Quarterback Sam Hartman led his Wake Forest Demon Deacons into Chapel Hill to face signal-caller Sam Howell and the North Carolina Tar Heels. In the battle of two quarterbacks who grew up in North Carolina, Howell won the matchup with a record-setting performance and with their 59-53 victory over Wake Forest, the Tar Heels kept their ACC Championship hopes alive.
The Demon Deacons won this matchup 24-18 last year on their home turf and their defensive performance made it tough on Howell and his offense. This year, UNC has been one of the most complete offensive football teams at every level. The rushing attack with junior Javonte Williams and senior Michael Carter has provided opportunities for big plays in the team’s passing attack.
In a back-and-forth high scoring first quarter, Howell set an FBS record for the most yards thrown in that period with 232. The Tar Heels were making their offensive plays and scoring at a fast pace, yet the game was still in reach for Wake Forest because its offensive was just as lethal. Along with Hartman, running back Christian Beal-Smith finished with 120 yards rushing and opened the passing game’s play-action.
The Demon Deacons defense began to play much better in the second quarter and that’s what created their double-digit halftime lead of 35-24.
Going into the second half, this game had all the makings of an old fashion shootout. Wake Forest scored on its first two possessions and took a 45-24 lead.
However, Howell continued his career day when they needed him most, midway through the third quarter.
With the Tar Heels getting some much-needed stops on defense, the offense began to find a rhythm that the White and Gold weren’t equipped to withstand. UNC senior Dazz Newsome and junior Dyami Brown (both WRs) found holes in the Wake Forest defense all day. After 21 straight unanswered points, the game was tied at 45 in the fourth quarter.
Williams’ running lanes opened up on the game-winning drive as the Tar Heels marched down the field. On third-and-10 in the red zone, Howell kept the football, scampered over the left side behind some blockers and headed into the end zone for the go-ahead touchdown that gave UNC the lead.
North Carolina senior linebacker Chazz Surratt made a massive sack on one fourth down to get the ball back to his offense. The NFL prospect did not have a great game in last year’s matchup with only three tackles against Wake Forest and he was poised to make amends for it in this game. He played lights out with 14 total tackles, seven solo, one sack and two tackles for loss. His imprint was all over this game, especially in the second half when the squad tightened up as a defensive unit.
The game provided for a record-setting performance from Howell. The sophomore quarterback for UNC finished with 550 yards and six touchdowns.
This Tar Heels team has had a couple of losses this year during which they got off to slow starts, tried to fight their way back but still came up short. However, this time, they looked like more cohesive units on both sides of the ball, even when they were down by three touchdowns.
The win moved UNC to 6-2 on the season. The loss dropped Wake Forest to 4-3 and snapped a four-game winning streak. UNC is going into a bye week ahead of their big matchup against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish Friday, Nov. 27. The Demon Deacons will travel to Wallace Wade Stadium and take on the Duke Blue Devils Saturday, Nov. 21.