Javonte Williams and The Heels Cruise by Syracuse, 31-6
Chapel Hill, N.C. - In a season opener without fans, North Carolina was their hype. Only 25 guests were allowed in Keenan Stadium. Tar Heel seniors were afforded the opportunity to have a guest and were featured beside fan cutouts. But the loss of fans didn't deter players from recreating scenes of the student section to swag-surfing on the sidelines; nothing was going to change the excitement of the game day.
Coming off a three-game winning streak to end the 2019 season, looming questions surround the Carolina program, are they going to live up to high expectations? North Carolina is entering the season ranked No. 18 and heading into an opponent they weren't prepared and a defensive scheme that seemingly got the best of them.
Early on, North Carolina lined up into tight end sets to Syracuse loading the box, giving North Carolina trouble running. True sophomore quarterback Sam Howell opened the Heels to a 12 play touchdown; for head coach Mack Brown, it happened too quickly,
"I thought we probably scored too quickly. They assumed it would be an easy day", Brown said through video conference post-game.
Howell finding his footing was the adjustment needed for Carolina. In the first half, the Heels looked sluggish and out of sync, as Howell had an interception in both halves. Howell now has 14 interceptions over his two-year career. Syracuse's Andre Cisco succeeded in picking off Howell in the Heels' second possession; Cisco is rated as the number one safety by Lindys and No. 7 by ESPN's Todd McShay.
In the second half, North Carolina made the adjustment that spread Syracuse out and attacked the spacing using the read pass option. The RPO was effective, allowing UNC to read the linebacker's flow and connecting on big routes. In the second half, the explosion of Javonte Williams boosted North Carolina's offense exhibiting the team Brown knew they were.
Getting back in rhythm was a theme for offense after a tumultuous first half.
"We just had to get back into a rhythm," Williams said. "Once the second half started, we just came together and made plays. Once we started scoring, it seemed like they faded away a little bit."
Michael Carter and Williams tagged team exhausting the Orange's defense, living up to their nickname of "Thunder and Lightning." Carter finished with 78 yards rushing and 60 yards receiving, Williams boasted 22 yards receiving and 57 yards rushing, sealing the Heels win with three touchdowns.
"Just trying to wear Syracuse down. The thing about Mike and me, once he gets tired, I can come in, but the linebackers really can't switch as easy as we can." Williams stated, "So I feel like we just wear him down and the big play coach we got to make."
Saturday afternoon, the Heels opened the season with a win for the first time since defeating Clemson in 1996 under Brown's first run as North Carolina's coach.
The Heels are currently in their longest win streak since 2016.
Lastly, the 202 yards were the fewest allowed by the Tar Heels against an ACC opponent since Boston College in 2009.
"Once we settled down, we became the offense we thought we would be coming into the ballgame. So we'll celebrate tonight." Brown said. "We'll be excited tonight, and then tomorrow we'll get after them. If you heard our meetings tomorrow, you think we would have lost the game."
North Carolina faces Charlotte in their first-ever in-state meeting at Keenan Stadium, September 19th at 3 pm.
Stay tuned with AllTarHeels for the latest releases.
You can follow us for future coverage by clicking “Follow” on the top right hand corner of the page.
Follow us on Twitter: @SI_Heels | @Quierra_Luck
Please post any comments below!
