CHAPEL HILL – North Carolina had the nation’s top-ranked team on the ropes Saturday night, trading touchdowns with Miami and taking two second-half leads before one costly turnover helped the Hurricanes escape Kenan Stadium with a 38-35 victory.
Miami defensive lineman Marquise Lightfoot forced a Billy Edwards Jr. fumble with 5:33 remaining, and Justin Scott recovered at the North Carolina 37-yard line. Six plays later, Darian Mensah found Malachi Toney for a nine-yard touchdown that gave the Hurricanes a 10-point advantage with 2:33 to play.
The Tar Heels answered with another touchdown but could not recover the ensuing onside kick, allowing Miami to remain unbeaten and end North Carolina’s five-game winning streak in the series.
The Hurricanes improved to 8-0 overall and 6-0 in the Atlantic Coast Conference, while North Carolina fell to 4-4 and 2-3 in league play. It was the Tar Heels’ third consecutive home loss, although their performance against the nation’s No. 1 team offered a sharp contrast to the final result.
Edwards delivered his most productive passing performance of the season, completing 28 of 34 attempts for 341 yards and a career-high four touchdowns. North Carolina finished with 407 yards of offense, converted eight of 11 third downs and scored touchdowns on all five of its red-zone possessions.
Yet the only turnover of the evening ultimately separated two offenses that moved the ball with remarkable consistency.
“Obviously with a team like Miami, it’s going to come down to critical plays, critical moments,” Edwards said. “We’ll go back and obviously see the strip sack and maybe a few other plays that if we had been able to execute better offensively we may have a different outcome.”
North Carolina trailed 17-14 at halftime after Edwards twice connected with tight end Jelani Thurman on eight-yard touchdown passes. Both scores capped lengthy possessions, including an 84-yard march that consumed more than five minutes early in the second quarter.
Miami had opened the scoring on a touchdown pass from Mensah to Toney, then regained the lead on a 31-yard screen pass to Mark Fletcher Jr. A late field goal sent the Hurricanes into the locker room with a three-point advantage.
The Tar Heels took their first lead on the opening possession of the second half. Edwards directed a 75-yard drive and found Jordan Shipp for a 16-yard touchdown, putting North Carolina ahead 21-17.
Miami responded with a two-yard Fletcher touchdown run, but North Carolina reclaimed the advantage early in the fourth quarter.
Demon June finished a lengthy possession with a one-yard touchdown run, giving the Tar Heels a 28-24 lead with 11:46 remaining. It was June’s eighth rushing touchdown of the season and his fourth consecutive game reaching the end zone.
The Hurricanes answered again, converting a fourth-and-one at the North Carolina two-yard line when Fletcher powered across for his third touchdown of the night. Miami led 31-28, setting up the possession that would decide the outcome.
Lightfoot's strip sack ended North Carolina's possession while trailing 31-28 and gave Miami the ball at the Tar Heels' 37-yard line. Mensah capitalized with his second touchdown connection to Toney, stretching the margin to 38-28.
Still, Edwards brought the Tar Heels back downfield, finding Trech Kekahuna for a 15-yard touchdown with 1:38 remaining. The score cut the deficit to three, but Miami secured the ensuing onside kick and exhausted the remaining time.
Fletcher finished with 43 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns, adding 43 receiving yards and another score. Mensah completed 22 of 29 passes for 274 yards and three touchdowns without an interception. Toney caught seven passes for 75 yards and two scores.
For North Carolina, Thurman finished with two touchdown receptions, while Jaylen McGill established career highs with seven catches and 69 receiving yards. The Tar Heels struggled to establish a consistent ground attack, managing just 66 rushing yards on 30 attempts.
Miami, meanwhile, rushed for 142 yards and finished with 416 total yards, just nine more than North Carolina.
“They’re very good, very good on offense,” North Carolina coach Bill Belichick said. “One-score, back-and-forth game, and then they got the turnover [and] it became a two-score game, and we couldn’t get the onside kick.”
For the Hurricanes, the victory preserved their perfect record and kept them unbeaten in ACC play. For North Carolina, it was another missed opportunity against one of the nation's elite programs. Four weeks after falling 37-26 to No. 3 Notre Dame at Kenan Stadium, the Tar Heels came within three points of upsetting No. 1 Miami.
North Carolina will travel to UConn next Saturday, looking to turn its season-best passing performance into a victory.
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