The North Carolina football team defeated James Madison by a final score of 56-28. After allowing JMU to score 21 points in the first quarter, North Carolina settled down defensively and held the Dukes to one touchdown in the remaining 45 minutes of play.
What happened?
The North Carolina defense got off to a slow start, feeling the absence of injured defensive tackle Nazair Jones. James Madison had 222 yards of total offense in a dominant first quarter, and scored 21 points. The Dukes led 21-14 after the first quarter.
UNC settled in, though, starting in the second quarter. JMU did not score in the second quarter and managed just a single touchdown in the third.
The Tar Heel offense was efficient and explosive all afternoon. Mitch Trubisky and Ryan Switzer connected on a 75-yard touchdown pass on a flea flicker, a score in the first quarter that set the tone for the game.
The North Carolina rushing attack was led by Elijah Hood, who finished with 106 rushing yards on 18 attempts. He also had two scores.
Who stood out?
Quarterback Mitch Trubisky looked comfortable and in control all afternoon long, making only the third start of his career.
Trubisky finished 24 of 27 passing for 432 yards and three passing touchdowns, averaging over 20.2 yards per completion. And he didn’t even finish the fourth quarter, as Nathan Elliott came in for the closing drives.
