Daily briefing: On a magical Sunday night, UNC's loss and being overhyped

On3 imageby:Ivan Maisel09/06/21

Ivan_Maisel

Ivan Maisel’s “Daily Briefing” for On3:

McKenzie Milton is back

There is so much to cherish about No. 9 Notre Dame’s 41-38 overtime victory over Florida State on Sunday night: the attraction of the ranked Irish in prime time, a Seminoles team relevant again under second-year coach Mike Norvell, Doak Campbell Stadium rocking again, four lead changes and two ties in regulation, and, most of all, a fourth-quarter comeback by the Seminoles led by quarterback McKenzie Milton, who came off the bench and played for the first time since suffering a catastrophic knee injury at UCF in 2018. Milton completed his first five passes on two fourth-quarter scoring drives, but he made his best play when he calmly picked up an errant long snap and threw it out of bounds to keep Florida State within field-goal range at the end of regulation. Joe Tessitore, who has a knack of being in the booth for dramatic college football finishes, nailed the call. 

Shutting down the Tar Heels

Virginia Tech limited then-No. 10 North Carolina junior quarterback Sam Howell to 208 passing yards, his fewest since a loss to Wake Forest in his freshman season. Hokies defensive coordinator Justin Hamilton said his defense largely succeeded in disrupting the Tar Heels’ run-pass option game. The secondary had five pass breakups and three picks, and the front kept Howell from looking downfield. North Carolina receivers had 161 yards after the catch, but 42 came on one pass, a flip behind the line that Josh Downs turned into the Heels’ only touchdown.

Learning the hard way

It’s always fascinating to watch how teams and players react to eight months of hearing how good they are. North Carolina coach Mack Brown said after the loss Friday night that his team clearly didn’t handle its hype well. Neither did No. 2 Oklahoma and No. 7 Iowa State in victory, nor No. 17 Indiana and No. 20 Washington in defeat. The Huskies lost to FCS Montana, which didn’t play last season, 13-7. There is a pattern there. It happens every season, and I’m sure the coaches of all the overhyped warned their players. But there’s something about college athletes always being 18 to 22 years of age that makes them learn that lesson the hard way.