At that point, the senior receiver had hauled in 15 balls for 199 yards. He had caught four passes on the drive already — including a sliding 15-yard catch on 4th-and-6 that kept the game alive for UNC, which trailed the Panthers 36-30.
After that play, Switzer was visibly exhausted from his efforts, so much so that fellow receiver Bug Howard made it a point to tell him there was still work to do.
“One time he was beside me, he was just like drowsy, and I was like, ‘Man, you gotta come on, baby,’” Howard said. “‘We’ve gotta have this. We gotta have this just for the Coastal.’”
Hands resting on his hips, the 5-foot-10, 185-pound receiver lined up in slot. After running across the field and just past the first-down line, Switzer locked eyes with quarterback Mitch Trubisky. It was that time again.
“I knew it was coming,” Switzer said. “So I was just trying to make a play for my quarterback.”
The ball came in high and at his outside shoulder, prompting Switzer to leap backward to try and make the grab. And as he had 15 other times that day, he came up big — bringing in the pass and stretching across the first-down line. The conversion allowed UNC to continue its drive and eventually pull off a dramatic 37-36 comeback win over the Panthers.
After the catch, Switzer jogged toward the sideline — pausing halfway to catch his breath and double over in pain — before finally making it off the field and crumpling onto the North Carolina bench.
“When you say leave it all on the field, that’s what that man did,” Howard said. “I mean he was walking, falling, like, ‘Man, I can’t.’ And he just pushed through for us. He was a real believer tonight.”
