Tag: UNC vs. UVA

UNC football team named a Week 9 winner by USA Today

The North Carolina Tar Heels’ blowout victory earned them some Week 9 recognition from USA Today.

With four straight losses and an unthinkable tragedy fresh on their minds last weekend, the North Carolina Tar Heels did the unthinkable: win a football game.

Not only did UNC (4-4, 1-3) beat Virginia and move just two wins away from bowl eligibility, but UNC won in dominating fashion – 41-14.

North Carolina played well in just about every aspect last weekend, including defense. The Tar Heels dropped 40 points on an opponent for the fourth time this season, while their defense generated 10 sacks, the highest amount in 24 seasons.

With UNC delivering arguably its most well-rounded performance of 2024, it should come – as no surprise – that USA Today dubbed UNC one of its Week 9 winners.

“The clock may still be ticking on Mack Brown’s second tenure at North Carolina, but a 41-14 win against Virginia rights the ship on the heels of a four-game losing streak and puts the Tar Heels back on track for a bowl bid,” USA Today’s Paul Myerberg wrote. “Defensively, UNC gave up only 288 yards of offense after allowing 41.5 points per game during the losing streak, including 70 points to James Madison and 41 points last week against Georgia Tech. The Tar Heels had 10 sacks, forced a pair of turnovers and held the Cavaliers to just 7 yards on 29 carries.”

J.J. Jones finally showcased WR1-level production, catching five passes for a career-high 129 yards. Seven different Tar Heels recorded a sack, led by three from Kaimon Rucker.

North Carolina’s season looked lost after losing to Georgia Tech. Now, all of a sudden, UNC has a chance to move back above .500 this coming weekend at Florida State.

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J.J. Jones and Kaimon Rucker snag weekly ACC honors for UNC football program

J.J. Jones and Kaimon Rucker were the two greatest reasons why UNC obliterated Virginia in ACC football action Saturday.

The North Carolina Tar Heels played the type of football we’ve all been waiting for on Saturday, dismantling the Virginia Cavaliers by a 41-14 score.

After trailing by a field goal early in the first quarter, UNC took the lead for good on J.J. Jones‘ first of two touchdowns receptions. Jones enjoyed arguably his best college game, catching five passes for two touchdowns a career-high 129 yards.

North Carolina’s defense made a complete 180 from the Georgia Tech game, never allowing Virginia to settle into a rhythm and generating 10 sacks. Kaimon Rucker, the Tar Heels’ top edge rusher, led the sack party with three of his own.

It should come as no surprise that, because of their impacts on Saturday’s much-needed victory, Jones and Rucker earned ACC Weekly Honors.

Jones was tabbed the ACC Wide Receiver of the Week, while Rucker was named the ACC Defensive Lineman of the Week.

After struggling to find consistency at the wide receiver spot all season, UNC finally found its top guy in Jones. His five receptions matched a 2024-best, set against James Madison in Week 4, then matched the following weekend at Duke.

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Rucker missed several games earlier this season while recovering from a torn meniscus, but looked like his 2023 self on Saturday. Rucker was healthy, moving around quickly and in the Cavaliers’ backfield virtually every play.

Jones and Rucker will look to build upon their standout Week 9 performances on Saturday, Nov. 2, as North Carolina will face Florida State at 3:30 p.m.

Can the Tar Heels stay focused and not overlook a struggling Seminoles squad?

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J.J. Jones sets career high, steps up to lead UNC’s offense in big win at Virginia

J.J. Jones stepped up to lead UNC’s wide receiver room on Saturday at Virginia, setting a career high in the big victory.

Ever since losing Devontez Walker to the NFL Draft in April, the North Carolina Tar Heels have been looking for a wide receiver to step up and lead their pass-catching unit.

Several receivers have shown flashes of potential of UNC’s first seven games, but no one showed a difference-making performance.

That all changed on Saturday afternoon.

In North Carolina’s 41-14 drubbing of Virginia, which moved it two wins away from bowl eligiblity and to .500 overall on the season, graduate wide receiver J.J. Jones caught five passes for a career-high 129 yards and two touchdowns.

Jones’ first touchdown reception gave the Tar Heels a lead they never relinquished, catching a 37-yard strike from Jacolby Criswell for a 6-3 advantage, with just over five minutes left in the first quarter.

