UNC football trails Duke, 21-17, at halftime in Victory Bell showdown

At the half, North Carolina trail the Duke Blue Devils, 21-17, at Wallace Wade Stadium.

UNC opened the scoring with a 45-yard field goal on the night’s first drive, but the Blue Devils responded with a touchdown moments later. Costly turnovers and Riley Leonard’s explosiveness on the ground have helped Duke take a four-point lead into the break.

Here are three takeaways from the first half of play:

UNC altering tempos

On the first play from scrimmage, redshirt first-year quarterback Drake Maye found senior wide receiver Antoine Green streaking down the sidelines for a 53-yard pickup. But after Maye fumbled on the ensuing set of downs, UNC’s drive and the team settled for a field goal.  

After failing to find pay dirt, North Carolina went with a change of pace on its following drive. Following a Duke score, the Tar Heels implemented their hurry-up offense — snapping multiple plays with close to 30 seconds remaining on the play clock — to keep Duke’s defense on its heels.

The decrease in time between plays helped North Carolina drive deep into Blue Devil territory, where it then returned to a normal speed of play. Graduate tight end Kamari Morales then hauled in a 10-yard touchdown later in the same drive to trim the

North Carolina returned to a quick pace during its two-minute drill at the end the half. The drive resulted in a touchdown and inched the Tar Heels within one score.

UNC’s ability to be successful with different paces will be something to observe in the second half. 

Riley Leonard using his legs

Head coach Mack Brown and assistant head coach for defense Gene Chizik pointed to quarterback Riley Leonard's ability to use his legs as a point of emphasis for the Tar Heel defense. 

Coming into Saturday’s contest, Leonard stood as the second-leading rusher for the Blue Devils with 290 rushing yards. From Duke’s first possession, his ability to pick up yards on the ground have been on display.

One Duke's first drive, Leonard scampered for six yards to pick up a first down near midfield and scrambled for 15 yards to drive the Blue Devils inside the five-yard line. On the next play, Leonard handed the ball off to running back Jordan Waters to give Duke an early lead.

The Fairhope, Ala. native also showed his big-play ability, darting for a 74-yard score late in the second quarter. Leonard’s long touchdown run helped Duke retake the lead.

Through the first half, he leads the Blue Devils with 106 rushing yards.

Caleb Hood carrying over impressive play

After breaking out last week against Miami with 74 rushing yards, Caleb Hood has continued to cement himself as the Tar Heels’ lead running back.

On North Carolina’s second drive, UNC used the sophomore back in a variety of ways — putting Hood outside the numbers with multiple speed option plays and barreling the 225-pounder between the tackles. UNC’s ability to find its rushing attack played a key role in the Tar Heels finding the end zone for the first time.

Hood’s counterpart, first-year Omarion Hampton, has added to North Carolina’s running game with 16 yards. Maye has found success on the ground with 42 rushing yards of his own — but the standout quarterback committed a costly fumble later in the first half.  

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