourth and two was huge, and on another fourth and three they had motion and had to punt. Our guys really kept them away from the goal line." Duke managed just 314 yards and was just 2-for-15 on third down. Carolina got five sacks from five different players, including one from emerging star Myles Murphy, who had 2.5 tackles for loss.

3. In fact, the Tar Heel defense scored as many points as the Duke offense. Trey Morrison scooped up a fumble and took it to the end zone on a play on which most of the players on the field assumed an incomplete pass and stopped. The play gave Carolina an early 14-0 lead in the second quarter.

4. Even as the focus of the opposing gameplan, Josh Downs continues to produce. The wide receiver caught eight passes for 168 yards, including a sensational 63-yard catch and run to close out the scoring. "He competes," Brown said. "He's confident. I'm really proud of him today." Brown also identified the way Downs didn't let an early drop impact him, and still came back to post another huge day.

5. You hear a lot about timeouts when they aren't called. Very rarely do you see a more effective first half timeout utilized than the one Mack Brown called just 4:41 into the game. With Duke running a quick tempo and seeming to have the Tar Heels confused, Carolina used a stoppage to regroup. It worked. Myles Murphy got a sack, Ray Vohasek stopped a wide receiver screen, and Carolina forced a punt. That was a very timely recognition that the Tar Heels were staggered, and after the break they came right back and stuffed them.

6. A great pump fake by Sam Howell sold the wheel route by Ty Chandler that opened Carolina's scoring. The defense bit on the fake, Chandler kept running, and the Tar Heels had an early lead.

7. You could tell we're at an important point in the season by the intensity on the UNC sideline. Mack Brown sprinted 30 yards down the sideline to protest a missed pass interference flag, and even the always-energetic Brian Hess—featuring a fire extinguisher he used to hose down Morrison and Ty Chandler after big scoring plays—seemed to have an extra bounce.

8. That was the very rare game in which Carolina used three centers. As part of a pre-planned rotation, Cayden Baker got some early snaps at center as the Tar Heels continue to try and solidify the interior of the line. Quiron Johnson got most of the work at center.

9. Offensive line and the secondary are the two areas where Carolina continues to rotate multiple bodies to try and find a core group that will get most of the snaps. In the secondary, it was Cam'Ron Kelly's day to produce, as he led the team in tackles (7) and had a very nice third quarter interception. Kelly also came up and stuffed the Duke running game on a subsequent third and three that forced Duke to go for it on fourth down, and the Tar Heel defense held.

"I thought Cam Kelly played really well," Brown said on the THSN. "He showed up numerous times for hard tackles and tackles for loss, and he had the nice interception. Maybe we're getting settled in our secondary."

10. Carolina has now won three in a row against Duke. And while that certainly wasn't the top goal for this season, it's also worth remembering that prior to 2019, the Victory Bell hadn't been in Chapel Hill since 2015. Controlling the in-state games is part of building a program, and it's a part Mack Brown has traditionally done very well. Brown has now won 11 in a row against Duke. "The Victory Bell is very important to our student body, fans, administrators, and to us," Brown said on the THSN. "When someone decided in 1948 it was important, it's been important. And Duke had it for three years before we got here."

11. It's easy to have a great student section when you get evening kickoffs, as Carolina did for the first two home games. But the students again brought it on Saturday for a noon kick. The Tar Heels have a chance to change the tenor of their season over this three-game homestand, and they'll need the same energy again next week. Kickoff against Florida State will be at either 3 or 3:30.

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University of North Carolina Athletics

Players Mentioned

Cayden Baker

Ty Chandler

Josh Downs

Sam Howell

Quiron Johnson

Cam'Ron Kelly

Trey Morrison

Myles Murphy

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