No. 1 Miami Hangs On at North Carolina, 38-35, to Stay Unbeaten
The top-ranked Hurricanes needed two fourth-quarter touchdowns and a strip-sack in Chapel Hill on Halloween night: Mark Fletcher Jr.'s go-ahead run, then Darian Mensah's 9-yard strike to Malachi Toney with 2:33 left, held off a Tar Heels team that cut it to three with 1:38 to play.
No. 1 Miami's unbeaten season survived its Halloween scare. The Hurricanes beat North Carolina 38-35 at Kenan Stadium in Chapel Hill on Saturday night, closing with two fourth-quarter touchdowns after the Tar Heels had taken a 28-24 lead early in the final quarter, the University of Miami's official report and the game's official scoring record show.
Mark Fletcher Jr. put Miami back in front on a 2-yard touchdown run with 7:49 remaining — his third touchdown of the night, after a 31-yard touchdown catch in the second quarter and a 2-yard scoring run in the third. On North Carolina's next possession the Hurricanes' defense forced a strip-sack, and Miami turned the takeaway into the cushion it needed: Darian Mensah found Malachi Toney for a 9-yard touchdown with 2:33 left, for a 38-28 lead. Mensah finished 22 of 29 for 274 yards and three touchdowns, according to the game's official statistics.
North Carolina (4-4, 2-3 ACC) did not fold. Billy Edwards, who threw a career-high four touchdown passes and passed for more than 300 yards, connected with Trech Kekahuna on a 15-yard touchdown with 1:38 left to make it 38-35. The Tar Heels' onside-kick attempts in the final seconds were wiped out by penalties, Miami recovered the last one and ran out the clock. The win snapped Miami's five-game losing streak at Kenan Stadium, the university reported, and sends the unbeaten Hurricanes into next weekend's matchup with Notre Dame as the nation's top-ranked team.
