By R.L. Bynum
MINNEAPOLIS — In recent years, Carolina fans have been told that the defense is better, but those promises have never translated into performance on the field.
At least for most of the opener, the Tar Heels unit under first-year coordinator Geoff Collins proved their mettle. The unit forced five three-and-outs to help UNC overcome Max Johnson’s injury to earn a 19–17 victory Thursday night at Huntington Bank Stadium behind four second-half Noah Burnette field goals.
It wasn’t always pretty for Carolina but it was a win.
“We played great defense the first half and throughout the game, probably as good as we’ve played since we’ve been here,” UNC coach Mack Brown said. “Tough defense, especially against the run.”
Six Tar Heels had at least four tackles, led by Jakeen Harris with 10, and Jahvaree RitzIe had three sacks. On the final Minnesot a drive UNC’s defense held the Gophers to a 47-yard field goal attempt by Dragan Kesic that went wide right to end the game.
Connor Harrell, who relieved Johnson after the graduate beat him for the starting job, hit J.J. Jones on a 32-yard gain on play action on the game-winning drive capped by Burnette’s 45-yard boot with 1:44 left.
“Our kicking game was probably the best we’ve had,” Brown said. “We made every field goal. We kicked the ball out on kickoffs all but once, and covered it great. So, those are things that win football games and tight games, and especially on the road.”
As expected, the Tar Heels leaned heavily on junior running back Omarion Hampton, who ran for 129 yards on 30 carries. UNC won with only 252 total yards but held the Gophers to 244.
“What we haven’t done well in my estimation, and the last few years — we haven’t won games where one of the phases didn’t play well, and we found a way to win this game, and that’s what’s so important, is you. It’s all about winning,” Brown said.
An up-and-down game for Johnson, a graduate transfer quarterback, ended with heartbreak. Johnson, who beat out Harrell as the starter, suffered a right knee injury after taking a third-quarter hit and had to be carted off the field. He finished 12 of 19 for 71 yards and one interception, gaining 43 yards in the second half.
In the first half, he seemed to only throw to Jones but spread the ball around better in the second half before he got hurt.
“Hated that Max got hurt,” Brown said. “I thought he was getting his confidence and coming into his own in the third quarter when he got hurt. We’re not sure how badly he’s hurt. He’s at the hospital with his parents, and we will wait. He’s in our thoughts and prayers for sure.”
UNC got major breaks on consecutive first-half plays. After Kesich’s 27-yard field goal attempt by deflected off the right upright, a defensive holding penalty against the Gophers nullified Johnson’s lost fumble.
Johnson made up for it with a big 16-yard third-and-nine run and a three-yard touchdown run on a scramble to give UNC a 7–0 lead with 11:12 left in the first half. Left guard Aidan Banfield, a 6–3, 300-pound true freshman who got the start, looked impressive on the nine-play, 80-yard drive.
On a pass that tight end Bryson Nesbit could have caught, Johnson’s first interception as a Tar Heel — throwing it off his back foot under pressure and long — was returned 70 yards by the Gophers’ Justin Walley. Marcus Major’s five-yard touchdown run two plays later tied it with 7:35 left in the first half.
After UNC went three-and-out, Minnesota drove 65 yards for a 1-yard scoring plunge by Gophers quarterback Max Brosmer with 55 seconds left to give them a 14–7 halftime lead.
After Johnson only had 28 first-half passing yards, he got 32 on the initial second-half drive as UNC consumed nearly 8½ minutes and went 70 yards but had to settle for a 29-yard Burnette field goal.
After Johnson left the game, Burnette cut the deficit to one with a career-high 52-yard field goal with 23 seconds left in the third quarter.
Amare Cooper forced a fumble that Travis Shaw recovered to set up Burnette’s third field goal, a 42-yard boot to give the Heels the lead with 9:05 left.
Amare Campbell just missed a big sack, however, on Minnesota’s ensuing drive that included a fumbled reception that the Gophers recovered for a big gain. Kesich capped it with a 30-yard field goal to give Minnesota a 17–16 lead with 3:40 left.
NOTES — Carolina plays its next three games at Kenan Stadium, starting with the Saturday, Sept. 7, home opener against Charlotte (ACC Network). The 49ers open their season at 8 p.m. Saturday at home against James Madison (ESPNU), which visits UNC on Sept. 21. … Johnson got one game ball and Chancellor Lee Roberts got the other. … The start of the game was delayed one hour because of the weather forecast. … Star Minnesota running back Darius Taylor missed the game with a hamstring injury. … Jones had a slick toe drag on a catch on a third-and-four for a seven-yard gain on UNC’s first drive. … That is only the second-most field goals in a game for Burnett, who booted six last season against Duke. … UNC is 2–0 against Minnesota after beating the Gophers 31–13 in Chapel Hill last season. … Since 1988, Carolina is 9–2 in openers against power conference teams under Brown and 0–11 under all other coaches. … Minnesota shot off fireworks after the game as if the Gophers made the last-second field-goal attempt.
UNC 19, Minnesota 17
| Month/ date | Score/ time | Opponent | Record/ TV |
|---|---|---|---|
| September | |||
| 1 | L, 48–14 | vs. TCU | 0–1 |
| 6 | W, 20–3 | at Charlotte | 1–1 |
| 13 | W, 41–6 | vs. Richmond | 2–1 |
| 20 | L, 34–9 | at UCF | 2–2 |
| October | |||
| 4 | L, 38–10 | vs. Clemson | 2–3, 0–1 ACC |
| 17 (Fri.) | L, 21–18 | at California | 2–4, 0–2 |
| 25 | L, 17–16, OT | vs. No. 16 Virginia | 2–5, 0–3 |
| 31 (Fri.) | W, 27–10 | at Syracuse | 3–5, 1–3 |
| November | |||
| 8 | W, 20–15 | vs. Stanford | 4–5, 2–3 |
| 15 | L, 28–12 | at Wake Forest | 4–6, 2–4 |
| 22 | L, 32–25 | vs. Duke | 4–7, 2–5 |
| 29 | L, 42–19 | at N.C. State | 4–8, 2–6 |
Photo via @UNCFootball
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