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UNC |
WAKE |
No. 15 UNC tops Wake Forest to secure ACC title-game spot
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (AP) No. 15 North Carolina didn't squander its first chance to clinch a trip to the Atlantic Coast Conference championship game.
Noah Burnette kicked a 33-yard field goal with 2:12 left and UNC's defense came up with key fourth-quarter stops to beat Wake Forest 36-34 on Saturday night, a win that claimed the league's Coastal Division title.
The Tar Heels (9-1, 6-0) earned it with a road win in a marquee matchup of star quarterbacks Drake Maye of UNC and Sam Hartman of Wake Forest. And while the offenses had the edge all night, the Tar Heels' defense pitched in at critical moments to keep them unbeaten in league play.
As a result, the Tar Heels' locker-room celebration included ACC associate commissioner for football Michael Strickland coming in to present the team with the trophy for winning the Coastal. It even made its way to star receiver Josh Downs at one point as he talked with reporters afterward near the locker-room tunnel.
''They've really accomplished some amazing things and still have some things left,'' UNC coach Mack Brown said. ''I've talked to them for a couple of weeks about not talking about the Coastal (scenarios). I didn't want to back in.
''I didn't want somebody to have to lose. I didn't want them looking at somebody losing. I wanted us to win, and the guys did that.''
The game-turning play came with the Tar Heels facing a one-point deficit and Wake Forest's offense pushing across midfield. But Cam'Ron Kelly jumped in front of Hartman's throw over the middle for an interception to set up the drive for Burnette's go-ahead kick.
Then, the Tar Heels pressured Hartman into a fourth-down incompletion with 64 seconds left - a moment that had Tar Heels players skipping around the sideline in anticipation. The Tar Heels killed the rest of the clock to seal the program's second trip to the ACC title game and first since 2015 - this one coming with Brown in his second tenure with the school.
Maye threw for 448 yards and three touchdowns, each going to Downs who continued his tear of late. Downs finished with 11 grabs for 154 yards, with all three of his scores coming before halftime.
Hartman threw for 320 yards and four touchdowns for Wake Forest (6-4, 2-4). Donavon Greene had two of those scores, including a 60-yarder late in the third quarter for a 34-33 lead.
''I'll tell you guys what I told the team: I'm disappointed with the result, not at all with the effort,'' coach Dave Clawson said. ''Our guys played their hearts out. This one hurts, it stings.''
THE TAKEAWAY
UNC: The offense has led the way all season while the defense has largely struggled for consistency. But that unit came up big in key moments here, which also included a fourth-down stop inside its own 10-yard line earlier in the fourth. As a result, the Tar Heels improved to 6-0 on the road for the first time in program history and earned a date with No. 12 Clemson for the ACC title in Charlotte on Dec. 3.
Wake Forest: The Demon Deacons had pushed to the top 10 of the AP Top 25 before road losses at Syracuse and No. 17 North Carolina State. Those losses had featured protection problems for Hartman by surrendering 12 sacks. The Demon Deacons had committed 11 turnovers in the two games. They avoided most of those issues this time, though Hartman's pick with 4:20 left proved critical as the game's lone turnover.
POLL IMPLICATIONS
UNC seems likely to climb in Sunday's new AP Top 25 poll after reaching 9-1 for the first time since last Coastal Division win in 2015.
KELLY'S PICK
Kelly's pick came when he crossed from the left side of the field to the right to jump in front of Hartman's throw for Greene.
''I was on the opposite of the field, I was just keying off the quarterback's eyes,'' Kelly said.
Clawson said the throw was ''a fraction of a second late.''
UP NEXT
UNC: The Tar Heels return home to host Georgia Tech next Saturday.
Wake Forest: The Demon Deacons host Syracuse in their home finale next Saturday.
