UNC Football Back in the Win Column After Dominating Over Campbell
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (PSF)—UNC Football regains positive energy and snaps their losing streak after their dominate 7-59 win over the Campbell Camels.
Offense:
UNC’s offense was absolutely dominant against Campbell.
They finished the day with 594 total yards of offense- 318 yards passing and 276 rushing yards.
After a slow first drive, UNC rebounded with a Drake Maye and Tez Walker connection for a ten-yard touchdown to take the early lead.
Campbell responded with a 19-yard touchdown of their own, the only time they would score in this game.
After a 75-yard touchdown run by running back Omarion Hampton got called back because of offensive holding, Hampton got his redemption with a 54-yard touchdown to give UNC the lead again.
Campbell missed a 33-yard field goal to set up another Maye and Walker connection for a 31-yard touchdown.
Carolina got the ball back with about two minutes left before the half, and Hampton scored another touchdown, punching it in for four yards.
With a little over 20 seconds left of the second quarter, Campbell fumbled the kick return, giving the ball back to UNC. Unfortunately, UNC had some miscommunication between the special teams and the offense, and Carolina did not spike the ball with enough time to kick a field goal.
This was a huge slip-up for UNC’s offense, but they still led 7-28 at the half.
UNC opened the second half with a 25-yard touchdown to tight end John Copenhaver after a huge 45-yard completion to WR Tychaun Chapman.
UNC’s special teams created a turnover, and the offense capitalized on it with a wide-open 21-yard receiving touchdown by WR J.J. Jones.
With a 38-point lead over Campbell, UNC decided to put in their backups.
After a successful 43-yard field goal, backup QB Conner Harrell scored a 61-yard rushing touchdown of his own, his first collegiate touchdown.
Another defensive turnover gave UNC the ball back and resulted in Harrell’s first passing touchdown: a 41-yard pass to freshman WR Chris Culliver, which was his first catch of his collegiate career.
UNC won the game 7-59.
Maye threw for four touchdowns, 244 yards and had almost a 70% completion rate. Maye also kicked a 45-yard punt. Backup QB Harrell completed all of his pass attempts.
Hampton also had a great day, rushing for two touchdowns and 144 yards, and he passed 1,000 rushing yards on the season in this game.
UNC utilized RB British Brooks more in this game as he accounted for 62 yards. QB Harrell doubled as an RB as he rushed for 61 yards.
Tight end Bryson Nesbit finished the day with six receptions for 78 yards, the most on the team. Walker accounted for two touchdowns but only 41 receiving yards. UNC threw to 11 different receivers this game, each making long catches and displaying Carolina’s depth.
Defense:
UNC’s amazing offensive energy was carried into the defense.
They opened the game with a huge fourth-down stop, setting the pace for the game early.
The defense, and special teams, did a great job forcing turnovers in this game.
In Campbell’s first play of the second half, defensive back Marcus Allen recorded his first career interception.
Right after the interception, Campbell attempted to fake a punt. Cedric Gray sacked punter Jack Brady, forcing a fumble that Will Hardy recovered. This led to another UNC touchdown.
Later in the fourth, UNC forced another fumble that UNC’s Tyler Thompson recovered, accounting for the third fumble of the day. This turnover led to UNC’s final touchdown of the game.
UNC’s defense dominated in all aspects of this game.
They sacked QB Hajj-Malik Williams five times and held their offense to only 287 yards. They held the run game to only 2.4 yards per rush and the passing game was only 5 yards per pass.
The third-down defense was also unstoppable, holding them to only 37.5% efficiency.
Takeaways and Looking Forward:
The penalties are going to be what makes or breaks this UNC team. They finished the day with 10 penalties for 98 yards. Like in previous weeks, the team needs to be more disciplined in this area.
UNC needed this huge win to get them out of their funk and back into the win category.
Hopefully they will use this momentum for the remainder of the season as they are on the cusp of being bowl-eligible.
UNC will be back in Kenan Stadium for their last home game of the season on Nov. 11 against longtime rival Duke.