Tar Heels sink East Carolina

In North Carolina’s 27-6 victory against East Carolina, the game looked like it was in slow motion for UNC quarterback Bryn Renner.

But for ECU quarterback Shane Carden, the Tar Heel pass rush was just too fast.

Renner broke the school record for passing yards in consecutive games, completing 27 of 43 passes for 321 yards and two touchdowns. Saturday’s performance followed his career-high of 363 passing yards last week at Louisville.

UNC coach Larry Fedora said he thinks Renner is learning from every mistake he makes.

“There is a lot to be said for that when you know actually what’s going to happen and the game actually slows down for you,” Fedora said. “In some instances it’s starting to work that way for him.

Renner said that his performance followed what his coaches regarded as one of his best weeks of practice.

“The more reps I get the more comfortable I feel, and I can say that for the whole offense,” Renner said.

On North Carolina’s (2-2, 0-1) second drive of the game, Renner led UNC from its own nine-yard line on an 11-play, 91-yard touchdown drive, capping the drive with a 14-yard pass to running back Giovani Bernard.

It was Bernard’s first touchdown in his return from an injury that he suffered in the first half of UNC’s season opener against Elon.

Bernard caught six passes for 52 yards and added 50 yards and a 4-yard touchdown on the ground.

Renner said Bernard’s presence helped open up the passing game.

“He brings guys in the box,” Renner said. “They’re going to want to stop him. It helps us out as a whole offense. The O-line can make their blocks quicker, and we can see the open throwing lanes.”

The Pirates (2-2) and Tar Heels both had had to settle for field goals after several drives stalled in the red zone, and UNC entered halftime with a 10-6 lead.

The Tar Heels first drive in the second half ended quickly, but on the first play of their next drive Renner found wide receiver Sean Tapley for a 62-yard score.

Tapley broke a tackle from ECU cornerback Joshua Hawkins and ran for his first career touchdown.

The Tar Heels outscored the Pirates 14-0 in the third quarter and have outscored opponents 52-0 in the third quarter this season.

Fedora said he didn’t know why the Tar Heels have been so effective in the third quarter.

“It’s not the halftime speeches, I’ll assure you,” Fedora said. “But it’s guys trying to come out with the same intensity level that we do at the beginning of the game.”

On the defensive side of the ball, the Tar Heels held ECU to just six points and kept their opponent out of the end zone for the second straight game at Kenan Stadium.

UNC’s defensive effort was bolstered by an effective pass rush that sacked Carden seven times in his second career start for the Pirates.

Carden finished the game 17 for 30 with 124 yards and a fumble.

Linebacker Kevin Reddick, who recorded nine total tackles, one sack and a forced fumble, said he entered the game ready to make Carden uncomfortable in the pocket.

“Any time you give a young cat pressure, he’s going to be rattled, so I think we did a good job with that,” Reddick said.

Fedora credited the Tar Heel secondary, which had previously been criticized as a weak link in the defense, for keeping receivers occupied while the pass rush closed in on Carden.

Eight different players contributed to the Tar Heels’ seven sacks.

“When you start getting that, it’s kind of like a feeding frenzy for sharks,” Fedora said. “When there’s blood in the water they start coming from everywhere, and that’s a good thing.”