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D. Maye
10 QB 448 PaYds, 3 PaTDs, 71 RuYds, RuTD |
|
S. Hartman
10 QB 320 PaYds, 4 PaTDs, INT, 12 RuYds |
Team Stats | ||
---|---|---|
1st Downs | 31 | 23 |
Rushing | 11 | 8 |
Passing | 19 | 12 |
Penalty | 1 | 3 |
3rd Down Conv | 10-16 | 3-12 |
4th Down Conv | 0-2 | 4-6 |
Total Net Yards | 584 | 490 |
Total Plays | 87 | 72 |
Avg Gain | 6.7 | 6.8 |
Net Yards Rushing | 136 | 170 |
Rush Attempts | 38 | 41 |
Avg Rush Yards | 3.6 | 4.1 |
Yards Passing | 448 | 320 |
Comp. - Att. | 31-49 | 18-31 |
Yards Per Pass | 8.2 | 9.6 |
Penalties - Yards | 8-78 | 7-56 |
Touchdowns | 5 | 5 |
Rushing TDs | 2 | 1 |
Passing TDs | 3 | 4 |
Other | 0 | 0 |
Turnovers | 0 | 1 |
Fumbles - Lost | 0-0 | 1-0 |
Int. Thrown | 0 | 1 |
Punts - Avg | 3-41.7 | 3-44.0 |
Return Yards | 23 | 14 |
Punts - Returns | 0-0 | 1-14 |
Kickoffs - Returns | 0-0 | 0-0 |
Int. - Returns | 1-23 | 0-0 |
Safeties | 0 | 0 |
|
Passing | CP/ATT | YDS | TD | INT |
D. Maye
10 QB
|
D. Maye | 31/49 | 448 | 3 | 0 |
Rushing | ATT | YDS | TD | LG |
Receiving | TAR | REC | YDS | TD | LG |
J. Downs
11 WR
|
J. Downs | 13 | 11 | 154 | 3 | 43 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
A. Green
3 WR
|
A. Green | 6 | 4 | 81 | 0 | 45 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
B. Nesbit
18 TE
|
B. Nesbit | 6 | 5 | 63 | 0 | 24 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
J. Copenhaver
81 TE
|
J. Copenhaver | 2 | 2 | 41 | 0 | 22 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
E. Green
21 RB
|
E. Green | 4 | 3 | 30 | 0 | 11 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
J. Jones
5 WR
|
J. Jones | 3 | 1 | 25 | 0 | 25 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
K. Paysour
8 WR
|
K. Paysour | 2 | 1 | 22 | 0 | 22 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
G. Blackwell
2 WR
|
G. Blackwell | 5 | 2 | 20 | 0 | 12 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
K. Morales
88 TE
|
K. Morales | 3 | 2 | 12 | 0 | 8 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
D. Jones
26 RB
|
D. Jones | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Defense | T-A | SACK | INT |
Kicking | FG | LG | XP | PTS |
N. Burnette
98 K
|
N. Burnette | 1/1 | 33 | 3/4 | 6 |
Punting | NO | AVG | IN20 | LG |
B. Kiernan
91 P
|
B. Kiernan | 3 | 41.7 | 1 | 45 |
Kickoff Returns | NO | AVG | LG | TD |
W. Hardy
31 DB
|
W. Hardy | 2 | 25.0 | 36 | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
R. Caldwell
44 LB
|
R. Caldwell | 1 | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
G. Pettaway
23 RB
|
G. Pettaway | 1 | 25.0 | 25 | 0 |
Punt Returns | NO | AVG | LG | TD |
Passing | CP/ATT | YDS | TD | INT |
S. Hartman
10 QB
|
S. Hartman | 18/31 | 320 | 4 | 1 |
Rushing | ATT | YDS | TD | LG |
J. Ellison
6 RB
|
J. Ellison | 16 | 81 | 0 | 20 | ||||||||||||||||||||
C. Turner
0 RB
|
C. Turner | 12 | 41 | 1 | 8 | ||||||||||||||||||||
Q. Cooley
28 RB
|
Q. Cooley | 6 | 36 | 0 | 16 | ||||||||||||||||||||
S. Hartman
10 QB
|
S. Hartman | 7 | 12 | 0 | 14 |
Receiving | TAR | REC | YDS | TD | LG |
T. Morin
2 WR
|
T. Morin | 6 | 5 | 106 | 1 | 48 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
