Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
UM barely escapes
’Canes hold off Tar Heels in an inconsistent effort
“It’s unacceptable, honestly. We’ve got to start firing on all cylinders soon ...”
Braxton Berrios, wide receiver
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — After three consecutive nail-biting wins, this was supposed to be the game where the Miami Hurricanes put together a consistent effort and imposed their will on an opponent as UM coach Mark Richt has so often asked of his team.
The Hurricanes were three-touchdown favorites against a struggling North Carolina team that has been beset by injuries and had just one win entering Saturday afternoon.
Turns out the Tar Heels would give the eighth-ranked Hurricanes all they could handle — and a scare Miami likely won’t forget.
The Hurricanes struggled to move the ball consistently, couldn’t capitalize on the four turnovers forced by its defense and ultimately, the Hurricanes found themselves fighting to hang on in what turned out to be an ugly 24-19 win over the Tar Heels.
For the fourth consecutive week, the Hurricanes found the outcome of a game in question late with North Carolina pulling within a touchdown in the game’s final minutes when Beau Corrales caught a 9-yard touchdown pass from third-string quarterback Nathan Elliott with 3:03 left.
The Hurricanes fumbled their ensuing possession, giving the Tar Heels one last gasp before Miami’s defense forced another North Carolina turnover, this one sealing the
win.
The Hurricanes have won 12 consecutive games dating back to last season, but there is no doubt that with No. 13 Virginia Tech looming, there is work to be done.
“I’ve done it too long to apologize for winning. We’ve won [12] in a row. That’s a good thing,” Hurricanes coach Mark Richt said, “but you take pride in what you do and when it’s not as clean as you want it to be, it’s bothersome. It hurts.”
Entering Saturday’s game, the Hurricanes said all the right things about facing the struggling Tar Heels.
They noted North Carolina’s defense had put together some solid performances. They mentioned, repeatedly, teams can’t be measured by their records. And they pointed out that without a win in Chapel Hill, their stated goal of winning the Coastal Division crown in the Atlantic Coast Conference would be that much tougher.
But for most of Saturday afternoon, the Hurricanes looked sloppy and offensively inept.
From the start, the Hurricanes (7-0, 5-0) struggled to move the ball, managing just 43 yards in the first quarter. North Carolina (1-8, 0-6), which entered the game with more than a dozen players lost to season-ending injuries and starting running back Michael Carter out for this game, managed 153 yards in the first quarter and a 3-0 lead on a 24-yard Freeman Jones field goal.
The second quarter was more of the same, with North Carolina’s defense — ranked No. 110 in the nation in total defense and 114th against the run entering this week’s games — stymieing the Hurricanes and forcing them into four punts before halftime.
It wasn’t until late in the second quarter that the Hurricanes found offensive life when quarterback Malik Rosier, who finished with a career-high 356 yards but struggled for long stretches and dealt with a shoulder injury, connected with tight end Chris Herndon on a 51-yard touchdown that capped a six-play, 75-yard drive.
That gave the Hurricanes their first lead and while Miami wouldn’t trail again, the Hurricanes never got the comfortable margin of victory many expected they’d have against the Tar Heels.
“It’s unacceptable, honestly,” said receiver Braxton Berrios of the offensive struggles. “We’ve got to start firing on all cylinders soon or it’s really going to catch up to us. Luckily, the defense played their tails off again. Kept us in the game, through half, and we came out second half, had that big play to [receiver] Jeff [Thomas]. … and those are things we need, but as an offense, we’ve got to find a way to start firing soon.”
That big play — a 78-yard scoring pass from Rosier to Thomas, a freshman, came on the first play from scrimmage in the third quarter. And it seemed to give the Hurricanes a spark. A 21-yard field goal from Michael Badgley would come soon after and give the Hurricanes a 17-6 lead.
Berrios finished with seven catches for 78 yards, Thomas had three catches for 101 yards and Herndon finished with two catches for 60 yards to lead the Hurricanes, who now begin the work of preparing for a Virginia Tech team that handed Miami one of its biggest losses last season.