UNC Football: Helmet stickers for statement victory over Miami
How about them Tar Heels?
The 12th-ranked UNC football team is still loving life, this time after a convincing, 41-31 primetime victory over Miami Saturday night in Kenan Stadium.
Trailing by three at halftime, Carolina star receiver Devontez Walker caught his second of three touchdowns and gave his team the lead for good (20-17). Despite allowing 31 points and nearly 500 yards, the Tar Heel defense didn’t allow a second-half score until just over the fourth quarter’s halfway mark. Omarion Hampton enjoyed his first 100-yard outing since Week 2 against App State, as the sophomore from Clayton, N.C. torched the Hurricane defense for 197 yards.
In a larger outlook, UNC’s win might just move it into the AP Poll Top 10. It beat a ranked team, in rather dominating fashion, while 11th-ranked Alabama barely squeaked by a struggling, unranked Arkansas squad and 10th-ranked USC was spanked by Notre Dame.
The AP Poll won’t come out until later today, but it’s always fun to speculate how far up the rankings Carolina moves. Do they even jump an Oregon team that Washington took care of yesterday?
While we wait to find out, let’s take a deeper look into which Tar Heels earned our Helmet Stickers for this week’s victory:
Devontez Walker
Though he’s a very humble student-athlete that won’t take any credit away from his teammates, there’s no doubt that no single UNC player feels better about yesterday’s thumping of Miami than junior wide receiver Devontez Walker.
The former West Charlotte standout had several family members in the Kenan Stadium seats to watch him suit up for his second game. The typically-crooked NCAA finally reversed its decision on Walker’s eligibility two weeks ago, clearing him to start against Syracuse.
Walker caught six passes for just 43 yards in last week’s Tar Heel win against the Orange, but what he did against an usually-stout Miami defense was nothing short of amazing.
Walker hauled in six Drake Maye passes for a game-high 132 yards and three touchdowns, putting the college football world on notice.
Against a significantly weaker UVA defense next week, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Walker perform even better.
Drake Maye
Though Tez Walker was the main highlight of Chapel Hill last night, Tar Heels quarterback Drake Maye thrived again in the national spotlight.
Maye completed just over 50 percent of his passes (17-33), but threw for 273 yards and four touchdown. His fourth and final touchdown pass went to Hampton, whose 4-yard reception extended Carolina’s lead to 34-17 (extra point made it 35-17).
After throwing multiple interceptions in two of UNC’s first three games, Maye has now gone three straight matchups without a pick. He’ll get another chance to extend his interception-less streak next weekend against UVA.
Omarion Hampton
One of the players we had our eye on ahead of the UNC-Miami clash was Tar Heels running back Omarion Hampton.
The sophomore back ran all over the App State defense for 234 yards and three scores in Week 2, but didn’t have a 100-yard outing since.
That changed last night.
Hampton was virtually unstoppable against Miami, carrying the rock 24 times for 197 yards and a touchdown. Hampton’s second-quarter score helped UNC tie the game at 14, while he caught a Maye pass that pushed UNC’s lead to 17.
What made Hampton’s outing significantly more impressive was that it came against a top-ranked Miami run defense. Entering the UNC-Miami battle, the Hurricanes allowed opponents to gain just 58.2 rushing yards per game, second in the entire FBS.
Miami no longer has one of the country’s best run defenses – and it’s all thanks to Hampton.
Cedric Gray
It seems like UNC linebacker Cedric Gray’s name makes a weekly appearance in our postgame stories.
Rightfully so.
The senior linebacker from Charlotte, N.C. has been a leader on the Tar Heel defense all year, creating chaos for opposing quarterbacks whether in pursuit or back in coverage. Gray leads Carolina with 52 tackles, is second with 5.5 tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks.
Gray enjoyed his best game of the year last night, notching a team-high 10 tackles (one for loss) and recovering a fumble. He’s one of the main reasons UNC is at 6-0 for the first time in 26 years.
Kaimon Rucker
One of the many reasons UNC’s defense has thrived in 2023 is its defensive line’s ability to generate pressure.
The main man behind that pressure is senior Kaimon Rucker, another leader on this defense.
If you wanted to call Rucker “The Sackman,” it’d be a fitting nickname. He anchors the Tar Heel defense with 6.5 sacks, 2.5 of which he led all players in yesterday’s UNC-Miami matchup.
Rucker’s production goes beyond his impressive sack totals – he also leads the Tar Heels with 10 tackles for loss. 2.5 of those came yesterday against Miami.
With Rucker and Gray terrorizing opposing offenses on a weekly basis, the UNC defense is in good shape.
