Miami 38, UNC 35: Hurricanes survive fourth quarter rally
Mark Fletcher Jr. scored the go-ahead touchdown and Marquise Lightfoot forced a fumble as Miami held off North Carolina 38-35 in Chapel Hill.
Miami survives North Carolina's fourth quarter push
Miami beat North Carolina 38-35 on Saturday night at Kenan Stadium, a game the top-ranked Hurricanes needed a late touchdown and a forced fumble to close out. Mark Fletcher Jr.'s go-ahead score and a Marquise Lightfoot strip-sack turned a game North Carolina had led in the fourth quarter into a Miami win that keeps the Hurricanes unbeaten at 8-0 overall and 6-0 in the ACC. North Carolina drops to 4-4 overall and 2-3 in conference play.
Both teams piled up yardage, Miami finished with 416 total yards to North Carolina's 407, but North Carolina picked up two more first downs, 27 to 25. The difference came down to penalties, six for 37 yards against North Carolina compared to three for 30 against Miami, and turnovers, where North Carolina's one giveaway, the fumble Lightfoot forced in the fourth quarter, was the one that mattered.
The game included 11 scoring plays, and the lead changed hands several times in the second half before Fletcher's go-ahead score put Miami in front for good.
Fletcher and Mensah did the damage for Miami
Darian Mensah went 22 of 29 for 274 yards and three touchdowns, two of them to Malachi Toney, who caught seven passes for 75 yards on the night. Fletcher caught a 31-yard touchdown pass in the second quarter, then added two short touchdown runs, including the 2-yard score with 7:49 left in the fourth quarter that put Miami ahead for good at 31-28. Javian Mallory led Miami's run game with 51 yards on 12 carries.
Lightfoot finished with two sacks and delivered the game's biggest defensive play, stripping Edwards from behind as he tried to throw. Justin Scott recovered the fumble with 5:33 left, setting up Mensah's 9-yard touchdown pass to Toney that made it 38-28 with 2:33 remaining. Mohamed Toure led the Miami defense with nine tackles. Miami coach Mario Cristobal credited his team's mentality afterward, saying simply, "you just keep playing."
North Carolina pushed Miami to the limit
Billy Edwards Jr. kept North Carolina in it from start to finish, throwing 28 of 34 for 341 yards and four touchdowns. Jelani Thurman caught two of those touchdowns as part of a five-catch, 70-yard night, and Edwards also found Jordan Shipp and Trech Kekahuna for scores. Demon June ran for 44 yards on 13 carries and scored on a 1-yard run with 11:46 left in the fourth quarter that gave North Carolina a 28-24 lead, the Tar Heels' last of the game. Derek McDonald led North Carolina with 11 tackles.
What's next
The win sends Miami into a road matchup next week against No. 5 Notre Dame, with the Hurricanes' defense needing to show more than it did in Chapel Hill. Miami had to recover an onside kick in the final minute, after North Carolina had a pair of fumble recoveries wiped out by penalties, before Miami could run out the clock. North Carolina will look to regroup at 4-4 heading into the rest of its ACC schedule.
Facts per ESPN box score. Opinion is the taproom's.