You can't be mad in the slightest bit for how UNC played against Miami (FL) in a special-edition, Halloween ACC football clash on Saturday night in Kenan Stadium.
North Carolina collapsed the week before against a struggling Syracuse team, which now has two straight wins. Surely, the top-ranked Hurricanes would punish the Tar Heels even harder for their mistakes.
UNC traded blows with Miami for 60 minutes, coming within a field goal under two minutes to go, but losing 38-35 in another heartbreaker.
The Hurricanes (8-0, 6-0 ACC) took their fifth and final lead midway through the fourth quarter, thanks to Mark Fletcher Jr.'s second touchdown. Miami's defense couldn't stop a turtle on Saturday night, but generated a game-changing play on North Carolina's
(4-4, 2-3 ACC) ensuing drive, thanks to Marquise Lightfoot's strip-sack of Billy Edwards on the latter's career night.
The Tar Heels tied their season-high with 35 points, starting with a Billy Edwards-Jelani Thurman connection three minutes into the second quarter. Just out of the first half's 2-minute timeout, Edwards and Thurman linked up again, tying the score at 14-all on Rece Verhoff's second extra point.
UNC's scoring barrage ended with Edwards' career-best fourth touchdown pass, coming via a 15-yard strike to former Wisconsin teammate Trech Kekahuna. North Carolina totaled 407 yards, its first time surpassing the 400 mark since a home-opening, 35-3 domination of ETSU.
The Hurricanes played every bit as advertised, highlighted by their Darian Mensah-Malachi Toney connection. Great teams deliver memorable plays amidst game-long struggles, which Lightfoot did with the Tar Heels trying to find another go-ahead score.
Again, there's no moral victories in college football, but UNC took the country's top team to the wire on Saturday night. Here's five takeaways from the Halloween loss.
North Carolina's offense gives it a chance in every game
Edwards is a good quarterback. Thurman is one of the ACC's best tight ends. The Tar Heels have three RB1s in their room.
Edwards and Thurman stole the show Saturday night, showcasing their chemistry with a pair of first-half touchdown passes. UNC sliced apart Miami's offense for 400+ yards, scoring 30 points for the second-straight week and 20 for the sixth-straight.
North Carolina's offense is well-rounded, talented and the main reason behind a near-upset on Saturday night inside Kenan.
The Tar Heels' defense struggled
UNC allowed over 400 yards to an opponent for a second-straight week. Miami and Syracuse both have great offenses, but even the best teams stall on drives.
North Carolina's defense generates stops, but doesn't come through when it counts most. The Tar Heels couldn't slow the Hurricanes down Saturday night, particularly in the second half, allowing Mensah and Toney to build upon their Heisman campaigns.
Billy Edwards is playing a lot beter
Say what you want about Edwards, but he's playing great football right now. UNC's starting quarterback enjoyed the best game of his career on Saturday night, picking apart the Hurricanes' defense with 341 passing yards and a career-best fourth touchdowns.
Edwards completed passes to nine different teammates, linking with Thurman for five completions and a pair of touchdowns. Sure, Edwards had that costly fumble late, but you can blame that one on North Carolina's offensive line.
With increasing yardage total and seven touchdowns in the Tar Heels' past three games, Edwards cemented himself as the guy on Saturday night.
UNC's lack of a pass-rush is noticeable
What happened to North Carolina's pass-rush? Once a factor in helping the Tar Heels win games, sacks and TFLs are now hard to come by.
UNC has just two sacks and six TFLs over its past two games, with linebacker Peyton Seelmann generating those QB takedowns. Xavier Lewis isn't impacting games in the trenches, while Melkart Abou-Jaoude is struggling coming back from injury.
When your quarterback has all day to throw, it's pretty easy to win football games. Both Syracuse and Miami took advantage of plentiful pocket time, with Mensah and Steve Angeli playing flawless football.
North Carolina should still make a bowl game
The Tar Heels should beat UConn on November 7 in East Hartford, while Louisville (Nov. 14), Virginia (21st) and NC State are all beatable opponents.
UNC already withstood its toughest tests in Notre Dame and Miami, playing both National Championship contenders close. North Carolina should have a couple more wins, if not for untimely mistakes.
With two more wins, the Tar Heels are bowl-eligible for the first time since 2024.
This article originally appeared on Tar Heels Wire: Five takeaways from UNC's 3-point loss against top-ranked Miami (FL)
