UNC’s furious comeback comes up just short against FSU as Tar Heels suffer first loss
Newly ranked at No. 5, North Carolina coach Mack Brown worried that his team wasn’t ready for prime time in its showdown at Florida State. Brown’s fears proved to be well-founded when the Tar Heels watched their deficit balloon to 24 points before halftime and proved too much to overcome in a 31-28 loss.
Carolina (3-1, 3-1 ACC) took over with 2:30 left in the game to mount a drive to either tie or win. The irony is that its last two wins in Tallahassee were each won on the final play. Aided by a pass interference penalty, the Heels marched to the FSU 41. But after a short run on first down, three straight incompletions — including the ball rolling out of a wide-open, but stumbling to the ground, Javonte Williams’ outstretched hands — left the Tar Heels short of the biggest comeback in school history.
The Heels were left lamenting their missed opportunities. Grayson Atkins missed a 44-yard field goal when the maligned UNC defense came up with just its second interception of the season.
UNC quarterback Sam Howell got the Tar Heels within a possession of winning by completing 7 of 10 passes in the third quarter for 192 yards and two touchdowns. When he found Dyami Brown for a 25-yard score in the fourth quarter, the Heels pulled within three. But it was not enough.
Florida State (2-3, 1-3) had allowed 37 points per game, which ranked last in the ACC. But Carolina found out early that FSU wasn’t the same 1-3 team it saw getting embarrassed by Miami, handled by Notre Dame and tested by Jacksonville State. No, the Seminoles sent a message early on that would not be the case.
The Tar Heels had scored touchdowns on the opening possessions of three straight games, but were forced to punt on their first series after getting one first down.
FSU’s Ja’Khi Douglas partially blocked Ben Kierman’s punt and Deaclon Brooks returned it 18 yards to the UNC 23. The Noles scored on the ensuing snap when quarterback Jordan Travis rushed 23 yards virtually untouched to hand the Tar Heels’ their first deficit of the season, 7-0.
The Tar Heels just couldn’t get it going offensively in the first half. When Howell dropped back to pass, he didn’t have enough time for deep routes to develop and was forced into playing the short game. They were able to move the ball, but had consecutive drives stall in FSU territory. Howell was dropped for a sack on a third down at the FSU 31 and Javonte Williams was dropped for a loss on fourth and 2 at the FSU 24. They only trailed 10-0 at the time, but not attempting a field goal loomed large for the Heels in the fourth quarter.
While Carolina struggled to keep drives going, the Seminoles made big play after big play on the Carolina defense. The Heels had only allowed six rushes for more than 12 yards entering the game. FSU had four of its eight run of that long in the first half. Travis, who was making just his second start at quarterback for FSU, had four completions of more than 30 yards. UNC had given up five such plays all season.
It helped the Noles’ jump out to a 24-0 lead before Carolina scored. And they took a 31-7 lead into halftime thanks to a five-play, 75-yard drive that took only 45 seconds. The game seemed over as the collectively Heels limped off the field to their locker room. But the second half proved they had some fight left.
This story was originally published October 17, 2020 at 6:49 PM.