Matchups: UNC determined not to get burned by Virginia quarterback again

Even combined, they may not be Bryce Perkins.

But Virginia’s quarterbacks this season — yes, that’s plural — still provide an interesting challenge for No. 15 North Carolina’s defense when the schools meet Halloween night in the South’s Oldest Rivalry.

Perkins singlehandedly carried the 2019 ACC Coastal champion Cavaliers past the Tar Heels last season, with 490 yards of total offense and five touchdowns in a shootout win. After losing his star quarterback to graduation, head coach Bronco Mendenhall has now pivoted to an interesting rotation.

Sophomore lefty Brennan Armstrong has been an effective starter when healthy, holding his own against No. 1 Clemson and No. 11 Miami as a passer and rusher. Backup Lindell Stone also spent two games as Virginia’s makeshift starter when Armstrong was sidelined with a concussion.

And regardless of who’s under center, the Cavaliers have also fed a steady a diet of trick plays to athletic reserve quarterbacks Iraken Armstead and Keytaon Thompson (who wear Nos. 98 and 99, respectively).

Armstead has one completion, one reception and 10 carries for 68 yards and a touchdown. Thompson has 15 carries for 95 yards and a three-yard receiving touchdown. And both, at times, have flummoxed opposing defenses, even if only for a play or two (or three, or four).

UNC’s defense didn’t need to worry about N.C. State running its quarterbacks last weekend. But the Tar Heels are just a few games removed from letting FSU’s Jordan Travis run for 107 and, to a lesser degree, struggling to contain BC’s Phil Jurkovec and VT’s Hendon Hooker in the pocket.

This season

Records: No. 15 UNC 4-1 (4-1 ACC); Virginia (1-4, 1-4 ACC)

UNC offense: 37.8 ppg | 531.2 ypg | 282.2 passing ypg | 249 rushing ypg

Virginia defense (allowed): 31.6 ppg | 419.6 ypg | 286 passing ypg | 133.6 rushing ypg

Virginia offense: 23.8 ppg | 411.6 ypg | 247.6 passing ypg | 164 rushing ypg

UNC defense (allowed): 25 ppg | 374.8 ypg | 246.2 passing ypg | 128.6 rushing ypg

UNC run game vs. Virginia run defense

Every week, Javonte Williams has college coaches across North Carolina kicking themselves. The former three-star recruit, recruited minimally out of Wallace-Rose Hill, has 12 total touchdowns in five games, trailing only Alabama’s Najee Harris (14) in that department. While Williams does the scoring, Michael Carter (116.8 yards per game) is staying equally hot. This week, in evaluating UNC’s midseason progress, head coach Mack Brown said he was “most pleased” with the offensive line’s jump.

Linebacker Nick Jackson, who leads the ACC with 10.6 tackles per game, has been key to the Cavaliers’ rush defense. Virginia allows 133.6 yards per game on the ground, a little above average for FBS teams, and 3.32 yards per carry. But outside of their season opener against Duke — they allowed 38 rushes for just 56 yards — the Cavaliers haven’t truly shut down anyone’s running backs.

UNC pass game vs. Virginia pass defense

Sam Howell had an another efficiently spectacular game against N.C. State. After throwing three picks in his first two games — two of which were fluky — the sophomore has thrown just one more in his last three games, against seven touchdowns. And young receivers Emery Simmons (five catches for 38 yards) and Josh Downs (a 17-yard touchdown) stepped up in place of an injured Beau Corrales.

The Cavaliers don’t have a great pass defense. What they do have, though, is a secondary of ballhawks. Safety Brenton Nelson has eight career interceptions; add in Joey Blount (six) and De’Vante Cross (four), and Virginia is one of only three FBS schools featuring three players with four or more career interceptions. And UVa. has six total interceptions this season, so Howell will need to tread lightly.

Virginia run game vs. UNC run defense

Even while splitting time with wildcat quarterbacks Armstead and Thompson, Armstrong — who will start Saturday — hasn’t been overshadowed. In the three full games he’s played, Armstrong has run for 47 yards against Duke, 89 against Clemson and 91 against Miami last weekend. And 5-foot-9 bruiser running back Wayne Taulapapa has been a steady presence, leading the team in carries (61), rushing yards (303) and rushing touchdowns (three).

North Carolina got back to its early-season ways against N.C. State, neutralizing the Wolfpack’s run game to the tune of 19 carries for 34 yards. It marked the fewest yards the Tar Heels have allowed on the ground since 2011 against Rutgers — and a huge bounce-back from the Florida State loss. Something to monitor here: late against the Wolfpack, a lot of young defenders (Desmond Evans, Myles Murphy, Clyde Pinder Jr.) got snaps. UNC’s coaches are hoping that helps develop depth in the front seven.

Virginia pass game vs. UNC pass defense

Receiver Billy Kemp IV has 41 catches, the most ever by a Virginia wideout through the first five games of a season. Freshman receiver Lavel Davis Jr. and tight end Tony Poljan are both a legit 6-foot-7 and much, much more than just decoys. Armstrong has the weapons to succeed, but he needs to cut down on turnovers — before a clean game against Miami, he had two interceptions in all three previous starts.

Turnovers come in bunches. It’s something Brown preaches to his team, and it came true last weekend. After safety Don Chapman nabbed a lucky interception against N.C. State, linebackers Chazz Surratt and Evans and defensive back Cameron Roseman-Sinclair got their own, too, in a blowout win. North Carolina’s four forced turnovers last weekend doubled their previous total (two) entering the game.

UNC special teams vs. Virginia special teams

Brown said last week’s performance was UNC’s best on special teams. Kicker Grayson Atkins missed a 22-yard field goal but rebounded with a 40-yard make to end the first half and a 34-yarder in the second. Punter Ben Kiernan had a long of 53 and two punts downed inside the 20-yard line. And UNC didn’t surrender any blocked punts after allowing FSU to block two (progress!).

UVa.’s Brian Delaney is 5-7 on field goals this year with a long of 42 yards, and receivers Kemp and Tavares Kelly Jr. have handled return duties. One interesting note: Virginia has 23 kickoffs but just 14 touchbacks, so UNC’s kick returners (especially the electric Carter) may have some chances.

UNC intangibles vs. Virginia intangibles

With the Big Ten season underway and the Pac-12 starting next week, North Carolina finds itself in a new spot: it needs to win convincingly — not just win — to maintain a solid AP Top 25 ranking. Brown also spoke this week about the team’s night-game adjustments. Saturday’s road game in Charlottesville will start around 8 p.m., and the Tar Heels’ last late kickoff (at Florida State) didn’t go so well.

UNC’s coaches aren’t alone in thinking Virginia’s 1-4 record — tied for second worst in the ACC — is deceiving. The Cavaliers hung tight against Clemson and had Miami on the ropes. But resounding losses to Wake Forest and N.C. State revealed plenty of flaws. At home on Halloween night, Mendenhall’s team will need an elite game from Armstrong and a few lucky bounces to contend for an upset.