By R.L. Bynum

CHAPEL HILL — No. 14 North Carolina destroyed any doubts about its potential with an offensive explosion and an unyielding defensive show.

In the undefeated Tar Heels’ most complete game of the season, they dominated a good Syracuse team Saturday 40–7 at Kenan Stadium in an effort that should command plenty of national attention.

“I don’t think I’ve seen a first half that dominant in a long time,” UNC coach Mack Brown said.

Wide receiver Tez Walker showed off his skills in his Carolina debut, but he was a small part of another dazzling day for redshirt sophomore Drake Maye. It was a challenge for Walker, who hadn’t got first-team reps in practice for three weeks.

“I just felt blessed to be out there,” Walker said. “My teammates have been in my corner since I arrived. Regardless if it’s on the field or off, my teammates are there for me. I’m truly blessed.”

What was his Thursday reaction to the news?

“I was shocked. I was surprised, but I was just glad it was over. It just felt like a weight was just
lifted off my shoulders,” said Walker, who also described his grandmother’s reaction. “She screamed. I had to turn my phone down because she screamed so loud. She was very
happy, and my mom teared up. It was a special moment.”

Maye completed 33 of 47 passes for 442 yards and three touchdowns.

“He brings so much joy to this team,” Maye said of Walker. “It was good to have him out there with us today.”

Maye became the fourth player in program history (along with Sam Howell, Mitch Trubisky and T.J. Yates) with three games of at least 400 passing yards. Wide receivers Nate McCollum (7 catches, 135 yards) and Kobe Paysour (3 catches, 100 yards) each had big games.

“We’re talented, and we’re older,” Brown said. “A lot of the guys that had been criticized in the past were highly recruited players but were probably playing before they were ready to play. Now, they’re getting older and have experience. Through five games, we’ve seen guys like Myles Murphy,
Dez Evans and Kaimon Rucker show up a lot in games. I think we are starting to see their
experience show up on top of good coaching.”

Running back Omarion Hampton put on a punishing running display in the first half, when he ran for 60 of his 78 yards.

Syracuse coach Dino Babers said his team just couldn’t stop Maye.

“Pick something,” Babers said. “He used his legs, he kept himself protected. When we played
zone, he was on the money. That’s a high-draftable quarterback. We said that coming in today
and I still feel that way.”

UNC (5–0, 2–0 ACC), off to its best start since 8–0 in 1997, scored on its first seven drives and coasted from there. The Tar Heels, who have scored at least 40 points in three of the last four games, had 424 total yards in the first half and finished with 644.

“We’re starting to play better defense,” said Brown, who credited better gap control as being one big factor. “They’re not worn out all the time, and you’re less likely to be flat.”

Maye said the defense’s showing inspired the offense.

“It kind of puts the pressure on us to keep scoring and keep making that lead bigger,” Maye said. “They’re doing a great job. I feel like it’s one of those things where they get a good stop, or they get a three and out, and you don’t score, you kind of let them down.”

Linebacker Cedric Gray led the defense with eight tackles, a sack, a forced fumble, and he hurried the quarterback once.

“The big emphasis this week was to stop their quarterback,” Tomari Fox, who had two tackles, said of Garrett Schrader. “Essentially, we knew that he was their guy. As a defense, we knew he impacts the game with his legs. Today, we had guys who weren’t selfish, who weren’t getting too invested in their rushes or taking their eyes off of where he might go. That was our big emphasis coming into tonight and we did a good job of executing the plan.”

With Willie Lampkin back starting on the offensive line at right guard, UNC’s offense was consistent.

“Our offensive line was better tonight and having Willie Lampkin back helped,” Brown said.

The Heels took the opening kickoff 64 yards before stalling out, with Noah Burnette kicking a 29-yard field goal.

Maye pushed it in from a yard out for a touchdown on a crazy 94-yard, 17-play second drive. Punter Ben Kiernan kept the drive going when his punt was blocked, but he caught the ball on the bounce and ran 17 yards for the first down, taking a hard hit at the end of the play.

“He deserves a game ball for that. He’s a trooper. That is a very athletic play,” Fox said.

Maye connected with tight ends on touchdown passes in the next two drives. Bryson Nesbit made a nice catch in the right side of the end zone on a 23-yard play, then John Copenhaver took a shovel pass from a yard out to cap a season-high 95-yard drive. McCollum keyed the latter drive with a 48-yard reception.

