Tar Heels Looking for Second Straight Win Tomorrow

TAR HEELS SEEK SECOND STRAIGHT VICTORYAfter earning its first victory of the season last weekend against archrival NC State, North Carolina steps out of conference to face Utah of the Mountain West Conference on Saturday, October 1 at Kenan Stadium.
Kickoff is set for 1:35 p.m. The game will be televised locally only in Salt Lake City by KJZZ. Last season, Utah beat the Tar Heels, 46-16, behind a potent offense that gained 669 total yards, the most ever by a UNC opponent. This is the second game of a two-game series between the Utes and Tar Heels.
Carolina enters Saturday's contest after an emotional come-from-behind victory over NC State in Raleigh. Carolina rallied from 10 points down to win after trailing 24-14 in the third quarter. Matt Baker rebounded from a first half that saw him complete just one pass (a touchdown) to complete 12 of 14 in the second period for 174 yards and another touchdown. Tailback Barrington Edwards rushed for a career-high 129 yards and scored a touchdown, while Carolina's receivers atoned for mistakes from the previous two weeks to made several big plays.
The Tar Heels are seeking their first victory over a non-conference opponent since opening the 2004 season with a 49-28 victory over William & Mary. Utah (3-1) has won 19 of its last 20, including last Thursday night's 38-35 victory over Air Force. The only blemish was a 23-20 loss to TCU in overtime earlier this year.

LAST TIME: UTAH 46, UTAH 16 - OCTOBER 16, 2004SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - Alex Smith threw four touchdown passes and ran for another score to help No. 11 Utah rout North Carolina 46-16 on October 16, 2004. Smith wound up 29-for-37 and 341 yards as Utah (6-0) won its third game en route to an undefeated season.

• Madison Hedgecock scored his first career touchdown on a 1-yard carry on the Tar Heels' opening drive. He later scored again in the second half on another 1-yard carry.
• North Carolina sustained several injuries in the first half. OG Kyle Ralph (sprained left ankle), TB Ronnie McGill (sprained left ankle), DE Melik Brown (concussion), TB Jacque Lewis (back contusion), TE Justin Phillips (sprained left ankle) and QB Darian Durant (right elbow sprain) did not return. DT Kyndraus Guy bruised his quad, but did return later in the second half.
• Carolina surrendered a school-record 669 total yards of offense to the Utes. The previous record was 657 by Arizona State in 2002. Carolina won that game, 33-31.

CAROLINA NOTEBOOK
DEFENSE RANKED 50th: After finishing 100th or worse in each of the last three seasons, North Carolina's defensive unit is ranked 50th in the country, allowing 349.7 yards per game. That average includes the 475 yards allowed in the opening game of the season to Georgia Tech. In week two, Carolina held Wisconsin to 304 yards, and last week, NC State was limited to just 270 total yards. Last year, Carolina allowed 669 total yards of offense to Utah, the most ever by an opponent.

After Carolina's first three games in 2004, including one against an NCAA Division I-AA team, UNC had surrendered 107 points and 1,384 yards. This season, against a schedule some college football analysts rank the most difficult in the nation, Carolina has allowed 65 points and 1,049 yards.

MORE "D": Carolina limited NC State to just 13 rushing yards in a 31-24 victory over the Wolfpack. That is the fewest rushing yards Carolina has allowed under John Bunting and the fewest since holding Wake Forest to -2 yards rushing in a 35-14 victory in 2000.
SACK ATTACK: Through the first three games of the year, Carolina has 10 sacks, an average of 3.3 per game. The Tar Heels are second in the league in sacks per game. All 10 sacks have come in the last two games. After failing to record a sack in the season opener against Georgia Tech, Carolina had four sacks against Wisconsin and six against NC State. Last year, Carolina had just 20 sacks all season.

BARRINGTON BREAKS OUT: Sophomore tailback Barrington Edwards rushed for a career-high 129 yards on 25 carries and scored one touchdown in Carolina's 31-24 victory over NC State. He became the first Tar Heel to rush for 100 yards in a game against NC State since Jonathan Linton had 177 yards in 1997 (also in Raleigh).

Against the ACC's second-ranked defense, Edwards got Carolina started early with a career-best 62-yard run on the second play of the game. That was the longest run by a Tar Heel since 2003. Trailing by 10 in the third quarter vs. NC State, Carolina marched 80 yards and scored on a 2-yard run by Edwards, the first touchdown of his career. Late in the game as the Tar Heels attempted to run time off the clock on their final drive of the game, Edwards had a 16-yard run on 3rd and 8 to pick up a first down. Edwards ranks sixth in the league in rushing, averaging 62.7 yards per game.

RUNNING GAME GETS ON TRACK: Carolina entered the NC State game with 118 rushing yards in its first two games, but finished with 144 against NC State, including 114 in the first half. Tailback Barrington Edwards had a 62-yard run on the second play of the game, which was one yard more than Carolina rushed for against Georgia Tech (61) for the game and five more than the Tar Heels rushed for against Wisconsin (57) for the game.

BAKER'S BIG HALF: QB Matt Baker had a spectacular second-half in Carolina's victory over NC State, completing 12 of 14 attempts for 174 yards and a touchdown. In the first half, he completed just 1 of 9 attempts for three yards. However, that pass was a 3-yard scoring strike to Jarwarski Pollock.

RICHARDSON, DAVIS LEAD DEFENSIVE EFFORT VS. NC STATE: Outside linebacker Tommy Richardson led Carolina's defensive effort vs. NC State with nine tackles, including seven solo stops and two assists, two tackles for losses, one sack and one fumble recovery. He had two tackles for losses of 13 yards and recorded his first career sack on a 12-yard loss that forced an NC State punt. After recovering an NC State fumble at the two-yard line, Carolina scored on the next possession.

Defensive end Tommy Davis had what coach John Bunting called "his best game ever at Carolina," in Carolina's 31-24 victory over the Wolfpack. Davis was credited with two sacks for 24 yards and three quarterback pressures. He had the highest grade of any Tar Heel defensive lineman in the victory. Davis' first sack came on NC State's first drive of the game and was an 18-yard loss on 3rd and 6. His second sack came in the third quarter on 3rd and 7, forcing another Wolfpack punt.

WINNING AT CARTER-FINLEY: North Carolina's victory over NC State was its fifth in the last six games played against the Wolfpack at Carter-Finley Stadium in Raleigh dating back to 1993. The Tar Heels have beaten the Pack on its home turf in 1993, 1995, 1997, 2001 and 2005. In 1999, Carolina beat NC State in Charlotte and in 2003, the Pack beat the Tar Heels in Raleigh. Carolina now leads the series, 62-27-6. Bunting improved to 3-2 as head coach against NC State.

Source-TarHeelBlue