D. Greene
11 WR
|
D. Greene | 6 | 4 | 85 | 2 | 60 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
A. Perry
9 WR
|
A. Perry | 9 | 5 | 63 | 1 | 32 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
K. Williams
13 WR
|
K. Williams | 3 | 2 | 44 | 0 | 40 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
J. Banks
80 WR
|
J. Banks | 3 | 2 | 22 | 0 | 15 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
B. Whiteheart
85 TE
|
B. Whiteheart | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
J. Ellison
6 RB
|
J. Ellison | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Defense | T-A | SACK | INT |
Kicking | FG | LG | XP | PTS |
M. Dennis
99 K
|
M. Dennis | 0/0 | 0 | 4/4 | 4 |
Punting | NO | AVG | IN20 | LG |
I. Mora
36 K
|
I. Mora | 3 | 44.0 | 1 | 49 |
Kickoff Returns | NO | AVG | LG | TD |
K. Williams
13 WR
|
K. Williams | 2 | 14.5 | 17 | 0 |
Punt Returns | NO | AVG | LG | TD |
T. Morin 2 WR
|
T. Morin | 1 | 14.0 | 14 | 0 |
1st | POSS | PLAYS | YDS | RESULT | |
12:40 | UNC 9 | 3:23 | 10 | 91 | TD |
8:04 | UNC 31 | 0:51 | 4 | 69 | TD |
3:21 | UNC 36 | 4:58 | 13 | 64 | TD |
2nd | POSS | PLAYS | YDS | RESULT | |
9:13 | UNC 28 | 3:18 | 6 | 1 | Punt |
4:06 | UNC 25 | 1:44 | 5 | 75 | TD |
1:48 | UNC 40 | 0:47 | 5 | 10 | Punt |
3rd | POSS | PLAYS | YDS | RESULT | |
15:00 | UNC 25 | 3:13 | 10 | 48 | Downs |
8:35 | UNC 31 | 3:08 | 10 | 69 | TD |
4:26 | UNC 29 | 5:06 | 11 | 80 | Downs |
4th | POSS | PLAYS | YDS | RESULT | |
8:59 | UNC 8 | 3:12 | 5 | 25 | Punt |
4:20 | WAKE 48 | 2:08 | 5 | 33 | FG |
1:14 | WAKE 23 | 1:14 | 4 | 10 | Game |
1st | POSS | PLAYS | YDS | RESULT | |
15:00 | WAKE 25 | 2:20 | 4 | 20 | Punt |
9:17 | WAKE 25 | 1:13 | 3 | 7 | Punt |
7:13 | WAKE 22 | 3:52 | 11 | 78 | TD |
2nd | POSS | PLAYS | YDS | RESULT | |
13:23 | WAKE 25 | 4:10 | 12 | 71 | TD |
5:55 | UNC 36 | 1:49 | 5 | 51 | TD |
2:22 | WAKE 25 | 0:34 | 3 | -14 | Punt |
1:01 | WAKE 5 | 1:01 | 2 | 9 | Half |
3rd | POSS | PLAYS | YDS | RESULT | |
11:47 | WAKE 27 | 3:12 | 9 | 73 | TD |
5:27 | WAKE 28 | 1:01 | 3 | 72 | TD |
4th | POSS | PLAYS | YDS | RESULT | |
14:20 | WAKE 1 | 5:21 | 11 | 91 | Downs |
5:47 | WAKE 23 | 1:27 | 5 | 36 | INT |
2:12 | WAKE 25 | 0:58 | 4 | -2 | Downs |
- Punt (4 plays, 20 yards, 2:20 poss)
Result | Play |
---|---|
Kickoff | (15:00 - 1st) N.Burnette kicks 63 yards from NC 35 to the WF 2. Fair catch by K.Williams. |
+20 YD | 1 & 10 - WAKE 25 (15:00 - 1st) J.Ellison rushed to WF 45 for 20 yards. Tackled by NC at WF 45. |
No Gain | 1 & 10 - WAKE 45 (14:35 - 1st) S.Hartman steps back to pass. S.Hartman pass incomplete intended for A.Perry. |
+1 YD | 2 & 10 - WAKE 45 (14:32 - 1st) S.Hartman rushed to WF 46 for 1 yards. Tackled by NC at WF 46. |
Penalty | 3 & 9 - WAKE 46 (13:55 - 1st) S.Hartman pass complete to WF 46. Catch made by J.Ellison at WF 46. Gain of yards. Tackled by NC at NC 39. PENALTY on WF-D.Gordon Offensive Holding 10 yards accepted. No Play. |
+14 YD | 3 & 19 - WAKE 36 (13:34 - 1st) S.Hartman scrambles to WF 50 for 14 yards. S.Hartman ran out of bounds. |
