LOUISVILLE, Ky. — As a result of a defensive performance from his team that coach Larry Fedora called “God awful,” Louisville racked up 360 yards of total offense in the first half against North Carolina on Saturday, scoring on every possession.
The Tar Heels, who ultimately lost a heart breaker, 39-34, went into the locker room trailing 36-7 at halftime. Linebacker Tommy Heffernan knew something desperately needed to be fixed.
“I think we weren’t as intense as we should have been,” he said. “I don’t think we were thinking right with assignments and stuff. Coming in at halftime, we realized we really needed to step it up.”
Defensively, that’s exactly what UNC did in the second half. The Tar Heels held Louisville to 102 yards after intermission, giving the North Carolina offense a chance to come from behind.
Even though the offense couldn’t complete the comeback, Fedora was pleased with the defensive turnaround.
Penalties plague North Carolina
The Tar Heels accrued six penalties for 38 yards in the loss in Louisville, but what will likely stick out most is the ill-timed false start that put the Tar Heels five yards farther away from the end zone on their final offensive play of the game.
On third and goal from the three-yard line, tight end Eric Ebron jumped too early. It appeared that quarterback Bryn Renner had a clear path to the end zone, but instead, the UNC offense had to move back to the eight-yard line.
The Tar Heels, who were down by just five, failed to put the ball in the end zone on that drive.
“We make it a point in our keys to victory: No self-inflicted wounds,” Renner said. “We didn’t execute in that category today.”
Morris makes up for first-half fumble
At the end of the first quarter, the Tar Heels already down 15-0, Renner completed a 24-yard pass to freshman running back Romar Morris. But as he approached midfield, he fumbled.
The Cardinals later scored a touchdown off that turnover. Morris was desperate to make up for his transgression.
In the second quarter, long before the Tar Heels staged their comeback, Morris began working on his own.
On second and two, Renner threw a pass to his rookie running back, who took it 44 yards for a touchdown. But still, he wasn’t quite done.
In the fourth quarter, Morris blocked the Cardinals’ first punt of the game. On the very next play, Renner connected with Ebron for a touchdown. Four minutes later Morris took a screen pass from Renner 50 yards for a touchdown.
“He grew up a lot,” Renner said. “He had one mistake, and he made up for it big time.”
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