CLEMSON, S.C. — The North Carolina football team trails Clemson, 22-7, after the first half of its ACC opener at Death Valley.
After UNC’s record-setting 70-41 loss to East Carolina last week, during which the Tar Heels allowed a program record in points (70) and total yards of offense (789), Clemson took advantage of the struggling UNC defense, fast and early.
On Clemson’s first drive, true freshman quarterback Deshaun Watson — making his first career start — connected with wide receiver Germone Hopper on a 74-yard touchdown pass to give the Tigers an early 7-0 lead just two plays and 35 seconds into their offense’s night.
Watson found Hopper again, this time on a 50-yard touchdown pass, early in the second quarter to increase Clemson’s lead to 17-0 after a field goal on its previous drive. With the touchdown, Watson broke a 39-year school record for touchdown passes thrown by a true freshman. Watson now has six touchdown passes, breaking the previous record set in 1975 of five. With his catch on the play, Hopper — a redshirt sophomore — set a career high for receiving yards.
It took a while for UNC’s offense to get going. The Tar Heels had just 34 yards of total offense before a 10-play, 75-yard sixth drive of the night, which ended in a 17-yard touchdown pass from starting quarterback Marquise Williams to sophomore wide receiver Mack Hollins.
The touchdown pass — his first since the 13:45 mark in the fourth quarter of UNC’s 31-27 win against San Diego State Sept. 6 — was the lone bright spot of the first half for Williams. The redshirt junior went just 9-for-15 for 38 yards. On the next drive after throwing the touchdown, Williams took a safety. Under pressure, he threw the ball away but got called for intentional grounding leading to two points on the scoreboard and the ball for the Tigers.
Redshirt freshman quarterback Mitch Trubisky also played a few drives for UNC. He went 6-for-10 for 49 yards.
UNC has 136 yards of total offense to Clemson’s 218. Penalties have plagued the Tar Heels all season — a trend that's continued tonight. UNC has been flagged for seven penalties for 53 yards while Clemson has just one penalty for five yards.
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