With five seconds left in the first half, Jones pulled in a 31-yard strike from Criswell – even against pass interference from Cavaliers cornerback Jam Jackson. Jones’ second score extended UNC’s lead to 23-6, giving his team some much-needed breathing room going into halftime.

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Today’s outing was Jones’ second-straight game with a touchdown, as he caught one two weeks ago against Georgia Tech.

Jones’ previous 2024 yardage high came last month at archrival Duke, when he caught a touchdown as part of a 5-catch, 89-yard day. Jones recorded a season-best 711 receiving yards last year, catching passes from Drake Maye.

It’s encouraging to see Jones develop this type of chemistry with Criswell, as North Carolina seems to finally have another big-play receiver.

What can Jones do for an encore next week in Tallahassee, as the Tar Heels look to move over .500 and get their second-straight ACC win, against a struggling Florida State squad?

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UNC dominates Virginia from opening kickoff, gets first ACC win with complete performance

The Tar Heels marched into Scott Stadium Saturday afternoon and turned their season around against Virginia, dominating in every aspect of a 27-point blowout.

I don’t know if it was the bye week, the beautiful fall air or just a hunger for victory, but the UNC football team put together its most complete performance of 2024 on Saturday afternoon at Virginia.

North Carolina’s offense moved the ball and scored at will, defense prevented the Cavaliers from gaining any sort of momentum and, when the final seconds ticked away in the fourth quarter, the Tar Heels left Charlottesville with a 41-14 victory.

Today’s win meant more than just any other win – it was in honor of Tylee Craft.

UNC (4-4, 1-3 ACC) took the lead for good on Jacolby Criswell’s first touchdown pass, a 37-yard strike to J.J. Jones with 5:23 left in the opening quarter, then distanced itself from Virginia with a 17-point second quarter.

North Carolina’s offense was good in the first half, but its defense was great. The Tar Heels generated six sacks, after not recording a single one two weeks ago – and held the Cavaliers to under 100 yards.

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When the game ended, UNC increased its sack total to 10, led by three from Kaimon Rucker. North Carolina limited Virginia to 288 yards, the lowest yardage total an opponent has gained against the Tar Heels since Week 3, when NC Central gained just 167 yards.

Omarion Hampton delivered yet another signature performance for the UNC offense, carrying the football 26 times for 105 yards and two touchdown. Not only was today Hampton’s third game of the year with multiple touchdowns – or sixth-consecutive game with 100 yards – but Hampton reached 1,000 rushing yards for the second straight season.

All year long, North Carolina had been looking for a wide receiver to step up lead its unit. J.J. Jones did exactly that today, catching five Criswell passes for a career-high 129 receiving yards and two touchdowns.

Now two weeks removed from a fourth-consecutive defeat, the Tar Heels only need two more wins to reach a bowl game.

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UNC generates six sacks, holds Virginia to under 100 yards in first half of football

Just how good was UNC’s first-half defense against Virginia?

Through one half of football Saturday afternoon, the North Carolina Tar Heels are outplaying Virginia in just about every aspect.

There’s one surprising area that UNC (3-4, 0-3) is particularly outplaying the Cavaliers (4-3, 2-1) in: defense.

North Carolina took a 24-6 lead into the half, holding Virginia to a pair of Will Bettridge field goals. That wasn’t even the most impressive part of the Tar Heels’ surprising performance, though.

UNC generated six first-half sacks against the Cavaliers, with the final one coming from top edge rusher Kaimon Rucker, to end the half. North Carolina limited Virginia to just 77 first-half yards, two weeks after allowing Georgia Tech to gash its defense for 500 yards.

Six different Tar Heels have sacks: Rucker, season sack leader Jahvaree Ritzie, defensive end Des Evans, defensive back Alijah Huzzie, defense lineman Beau Atkinson and linebacker Amare Campbell, who is a captain for today’s game.

Virginia made it all the way down to UNC’s 1-yard line on its first drive, after its own defense forced a punt. A bad snap and two incomplete passes later from Anthony Colandrea, the Cavaliers had to settle for a field goal.

On Virginia’s second scoring drive, star wide receiver Malachi Fields caught a 34-yard pass that got him down to North Carolina’s 12-yard line. After a 2-yard Colandrea run and an incomplete pass, the Cavaliers settled for a field goal – again.

