After one half of football on Saturday afternoon against the Charlotte 49ers, Omarion Hampton appeared well on the way to a second-consecutive100-yard rushing game for the North Carolina Tar Heels.
Hampton ended the first half of UNC’s home opener with 77 yards on 11 carries, good enough for seven yards per carry. Hampton already ran for 129 yards on 30 carries in a 19-17 win at Minnesota last week.
When the final seconds ticked off the clock in North Carolina’s 38-20 victory, though, there was a different running back with 100 yards in his back pocket.
That back was true freshman Davion Gause, who – in relief for an injured Hampton – carried the rock 16 times for 105 yards and a touchdown.
Gause felt ready to step in, though he didn’t know Hampton was injured until after halftime.
“Coach Porter, he prepares all the running backs in practice to handle the workload,” Gause told media after the game. “If one person goes down, the next man’s up. Coach Porter gets us ready for big moments like that and we’re ready when we get in the game. I’d seen him (Hampton) on a bike. And then he was like you’ve got a third drive. He was like keep doing what you’re doing, stay focused.”
Hampton was available to return in the second half, but the Tar Heels didn’t want to risk further injury on their start running back, particularly in a September non-conference game. Darwin Barlow, who transferred from USC in the offseason to be UNC’s backup, was announced out pre-game with a lower-body injury.
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