CHAPEL HILL -- North Carolina wide receiver Brandon Tate knew exactly how he planned to celebrate his team's 35-27 victory over McNeese State on Saturday night.

"I'm going to go home and lie down," the senior said.

You can't blame him for being tired. On a night when UNC's offense struggled to put together any sort of consistent attack at rain-soaked Kenan Stadium, Tate provided most of his football team's surge, scoring two touchdowns, setting up another and speeding his way to a school-record 397 all-purpose yards.

That surpassed former tailback Derrick Fenner's mark of 339 yards, set against Virginia in 1986. The only thing that kept him from breaking Wake Forest tailback John Leach's 1993 ACC record was a shoestring tackle late in the fourth quarter that likely kept him from reaching the end zone, again.

"I saw the goal line; I was mad on that one," Tate said.

Carolina is now 2-0 in season openers under coach Butch Davis, the first time the Tar Heels have won back-to-back first games since 1996 and 1997.

For a while, that was in doubt.

After a 1-hour, 48-minute weather delay -- UNC's first since 2005 -- the re-energized Cowboys took the field and scored 20 consecutive points to take a 20-14 lead in the third quarter. Its only real miscue: a blocked extra point.

Carolina's offense, which struggled on the ground and in the air when Tate wasn't involved, looked like it was on its way to yet another punt with 4:35 left in the third quarter. That's when quarterback T.J. Yates (15-of-26, 221 yards, two touchdowns, one interception) found Tate for a 57-yard touchdown reception to give UNC a 21-20 lead.

"That play, it really changed the momentum,'' backup tailback Shaun Draughn said. "... It really just got everyone going again."

Tate set the school record early in the fourth, on a 20-yard reverse that helped set up a Casey Barth 37-yard field goal attempt. Barth, who shared kicking duties with redshirt freshman Jay Wooten, missed wide left.

But with 9:02 left, Draughn gave UNC a much-needed 28-20 cushion with a 13-yard touchdown run. It marked the first collegiate touchdown for the converted safety.

Then, with 4:20 left, wide receiver Hakeem Nicks outraced two defenders for a 71-yard reception that set up a 5-yard touchdown run by tailback Greg Little. That made it 35-20.

Still, the biggest accolades belonged to Tate, who was virtually unstoppable from the first kickoff of the game -- which he returned 56 yards.

After three scoreless possessions and 24 total yards of offense, UNC took an early lead with 3:09 left in the first quarter when Tate took a punt at the 18-yard line, dodged a tackle at about the 31, then raced down the right sideline for an 82-yard touchdown return.

It marked his third career punt return for a touchdown; he has also returned three kickoffs for touchdowns in his career.

Play was delayed with 12:08 left in the first half, after Yates found Brooks Foster for a 4-yard touchdown pass to make it 14-0. Tate set up that score with a 54-yard rumble out of the backfield that tied the longest run of his career.

In the end, Tate became the first wide receiver to rush for 100 yards in a game in UNC history; he finished with 106, more than the rest of his team's rushers, combined. His 198 yards on punts and kickoff returns is the second best in the school record book -- behind the 208 he managed against Duke in 2006.

"I can't even begin to speculate who had a good game besides Brandon Tate," Davis said. "That guy earned his scholarship, that's for sure."

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