UNC’s huge offensive performance in win over Va Tech started with massive running game
North Carolina quarterback Sam Howell had to stop himself from boasting too much about the running back tandem of Michael Carter and Javonte Williams. Like, he really wanted to say it, but then again, he didn’t have to.
Carter and Williams let their results speak plenty. The two combined to rush for 383 yards and four touchdowns in the No. 8 Tar Heels’ 56-45 win over No. 19 Virginia Tech. And Howell believes they haven’t filled out their potential just yet.
“They’re running the ball really well,” Howell told reporters on a postgame video call. “The ceiling is so high for those guys...”
Howell pulled short of saying it’s “the roof,” duplicating Michael Jordan’s famous utterance. There’s good reason they conjure the swagger of MJ. No two running backs in NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision average more yards per game than Carter (137.7) and Williams (94.3).
Their performance against the Hokies revealed more than just how good they are. It showed, despite the big play passing game and marquee status of Howell, the running game is actually the heart of UNC’s offense.
“I feel like me and ‘Vonte, we just feed off each other in the realest sense,” Carter told reporters in a postgame video call. “Like literally if ‘Vonte breaks off a long one, I’ve got to have the next one or vice versa.”
He’s not exaggerating. The pair each crossed 100 yards rushing on the same third quarter possession. They accounted for 14 of Carolina’s 16 rushes of 10 yards or more at almost an even split — Williams had eight and Carter had six.
Carter finished with a career-high 214 yards rushing, which bested his previous best of 165 yards set against VT in 2018. Williams also set a new personal high of 169 yards, which topped his old standard of 144 against Georgia Tech in 2019.
UNC coach Mack Brown said the offense showed a glimpse of just how good it can be when Carter and Williams get the run game going.
“Those are two of the best backs in the country,” Brown told reporters after the game. “They’ve got balance. They’re fast. They’ve got the power and quickness to run inside and the speed to run outside. So they are two of our best weapons.”
They set up everything else for the Heels’ offense. Carolina rolled up 656 yards in total offense, which is the fifth most in program history.
Consider this, Carolina averaged 12.5 yards per carry when it ran on first down. All totaled, they gained 325 yards on 26 first down run plays. Needless to say when it can run like that, it puts the offense in a lot of favorable scenarios come second and third down. VT coach Justin Fuentes summed it up when speaking with reporters in a postgame video conference.
“If you can’t fit the run game, you’re at their mercy,” Fuentes said. “They can do whatever they want.”
That they did. When the Hokies defense tried to respond to their big runs by putting more players in the box near the line of scrimmage, Carolina was able to pop some of the big plays Brown lamented in games against Syracuse and Boston College that defenses tailored their game plans to take away.
UNC receiver Dyami Brown caught touchdown passes of 37 and 43 yards. Dazz Newsome also recorded a 28-yard catch. And it was all because the Hokies’ safeties were so concerned about defending the run that they allowed receivers to get over the top.
“They had to bring their safety down in the run game because they couldn’t stop the run game,” Howell said. “So they weren’t able to cap beyond with the safety. (Dyami) was one-on-one with a corner and he’s going to win that matchup every time.”
Thanks, in part, to that ground attack, the Heels never faced a third-and-9 or more yards all game. And to think, the Hokies entered the game with a running attack that ranked third nationally averaging 319 yards per game. VT running back Khalil Herbert was leading the nation in several categories including yards per game at 155.5 and yards per attempt at 12.4.
The Carolina pair outshined them. The Heels’ total of 399 rushing yards marked their highest total against an ACC opponent since gaining 408 versus Duke in 1988 and the most in any game since gaining 432 yards against Ohio in 1993.
“Salute to those other running backs, they had a great players, but I feel like at the same time me and Javonte are the best running backs in the nation,” Carter said. “And I’m going to stand on that every week.”
Because the Heels don’t have one featured back accumulating all the yards, Carter and Williams probably don’t get their due nationally — or even in the ACC.
“After this week,” Carter said. “We will.”
And he doesn’t mind saying it.
This story was originally published October 10, 2020 at 11:56 AM.