'They Just Won The Bigger Moments': UNC Defense Struggles On Fourth Down Vs. Duke

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — Andrew Simpson and the rest of North Carolina’s special teams unit never considered that Duke would pull such trickery.

Lined up in field goal block formation, the Tar Heels were caught by surprise when the Blue Devils faked a 44-yard, go-ahead field goal attempt and flipped the ball to kicker Todd Pelino with room to run. By the time Simpson tackled him out of bounds, Pelino had gained 26 yards and gotten the ball down to the goal line, where Duke was able to punch it in for a game-winning touchdown on the very next play. 

“We were trying our best to go get a block, be aggressive,” Simpson said in hindsight. “We got to be more aware of the situation, I guess.” 

North Carolina’s gaffe on special teams was the last and most devastating of the five fourth-down conversions it conceded to Duke during Saturday’s 32-25 loss at Kenan Stadium. Unable to produce stops on several key plays, the Tar Heel defense allowed the Blue Devils to extend drives with fourth-down pickups — some self-inflicted — that preluded every one of Duke’s touchdowns.

“We just gotta be better on the big downs,” Simpson said. “We get them (on) first, second down, we played well. Third, fourth down — we’ve got to play better.” 

Overall, UNC’s defense did well at limiting the ACC’s leading passer in Darian Mensah. The Duke quarterback came into the game averaging over 300 yards per outing, but was held to just 175 yards while completing 22 of his 33 passes. 

But on fourth down, Mensah was surgical. He made three key plays — a pair of pass completions for 35 yards total and a 13-yard scramble — that each extended a Blue Devil drive and led to three touchdowns later in those possessions.

“He stepped up in the pocket, or they hit a draw up inside a couple times,” Bill Belichick said. “We did better on that in the second half, but look, Mensah is a good player, and he got us a couple of times on third or fourth down.” 

Though Mensah’s heroics on fourth down were certainly harrowing for UNC, it will be the two special teams mistakes that will long haunt North Carolina in Saturday’s rivalry matchup. 

In the second quarter, an overzealous Marcus Allen tried to sprawl out for a diving block of Pelino’s 46-yard field goal attempt to preserve UNC’s first-half lead. In doing so, Allen jumped into the placekicker’s feet and drew a roughing penalty. The flag gave the Blue Devils a first down inside the red zone. Mensah then cashed in on the opportunity, finding tight end Jeremiah Hasley for a 14-yard touchdown completion.

Then, when Duke coach Manny Diaz rolled the dice late in the fourth quarter, Allen again sold out to block the kick, one of the reasons UNC couldn’t contain Pelino on the gutsy fourth-down fake. 

A pair of self-inflicted wounds turned lethal for the Tar Heels in their home finale, sending them to 4-7 on the year.

“Beating ourselves,” Jordan Shipp said. “We had a lot of mistakes, a lot of penalties out there in tonight’s game. I feel like that’s something that we can’t do.” 

Given the typical nature of rivalry matchups, it’s not unusual for a handful of key plays to make the difference on the scoreboard. And for North Carolina, this was especially true. 

Because of the defense’s inability to execute when it mattered most, the unit was unable to do anything but watch as UNC’s bowl eligibility evaporated once Duke knelt in victory formation.

“They just won the bigger moments,” Simpson said.