A 24-yard Burnette field goal with seven seconds left gave UNC a 27–0 halftime lead.

After Syracuse only had 70 total first-half yards, the Orange took the second-half kickoff and drove 75 yards for a one-yard LeQuint Allen touchdown run. Carolina responded with a 36-yard Burnette field goal.

Paysour tipped a pass, pulled it down with a circus catch and sprinted away from Syracuse’s Alijah Clark on a 77-yard touchdown reception, the longest of his career and Maye’s second-longest touchdown pass.

Burnette added a 31-yard field goal with 5:08 left to become the first Tar Heel with four field goals in a game since Freeman Jones against Virginia Tech in 2019.

Brown praised the sellout crowd, although there were still some empty seats.

“That’s what college football is supposed to be like,” he said. “It’s supposed to help your university and it’s supposed to help your community. Right now, it’s doing all of that with our undefeated team. I’m proud of our guys.”

Syracuse (4–2, 0–2), playing its first road game, has lost two in a row after winning its first four games.

NOTES — Carolina plays the second of three consecutive home games next Saturday at 7:30 (ABC) against No. 17 Miami (4–1, 0–1 ACC), which got upset 23–20 on Saturday night at home against Georgia Tech. … UNC nose tackle Kevin Hester Jr. missed the game with a lower-body injury. … Walker carried the North Carolina state flag as the team ran onto the field before the game. “Being from North Carolina and growing up in the state, it is a great honor. Everybody from North Carolina dreams about running out with the flag at this university,” Walker said. … UNC took a 4–3 lead in the series with Syracuse, with the teams splitting four Kenan Stadium games. Carolina has won back-to-back games after a 31–6 win in Chapel Hill in 2020. … Maye’s third-quarter fumble was UNC’s first this season. … This is UNC’s first 5–0 start since 1997, second since 1983 and 10th in program history. … The 33-point win was Carolina’s largest against the Orange (UNC won by 25 in 2020). … Carolina is 81–16–3 against unranked teams as a top-15 team. … The Tar Heels have scored at least 30 points in the first five games three times: this season, last season and 1914. … UNC is 292–32 when it scores more than 30 points. … The seven points were the fewest UNC has allowed in a game since a 38–7 win over Duke on Oct. 2, 2021.

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No. 14 UNC 40, Syracuse 7

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ACC standings

Team	ACC	All
X — No. 5 Florida State	8–0	12–0
X — No. 9 Louisville	7–1	10–2
N.C. State	6–2	9–3
Georgia Tech	5–3	6–6
Virginia Tech	5–3	6–6
Clemson	4–4	8–4
North Carolina	4–4	8–4
Duke	4–4	7–5
Miami	3–5	7–5
Boston College	3–5	6–6
Syracuse	2–6	6–6
Pittsburgh	2–6	3–9
Virginia	2–6	3–9
Wake Forest	1–7	4–8

Friday’s result
Miami 45, Boston College 20
Saturday’s games
Kentucky 38, No. 9 Louisville 31
Duke 30, Pittsburgh 19
Syracuse 35, Wake Forest 31
No. 1 Georgia 31, Georgia Tech 23
Virginia Tech 55, Virginia 17
Clemson 16, South Carolina 7
No. 5 Florida State 24, Florida 15
N.C. State 39, North Carolina 20
Next Saturday’s ACC championship game in Charlotte
No. 9 Louisville vs. No. 5 Florida State, 8 p.m., ABC

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UNC schedule

Month/ date	Opponent/event	2023 record	UNC record in series
April
20	Spring game, 3 p.m.	—	—
August
29 (Thurs.)	at Minnesota	6–7	1–0
September
7	Charlotte	3–9	0–0
14	N.C. Central	9–3	0–0
21	James Madison	11–2	3–0
28	at Duke	8–5	65–40–4
October
5	Pittsburgh	3–9	12–5
12	Georgia Tech	7–6	22–33–3
26	at Virginia	3–9	66–58–4
November
2	at Florida State	13–1	3–17–1
16	Wake Forest	4–8	72–36–2
23	at Boston College	7–6	6–2
30	N.C. State	9–4	68–39–6

Photo via @UNCFootball