Penalty | 4 & 5 - WAKE 50 (13:12 - 1st) PENALTY on WF-WF False Start 5 yards accepted. No Play. |
Punt | 4 & 10 - WAKE 45 (12:56 - 1st) I.Mora punts 46 yards to NC 9 Center-WF. Downed by WF. |
- Touchdown (10 plays, 91 yards, 3:23 poss)
Result | Play |
---|---|
+6 YD | 1 & 10 - UNC 9 (12:40 - 1st) D.Maye scrambles to NC 15 for 6 yards. Tackled by WF at NC 15. |
No Gain | 2 & 4 - UNC 15 (12:13 - 1st) D.Maye steps back to pass. D.Maye pass incomplete intended for E.Green. |
+6 YD | 3 & 4 - UNC 15 (12:07 - 1st) D.Maye pass complete to NC 15. Catch made by B.Nesbit at NC 15. Gain of 6 yards. Tackled by WF at NC 21. |
+25 YD | 1 & 10 - UNC 21 (11:46 - 1st) D.Maye pass complete to NC 21. Catch made by J.Downs at NC 21. Gain of 25 yards. Tackled by WF at NC 46. |
+14 YD | 1 & 10 - UNC 46 (11:28 - 1st) D.Maye pass complete to NC 46. Catch made by A.Green at NC 46. Gain of 14 yards. Pushed out of bounds by WF at WF 40. |
+2 YD | 1 & 10 - WAKE 40 (11:15 - 1st) E.Green rushed to WF 38 for 2 yards. Tackled by WF at WF 38. |
+9 YD | 2 & 8 - WAKE 38 (10:49 - 1st) D.Maye pass complete to WF 38. Catch made by B.Nesbit at WF 38. Gain of 9 yards. Tackled by WF at WF 29. |
No Gain | 1 & 10 - WAKE 29 (10:16 - 1st) E.Green rushed to WF 29 for 0 yards. Tackled by WF at WF 29. |
+17 YD | 2 & 10 - WAKE 29 (9:52 - 1st) D.Maye pass complete to WF 29. Catch made by B.Nesbit at WF 29. Gain of 17 yards. Pushed out of bounds by WF at WF 12. |
+12 YD | 1 & 10 - WAKE 12 (9:29 - 1st) D.Maye pass complete to WF 12. Catch made by J.Downs at WF 12. Gain of 12 yards. J.Downs for 12 yards TOUCHDOWN. |
PAT Good | (9:17 - 1st) N.Burnette extra point is good. |
- Punt (3 plays, 7 yards, 1:13 poss)
Result | Play |
---|---|
Kickoff | (9:17 - 1st) N.Burnette kicks 63 yards from NC 35 to the WF 2. Fair catch by K.Williams. |
No Gain | 1 & 10 - WAKE 25 (9:17 - 1st) S.Hartman scrambles to WF 30 for 0 yards. Tackled by NC at WF 30. PENALTY on WF-WF Offensive Holding 10 yards offset. PENALTY on NC-NC Defensive Holding 5 yards offset. No Play. |
+7 YD | 1 & 10 - WAKE 25 (8:45 - 1st) C.Turner rushed to WF 32 for 7 yards. Tackled by S.Duck at WF 32. |
No Gain | 2 & 3 - WAKE 32 (8:21 - 1st) C.Turner rushed to WF 32 for 0 yards. Tackled by NC at WF 32. |
No Gain | 3 & 3 - WAKE 32 (8:10 - 1st) S.Hartman steps back to pass. S.Hartman pass incomplete intended for WF. |
Punt | 4 & 3 - WAKE 32 (8:08 - 1st) I.Mora punts 37 yards to NC 31 Center-WF. Fair catch by J.Downs. |
- Touchdown (4 plays, 69 yards, 0:51 poss)
Result | Play |
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+24 YD | 1 & 10 - UNC 31 (8:04 - 1st) E.Green rushed to WF 45 for 24 yards. Tackled by WF at WF 45. |
-5 YD | 1 & 10 - WAKE 45 (7:51 - 1st) E.Green rushed to WF 50 for -5 yards. Tackled by WF at WF 50. PENALTY on NC-NC Offensive Holding 10 yards declined. |
+45 YD | 2 & 15 - UNC 50 (7:45 - 1st) D.Maye pass complete to WF 50. Catch made by A.Green at WF 50. Gain of 45 yards. Pushed out of bounds by WF at WF 5. |
+5 YD | 1 & Goal - WAKE 5 (7:25 - 1st) E.Green rushed to WF End Zone for 5 yards. E.Green for 5 yards TOUCHDOWN. |
PAT Good | (7:13 - 1st) N.Burnette extra point is good. |