Outside of Virginia’s two scoring drives, the Tar Heels forced a negative yardage total of -14. We didn’t see a ton of big plays from the Cavaliers in the first half and, while that could easily change in the second half, we’re very encouraged.

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UNC announces captains for Week 9 football clash at Virginia

Which three players will represent the UNC football team in today’s game, a Week 9 must-win at rival Virginia?

With four consecutive losses in their back pockets, the North Carolina Tar Heels are in desperate need of turning their football season around.

Coming out of its first bye week, UNC (3-4, 0-3) might be in a perfect position to do so today.

At 12 p.m. today, North Carolina will take the field at Scott Stadium and face fellow ACC rival Virginia. The Tar Heels and Cavaliers (4-3, 2-2 ACC) will play in the 119th installation of the South’s Oldest Rivalry, with UNC holding an all-time advantage of 64-50-4.

While all your focus right now is likely on how North Carolina can find a way to win, we want you to meet the Tar Heels’ team captains for today’s conference clash: linebacker Amare Campbell, tight end John Copenhaver and star kicker Noah Burnette.

Campbell is UNC’s starting middle linebacker, taking over the spot previously occupied by Cedric Gray. Statistically, Campbell is one of North Carolina’s best defensive producers, registering 45 total tackles (second on the team), leading the team with six tackles for loss and four quarterback hurries, recording two pass breakups and forcing one fumble.

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Copenhaver will now take over as the Tar Heels’ starting tight end, as Bryson Nesbit will miss several weeks with a fractured wrist. Copenhaver is tied for the UNC lead with three receiving touchdowns, plus his 193 receiving yards are fourth-most amongst his teammates.

Burnette, named to the preseason Lou Groza Award Watch List as a candidate for the nation’s best kicker, is 11-of-13 on field goals this season. Burnette is a perfect 2-for-2 on kicks from 50+, including a season-long 52.

Let’s see if North Carolina’s captains can help snap a long losing streak and get their team back to .500.

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Mack Brown talks about how UNC will honor Tylee Craft going forward

How will the UNC football team honor its late teammate, Tylee Craft, throughout the rest of 2024?

The North Carolina Tar Heels will try and turn their football season around Saturday at Virginia, but they’ll be doing so with heavy hearts.

UNC lost wide receiver Tylee Craft, one of the toughest kids to ever come through the program, to a lengthy battle with lung cancer on Saturday, Oct. 12. No one knew Tylee passed until after the game, when North Carolina head coach Mack Brown told his players and, shortly after, the media.

After the Georgia Tech loss, when Brown broke the sad news, he also spoke briefly about the Tar Heels’ plans to honor Tylee going forward.

Brown doubled down on those plans in his Monday press conference, highlight how Tylee will be honored through the reminder of UNC’s 2024 season.

“The players asked that we put “Tylee Strong, Keep Swinging,” signs up going into the stadium for the game, home and away,” Brown said. “We will carry a sign that says Tylee Strong, Keep Swinging to Virginia this weekend – and each player will touch it on the way out to the stadium. To make sure that his legacy is one that’s remembered – longer than just the players on the team – we have a commemorative plaque that explains who he was and what he went through. That will be up at the Nutrition Center for future players to look at. There will be a logo on the field with Tylee Strong for the last two home games, that have been approved by not only the university, but the ACC. And then one of the receivers will wear his jersey everyday at practice, and then they (the players) will decide, one of the receivers, will wear his jersey during each of the five remaining ballgames. It’ll be a different player each week, and they haven’t decided yet how they’re going to determine that.”

In addition to North Carolina’s plans in honoring Tylee, Virginia will be wearing Tylee Craft stickers on their helmets. Classy move from a big ACC rival.

The Tar Heels might be struggling big-time on the field, but you won’t find a program that cares more about its players. UNC loves and certainly misses Tylee, so I’m glad to see his former teammates and coaches carrying out his name.

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Virginia football players to honor Tylee Craft in Saturday’s UNC-UVA football game

Virginia is showing a tremendous display of class in Saturday’s Week 9 ACC football game against your North Carolina Tar Heels.

Even though it happened nearly two weeks ago, the passing of Tylee Craft to a long battle with lung cancer, still weighs heavy on the hearts within the UNC football program.

Tar Heel players knew about it shortly after the game, when head coach Mack Brown told them in the locker room. Brown then announced Craft’s passing in his postgame press conference, changing the mood very quickly and making people realize that Saturday, October 12 was no longer about football.

