The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Howell caps off stellar season as UNC rolls in Military Bowl
Freshman Sam Howell threw for 294 yards and three touchdowns in addition to catching a TD pass, and North Carolina blew out Temple 55-13 in the Military Bowl at Annapolis, Md., on Friday to cap a satisfying return season for coach Mack Brown.
Howell completed 25 of 34 passes and ran for 53 yards on three carries to lead the Tar Heels (7-6) to their first bowl victory since 2013. North Carolina was 4-6 before winning its last two regular-season games to qualify for a bowl bid.
Temple (8-5) has gone to a bowl game five years in a row — and lost four of them. This was the Owls’ first trip under coach Rod Carey, who came to Temple after a run of six-plus seasons at Northern Illinois in which he was 0-6 in the postseason.
North Carolina went 3-9 in 2017 and 2-9 last year before hiring Brown, who coached the Tar Heels from 1988-97 prior to heading to Texas for a 16-year stay. Coming off a five-year absence from coaching, Brown — with help from Howell — quickly turned the program around.
“The last three weeks we’ve been a really good football team,” Brown said. “It’s fun. Now these guys coming back have something to build on. Seven (wins) is not enough anymore. You want to go to a bowl every year and get a streak of wins.”
The Tar Heels’ rise can be attributed to Brown and no small measure to Howell, a high school star in North Carolina who initially committed to Florida State.
Closing out a sensational debut season at the college level, Howell threw a pair of touchdown passes before halftime to stake the Tar Heels to a 20-6 lead. UNC pulled away early in the third quarter by scoring two touchdowns in a 12-second span, the last on a 20-yard interception return by Storm Duck.
Howell completed the third-quarter blitz by catching a 2-yard TD pass from wide receiver Rontavius Groves at the end of a reverse to make it 41-6.
Howell threw 38 touchdown passes this season, the most by a true freshman in FBS history. His 3,641 yards passing are an Atlantic Coast Conference record for a freshman who has not redshirted.
Pinstripe Bowl
Michigan State 27, Wake Forest 21 (at New York): Brian Lewerke threw for 320 yards and a touchdown and ran for a score in Michigan State’s victory over Wake Forest on Friday night at Yankee Stadium.
Lewerke threw a 10-yard pass to wide receiver Cody White in the third quarter to put the Spartans (7-6) ahead 27-21 and they survived down the stretch to give embattled coach Mark Dantonio his sixth bowl victory.
Wake Forest (8-5) missed a chance to win nine games for just the third time in its history.
Michigan State almost gave away the game twice in the fourth quarter, the first time on Lewerke’s shovel pass to tight end Trenton Gillison inside the 10 that was stripped and recovered by linebacker Ja’Cquez Williams at the 6.
The Deamon Deacons failed to score on the drive, and handed Michigan State another chance to seal the victory. Again, the Spartans couldn’t put it away when Matt Coghlin was wide left on a 28-yard field goal attempt with 3:03 left. Wake Forest’s last chance ended on an incomplete pass on its own 16.
White finished with 97 yards receiving and Elijah Collins had 96 yards rushing.