First look: UNC coming off Duke loss after fake FG attempt by Blue Devils

The anticipation of playing North Carolina has been built ever since Bill Belichick was hired as coach.

Belichick went 266-121 with six Super Bowl wins with the New England Patriots from 2000-23.

The Tar Heels have gone a disappointing 4-7 overall and 2-5 in the ACC, and won’t be playing offseason football.

North Carolina plays at NC State (6-5, 3-4 ACC) at 7:30 p.m. Saturday on the ACC Network.

Conservative UNC offense

North Carolina played a straight forward, but conservative game against Duke, with one “risky” play.

Neither team turned the ball over via interceptions or fumbles, but where Duke won the game was going 5 of 6 on fourth-down conversions, featured by the fake field goal that was an option run to kicker Todd Pelino on fourth and three at the UNC 27-yard line. 

Pelino took the option pitch and ran 26 yards to the UNC one-yard line, setting up Anderson Castle’s touchdown run and ensuing two-point conversion to make it 32-25 with 2:20 left in the contest. Pelino had been 12 of 17 on field goals with a long of 49 this season.

UNC committed 12 penalties for 103 yards, with one that turned three points into eventually seven points. Cornerback Marcus Allen was called for roughing the kicker on a 46-yard field-goal attempt by Pelino. The 15 yards sent the drive to the UNC 14-yard line, and Duke quarterback Darian Mensah threw a 14-yard touchdown pass to tight end Jeremiah Hasley to take a 14-7 lead with 10:25 left in the second quarter.

The lone “risk” that North Carolina took was trying an onside kick in the third quarter, that Duke recovered at the Tar Heels’ 44-yard line. Duke went down the field on 11 plays and scored on a Castle one-yard run to push the lead to 24-10 with 9:15 left in the third quarter.

Sophomore quarterback Gio Lopez has had a tough season, but he played well against Duke, and took a beating while doing it. He went 21-of-27 passing for 204 yards and a touchdown, and rushed nine times for 20 yards and a score. He has thrown for over 200 yards the last five games with six touchdowns and zero interceptions.

UNC offense has topped 27 points twice this season

Lopez has throw for 1,629 yards, nine touchdowns and five interceptions, and has completed 64.9 percent of his passes. He has rushed 78 times for 141 yards and three touchdowns.

UNC tends to go with vibes when it comes to rotating its running backs. Freshman Demon June, sophomore Davion Gause and Michigan transfer Benjamin Hall, a sophomore, have taken turns.

Gause proved to be the hot hand in the second half against Duke. He had eight carries for 63 yards and a touchdown, and caught a pass for 16 yards.

June, who is from Jacksonville, N.C., topped 100 yards against both Richmond and Syracuse, and he finished in the win over the Orange on Oct. 31 with 13 carries for 101 yards and a touchdown, and he had two catches for 81 yards and a score.

Junior Chris Culliver of Maiden, N.C., entered the season with the hope of being the go-to guy at wide receiver. Instead, sophomore Jordan Shipp has become the top target with 52 catches for 581 yards and five touchdowns. The former Charlotte (N.C.) Providence Day standout had eight catches for 83 yards and a touchdown against Duke.

Senior wide receiver Kobe Paysour of Kings Mountain, N.C., has 30 catches for 389 yards and a score. Redshirt freshman Javarius Green of Shelby (N.C.) Crest, who is earning his college degree in just two years, has 13 catches for 150 yards.

UNC has featured Texas A&M transfer Jake Johnson at tight end, the brother of backup quarterback Max Johnson, has 15 catches for 134 yards and a touchdown. Central Arkansas transfer Jordan Owens has been the second tight end.

Former NC State commit Austin Blaske (Georgia transfer) starts at center as a senior, and he has senior right guard Daniel King (Troy), senior left guard Will O’Steen (Jacksonville State), redshirt sophomore left tackle Jordan Hall (UAB) and right tackles Jakai Moore (South Carolina) and Miles McVay (Alabama), with him.

Tar Heels defense has 30 sacks

Opposing teams are averaging 22.0 points, 114.6 rushing yards and 215.9 passing yards per game this season. Four teams have topped 32 points this season — TCU (48), Clemson (38), Central Florida (34) and Duke (32).

The defensive line is built around Delaware junior transfer Melkart Abou Jaoude, who has 41 tackles, 11.5 tackles for loss and 10 sacks this season.

The 6-foot-5, 260-pound Abou Jaoude had three sacks against both Stanford and Virginia, and two sacks apiece against Richmond and Syracuse.

Big redshirt freshman defensive tackle D’Antre Robinson, a Florida transfer, has 36 tackles and a forced fumble on the interior. Junior defensive tackle Isaiah Johnson, a Arizona transfer, has 38 tackles and two sacks.

Sophomore linebacker Khmori House arrived from Washington and has a team-high 74 tackles, one interception and one sack. Senior Boise State linebacker transfer Andrew Simpson has 56 tackles, four sacks and one interception.

Senior safety Will Hardy is a holdover from the previous staff and has 49 tackles. Cornerback Thaddeus Dixon, also a Washington transfer, has returned from injury against Duke. He hadn’t played since the loss vs. Clemson on Oct. 4.

Coming off the bench, redshirt sophomore edge rusher Tyler Thompson of Cary (N.C.) Panther Creek, has seven sacks and 22 tackles. He had three sacks against Stanford on Nov. 8.

Former Marshall kicker Rece Verhoff, a senior, has gone 17 of 21 on field goals with a long of 57 yards. Senior punter Tom Maginness has punted 53 times with an average of 42.7 yards.