North Carolina mauled NC State 48-21 in Chapel Hill Saturday afternoon behind the Pack’s shaky quarterback play from redshirt junior Bailey Hockman and freshman Ben Finley, and a complete lack of defensive stability in the second half.
UNC (4-1, 4-1 ACC) star quarterback Sam Howell didn’t burn the secondary too much, but the team’s running game sure did. The Tar Heels finished with 326 yards and five touchdowns on the ground, while allowing just 34 yards to NC State’s (4-2, 4-2 ACC) star backfield.
“You get into the game and turn the ball over three times, four with the last one, and don’t stop the run, it’s going to be a tough day,” said head coach Dave Doeren. “Carolina’s backs ran hard; we did not tackle well, so there are a lot of things we have to work on.”
Howell looked sharp straight out of the gate, but a couple of early drops by Tar Heel receivers slowed UNC’s drives. Still, running back Michael Carter capitalized on its first drive, a 10-play possession following an NC State three-and-out to start the game.
One Pack first down later, the Heels got the rock back and looked like they were going to take it the distance again, but redshirt freshman defensive end Terrell Dawkins’ third-down sack pushed UNC out of field-goal range.
Redshirt sophomore linebacker Payton Wilson and the NC State defense did a pretty good job limiting the big plays early on. However, the Heels’ efficient drives continued as Howell found the end zone himself to go up 14-0 in the second quarter after another quick Pack punt.
Then, Doeren made a huge substitution that briefly changed the energy in the game: Finley came in to replace Hockman behind center and he came out firing. His first drive went eight plays, five of them through the air, 61 yards in 2:39 and should’ve ended in a touchdown, and should’ve is an understatement.
Finley rolled to his right on first-and-goal from the 14-yard line and found redshirt senior tight end Dylan Parham wide open in the end zone after sneaking behind the coverage. However, the throw from the true freshman was bobbled into the air by Parham and picked off by North Carolina. What should’ve been Finley’s first touchdown turned into his first interception.
Luckily for the Pack, UNC’s next drive ended in a missed 22-yard field goal thanks to another red zone stop for this defense. Then, Finley continued his hot start, leading a nine-play, 80-yard drive in just over two minutes, finding his first touchdown on a 42-yard completion to senior receiver Emeka Emezie. UNC tacked on a field goal at the first-half buzzer to take a 17-7 lead into the locker room.
“Ben went in and kind of sparked us there in the first half and was happy to see that,” Doeren said. “Our plan was to play him in the first series in the first half, and obviously, we didn’t do much in the first two series. He came in and sparked us and we stayed with them.”
Finley was 9-for-12 passing for 128 yards, with one touchdown and one interception at the break, creating a little energy and momentum for his team. However, NC State had to deal with injuries in the first half. Junior running back Ricky Person Jr. was injured with a concussion in the second quarter and did not return, and a couple of others were in and out of the game with an injury as well.
NC State stopped Howell on the opening drive with a third-down sack by graduate lineman Daniel Joseph, but Finley got unlucky again on the Wolfpack’s possession as his second-down pass was tipped at the line and landed in the pocket of UNC linebacker Chazz Surratt.
At this point, Howell started to settle in more, leading a quick four-play touchdown drive that included two blown coverages from the NC State secondary. The Pack’s difficulty stopping the Tar Heel running backs left the secondary vulnerable to the deep ball, and Howell finally started converting on those opportunities. UNC’s backs Carter and Javonte Williams combined for 266 yards and four touchdowns.
“They just outplayed us,” said redshirt junior linebacker Isaiah Moore. “There are no excuses, no scheme. We have to wrap them up, we have to tackle and get them to the ground, and we didn’t do that today.”
There was a questionable call from NC State’s staff on the next drive as it faced a fourth-and-3 play from about midfield. Finley tried to draw the Heels offside and ended up punting it himself. Although it was downed inside the 1-yard line, Howell got the ball back and led an easy 11-play, 99-yard drive to take a 31-7 lead late in the third quarter.
When it rains it pours: Finley fumbled getting sacked by Surratt on the first play of the next drive. His first two turnovers weren’t really his fault, but that one certainly was, as he didn’t tuck the ball away before contact. The Tar Heels crossed the goal line again after a third-down holding flag on sophomore safety Jakeen Harris to make it 38-7.
Suddenly, Hockman came back into the game and led a 75-yard touchdown drive with less than a minute left in the third quarter. The drive was all passing plays until Hockman ran it in himself from the 1 to make it 38-14 heading into the final period.
“[Finley’s] inexperience showed up,” Doeren said. “I was proud of Bailey going back in and playing the way he did. I thought he did some good things toward the end of the game throwing the football. That wasn’t the plan; the plan was to have him start and finish the game and get Ben some game reps.”
North Carolina scored quickly at the beginning of the fourth, and that ended Howell’s day, as he was replaced by a true freshman back up, who tacked on a field goal. Howell completed 18 of 29 passes for 252 yards and a touchdown.
After returning to the field, Hockman played pretty well, albeit in garbage time. He found freshman receiver Anthony Smith in the end zone on a beautiful over-the-shoulder throw with about six minutes left, but the Heels still took a cakewalk 48-21 win at Kenan Stadium.
“That’s really the only positive, that we were able to play a lot of young guys and get them game reps,” Doeren said. “… Anthony is very talented. [Freshman receiver Christopher Scott Jr.] is very talented, so that will help them confidencewise for the next game they get to play and they are two of the faster guys on our roster.”
Hockman – 14/24, 215 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT
Finley – 13/20, 143 yards, 1 TD, 2 INTs
Another huge red flag came from the running game, which totaled just 34 yards. North Carolina did a good job of winning the line of scrimmage and not allowing sophomore back Zonovan Knight into open field.
“They were just more physical than us up front,” Knight said. “… I kind of was shocked because, on film, they didn’t look that physical. In person, they weren’t that physical; they were just playing more physical than us.”
Plain and simple, NC State is not healthy enough and not experienced enough to compete with teams like North Carolina. These mistakes, flags and turnovers kill momentum in games where the Pack cannot afford to get too far behind.
“We just have to carry energy into practice,” Knight said. “This coming up week, we need to have positive energy, no matter what happened this week, and let that advance going into Miami and Florida State.”
Fortunately or not, after its bye week, the Wolfpack gets tossed into the fire against No. 11 Miami in Carter-Finley Stadium on Friday, Nov. 6 at 7:30 p.m.
“Our team needs a bye week, glad one is coming,” Doeren said. “Give Carolina credit. I thought they played well. Obviously, we have to play better, have to coach better.”
North Carolina's Chazz Surratt (21) sacks N.C. State quarterback Ben Finley (10) for a loss of 14 yards and forces a fumble in the third quarter at Kenan Stadium on Saturday, October 24, 2020 in Chapel Hill, N.C.
