Antonio Williams leads strong running back trio in UNC's 38-35 win over Pittsburgh

Minutes before the North Carolina football team ran out of the tunnel and onto the field at Kenan Memorial Stadium to play for the first time this season, Antonio Williams was deep in his own head.

The junior running back thought. He thought about his journey from Columbus to Chapel Hill. He thought about those that doubted him.

“My journey, I wish it would’ve went other ways,” said Williams, an Ohio State transfer. “I’m happy to be here, but I’m also upset that things haven’t went the way that I thought everything was going to go. I feel like I’m proving myself every time.”

Williams certainly proved himself on Saturday. The New London, N.C. native ran for 114 yards and two touchdowns in the Tar Heels’ 38-35 win against Pittsburgh.

UNC’s win marked its first of the season, after losses on the road to California and East Carolina. Just as he did two weeks ago in Greenville, N.C., Williams set the tone for the offense early.

North Carolina started its first drive of the game from its own 30-yard line and marched quickly into Pittsburgh territory. After a 6-yard rush from running back Jordon Brown and a 3-yard reception from Williams, UNC found itself in a fourth-and-one on the Panthers’ 37-yard line.

Then, they ran a play that Williams had seen in practice for days leading up to that moment. Quarterback Nathan Elliott handed the ball off to Williams, who sped through the hole his offensive line created.

The 5-foot-11, 210-pound power back juked a Panther at the 25-yard line on his way to the end zone for the 37-yard score.

“All week, I knew that the safety was coming downhill,” Williams said. “That was my job to make him miss — either run him over or make him miss. I made him miss and went and did the rest.”

UNC built its momentum early, but Pittsburgh had an answer. Panther quarterback Kenny Pickett finished the next drive by diving for the pylon for a 7-yard touchdown to tie the game with 2:31 left in the first quarter.

Williams’ second rushing touchdown came when the Tar Heels were a yard away from the end zone in the first minute of the second quarter. He dove high in the air and flew past the goal line to help North Carolina take back its lead.

“As soon as I saw the guys kind of get cut to the ground, I was like, ‘I’m not stepping over them,’” Williams said. “‘I could get tripped up. Why not take it through the air?’ So, I did.”

Williams wasn’t the only running back that made an impact. Sophomore Michael Carter played for the first time this season after missing two games with a broken hand. He and Brown found ways to put points on the board, too.

With a little less than six minutes remaining in the first half, Elliott threw it to a wide-open Carter for a 31-yard touchdown.

Elliott, who broke out of a slump and threw for 313 yards and two touchdowns, expressed his appreciation of the versatility of the Tar Heel running backs.

“It’s great to see that our backs have great hands, because not all backs have great hands,” Elliott said.

The Tar Heels needed to score after falling behind 28-21 at halftime. Brown gave the offense the spark it was looking for when he ran around a few Panthers and scored a 1-yard touchdown. His score sparked a run of 17 consecutive points for UNC.

Pittsburgh couldn’t find a way to respond until late in the game, when it scored with 3:12 left to cut its deficit to three points.

Fans at Kenan Memorial Stadium were on their feet as UNC had the ball with a 38-35 lead and looked to run out the clock. The Tar Heels faced second-and-eight with a minute and a half left to play when the Panthers called a timeout.

The break gave Williams a chance to think again. This time, however, his thoughts were a bit different.

“‘Get the first down,'” Williams said he told himself. “‘Seal this game, and let’s go in the locker room and celebrate.’”

After the timeout, Williams broke free for a 15-yard run, capturing his first career game of over 100 rushing yards and effectively ending the contest as the Tar Heels moved into victory formation.

North Carolina beat an FBS opponent at home for the first time in almost two years — the celebration Williams anticipated was long overdue.

@pupadhyaya_

@DTHSports | sports@dailytarheel.com