Lopez shows dual-threat ability in bounce-back performance

By R.L. Bynum

CHARLOTTE — Gio Lopez needed a reset after a rough opening night. Five days later, the North Carolina quarterback delivered.

Lopez was sharper and steadier in the Tar Heels’ 20–3 win at Charlotte on Saturday, completing 17 of 25 passes for 155 yards and a touchdown while rushing for 44 yards. It was the kind of dual-threat performance UNC envisioned — and a bounce-back from his uneven showing in the loss to TCU.

He admitted the mood inside the locker room earlier in the week had been “down,” but the quick turnaround helped.

“Usually, you want to have a full week of recovery,” Lopez said, “but I think for us it was a positive to have a short week and get that taste out of our mouth.”

His play set the tone from the start. After a 30-minute weather delay, Lopez led a three-play, 71-yard touchdown drive capped by a 51-yard strike to Chris Culliver. He said the 30-minute weather delay didn’t throw the team off — in fact, it may have helped. Players sat together in the locker room, “a lot of chatter, a lot of positive chatter,” before hitting the field.

“You would think that would be a negative, but I think it was a positive for us,” Lopez said. “We just wanted to go out there and start fast.”

For the second straight game, UNC scored on its opening possession, something Lopez credited to the staff’s game planning.

“Our staff does a great job preparing throughout the week,” he said.

Lopez also ran more decisively than he did in Week 1, extending plays and picking up key yards on the ground. He said it wasn’t about comfort as much as simply playing freer.

“I think we all played way better today than we did Monday,” he said.

He did it while managing a sore back. Athletic trainers spent much of the week with him, about five to six hours a day, before they cleared him to play.

“My back feels all right. It feels better now,” Lopez said after the game.

It wasn’t flawless. Lopez pointed out the Tar Heels “still didn’t play our best ball,” but it was a step forward. And for a quarterback coming off a shaky debut, it was an important one.