North Carolina still has to play a game this coming Saturday, traveling to Virginia for a 12 p.m. kickoff, but what the Cavaliers are doing to honor Craft might get you a little emotional.

On Tuesday, Oct. 22, UNC wide receivers coach Lonnie Galloway announced that Virginia players will wear Tylee Craft stickers on their helmets.

This doesn’t make what happened any easier, but it’s a tremendous display of class from one of the Tar Heels’ longtime ACC rivals.

For those who aren’t familiar with Craft’s recruiting background, he was initially a 4-star commit – and the seventh-ranked player in South Carolina – in the Tar Heels’ 2020 recruiting class. Craft appeared in 11 games between the 2020 and 2021 season, mainly at wide receiver and special teams, but didn’t record a stat.

Craft was diagnosed with a rare form of lung cancer ahead of the 2022 college football season. He then missed all of 2022 and 2023, but was a courageous warrior who wanted nothing more than to be on the football field, even if he couldn’t suit up and play.

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UNC baseball reserve Jackson Van De Brake delivers clutch pinch-hit double in CWS opener

Jackson Van De Brake defined what it means to be a pinch-hitter on Friday afternoon, mashing a ninth-inning, leadoff double in UNC’s 3-2 win over UVA to open the College World Series.

In the postseason, when base hits are tougher to come by, teams need their best bats to deliver.

Alberto Osuna, the UNC baseball team’s designated hitter, typically is one of the more reliable bats in the lineup. He was one of five Diamond Heels to finish the regular season with double-digit home run totals, plus one of six to reach the 50-RBI plateau.

With the exception of North Carolina’s Chapel Hill Regional opener vs. Long Island University, Osuna hasn’t found that same production at the plate. He’s an ice-cold 2-for-22, with both hits in that span coming during the 6-2 Regional loss against reigning CWS champion LSU.

Osuna’s struggles continued into UNC’s College World Series opener against ACC rival Virginia on Friday, June 14, with strikeouts in each of his three plate appearances.

That’s why, with the Diamond Heels entering the bottom of the ninth and tied at two with UVA, head coach Scott Forbes opted for a pinch-hitter ahead of Osuna’s fourth at-bat.

That pinch-hitter was Jackson Van De Brake, North Carolina’s 2023 starting second baseman.

Van De Brake proceeded to deliver his most important hit of the season, a lead-off double on a 2-2 count, that eventually led to UNC’s game-winning run.

Van De Brake is a reserve this season, primarily due to the emergence of Division-III transfer Alex Madera.

With big moments like Friday’s, coupled with Osuna’s continued struggles, Van De Brake may have just opened the door to more playing time in Omaha.

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Vance Honeycutt lines walk-off single to deliver UNC College World Series-opening win

Big players come through in big-time moments. UNC star Vance Honeycutt came through, yet again, on Friday afternoon in North Carolina’s College World Series opener.

Seriously, what can’t Vance Honeycutt do?

The UNC baseball team’s star center fielder has broken records left and right this season. He set North Carolina’s single-season program record for home runs (26) earlier this yar, breaking his own record, while becoming the lone player in ACC baseball history to mash 50 career home runs and drive in 70 runners.

Honeycutt expanded upon his regular season heroics in the Chapel Hill Regional, mashing two home runs in the Diamond Heels’ opener against Long Island University. In Game 1 of the Chapel Hill Super Regional, against a West Virginia squad making their first-ever appearance in that round, Honeycutt blasted a walk-off home run to left field that sent the Boshamer Stadium crowd into a frenzy.

You thought Honeycutt was done after the Regional and Super Regional rounds?

Think again.

In UNC’s College World Series opener on Friday, June 14 against the University of Virginia, Honeycutt lined a 2-1 pitch into left field and delivered his team a 3-2 victory.

Honeycutt entered his final at-bat 0-4 in the game, with a pair of groundouts and a flyout to center field.

That wouldn’t deter the face of North Carolina baseball in his biggest moment of the season.

As soon as Honeycutt’s swing made contact with Chase Hungate’s pitch, Diamond Heels pinch-hitter Jackson Van De Brake raced around third base and crossed home plate. Honeycutt turned and smiled at his dugout, with teammates racing out to mob him.

UNC now awaits the winner of Tennessee-Florida State on Sunday, June 16 at 7 p.m. ET.

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