And just like that, college footballs’ regular season is coming to a close.
What started as a year full of hope and promise, is now a year with heartbreak and unexpected results.
You’ve seen traditional powers, like Clemson, lose to a historically bad Duke team. Ohio State went into Ann Arbor earlier today, hoping to secure its spot in the College Football Playoff, only for Michigan to win a third-consecutive battle. Arizona, a program who hasn’t finished with a winning record since 2017, is now ranked and about to nab its ninth victory.
Two seasons that are exactly the same right now, but have gone in completely opposite directions, are those of UNC and NC State. These two ACC rivals, who the football hatred runs deep between, are facing off at 8 p.m. ET tonight.
Carolina started 6-0 and was ranked 10th in the AP Poll, putting them in fringe College Football Playoff position. Consecutive losses to Georgia Tech and lowly UVA, plus later Clemson, killed both CFP and ACC Championship hopes.
The Wolfpack were sitting at 4-3, unsure of who their starting quarterback was, but are now in the midst of a 4-game winning streak.
One of our favorite things to do before games is look at team captains. For UNC, those captains are quarterback Drake Maye, tight end John Copenhaver and star linebacker Cedric Gray.
IT’S GAMEDAAAAAAY 🗣️#CarolinaFootball 🏈 #UNCommon pic.twitter.com/8paQ8zZnBQ
— Carolina Football (@UNCFootball) November 25, 2023
Even with an off week at Clemson, Maye still leads the ACC with 3,354 passing yards. Copenhaver hasn’t been utilized as much in recent weeks, but is still one of three Carolina tight ends with 100 receiving yards. Gray is the only Tar Heel with 100 tackles, plus one of two in the ACC (Payton Wilson) to reach the century mark.
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