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EXTRA POINTS: Tar Heel Season An O-Fer In Kenan Stadium
Nov. 11, 2002
NOTE: Readers are encouraged to view this week's Extra Points in the convenient PDF Format. PDF Format contains all material seen below, as well as additional content that is only available through PDF.
By Lee Pace
Meanwhile, Carolina fans are stuck on the outside looking in, peering through the knotholes during a miserable season with no holiday bowl plans to make and no festive post-game revelry to enjoy. The season gets longer and darker with each passing Saturday. The latest chapter in the Tar Heels' unfortunate freefall came Saturday in Kenan Stadium, where the Clemson Tigers broke open a competitive game early in the second half (sound familiar?) and cruised to a 42-12 win. The ignominy compounds week to week. The home loss following Miami (Ohio), Texas, Georgia Tech, N.C. State and Maryland puts the Heels at 0-6 -- their first winless home schedule since going 0-4 in 1952. The defense's totals of 468 yards and 36 points allowed per game are now on target to become the worst figures in school history, edging behind the 1988 standards of 463 yards and 35.5 points. The offense has scored just two touchdowns in 14 quarters since starting quarterback Darian Durant went down with a broken hand at Virginia. It has yet to have a runner log a 100-yard game this year and has surrendered an ACC-leading 39 sacks. "It's like a curse," offensive tackle Jeb Terry said. "It's horrible walking off the turf, especially in a loss like this. What are our fans supposed to cheer for now? We've embarrassed our fans and our university. It's the same old damn story." "We're simply not living up to our potential," quarterback C.J. Stephens said. "We executed a number of plays very well today. Unfortunately, we did not execute some well at all. To win games, you have to perform at a high level and maintain it." Carolina coach John Bunting once again found himself trying to dissect a game which appeared competitive for a spell before turning into an avalanche of misfortune for the Tar Heels. "I knew when I took this football program over that it wouldn't be easy," he said. "I also did not know it would be this hard. I have met challenges before in my life. I said this one would be a very big challenge. Right now it's very frustrating for me. I'm sure it is as well for all the folks who support Carolina. I'm asking them to try to be patient and help me help this football program and football team. I thank them all for their support." Just as they had in home losses to Texas, Tech, State and Maryland, the Tar Heels showed some first-half feistiness and big-play capability, getting the home crowd on its feet and generating some electricity along the sideline. This week it was a safety by Kevin Knight on Clemson QB Charlie Whitehurst and moments later an 18-yard scoring pass from Stephens to Bobby Blizzard that pumped the Heels to a 9-0 lead with five minutes left in the first quarter. Last week Stephens directed the offense on a quick scoring march to open the Maryland game.
The advantage-Heels euphoria was doused quickly in both games, however, as Maryland and then Clemson set Kenan Stadium records with lengthy pass plays. The Terps launched an 80-yard bomb at the end of the first quarter last week, eclipsing Ronald Curry's 78-yard strike to Kory Bailey against Tech in 2000 as the longest pass ever in Kenan. That record wouldn't last long. Two snaps after Carolina took its 9-0 lead Saturday, Whitehurst found Airese Currie on a streak route for an 83-yard touchdown. Carolina hung tough for the rest of the first half, notching another big defensive play when Knight and DeFonte Coleman stopped Chad Jasmin on fourth-and-one at the Carolina 30 with just under two minutes left until intermission. "We were aggressive," Bunting said. "Some better things happened this week than had happened the previous two weeks. That's a very small silver lining. But it's what I'll grasp onto, hold onto. We'll find in the videotape things we did very well. But we also did things very poorly. We did too many things poorly to win a game." This was a key juncture with halftime approaching. Down 14-9, a touchdown or even a field goal for Carolina would be a major psychological boost. But senior receiver Sam Aiken dropped a third-and-five pass which would have gone for a first down. Carolina punted, and Whitehurst quickly found J.J. McKelvey on a 58-yard score with 29 seconds to play. The 6-4 McKelvey out-positioned and out-jumped Carolina's Chris Hawkins on a jump-ball for the touchdown. "That was bad," Terry said of the offense's failure to keep the ball and the defense's allowing the seven points. "Going into halftime 14-9's a lot different than 21-9. That was a lot of impact on more than just the scoreboard." As opponents have been wont to do this season, the Tigers jumped on Carolina quickly in the third quarter. Linebacker Malcolm Stewart had a clear line on Whitehurst on a blitz up the middle on third-and-one, but Whitehurst eluded him and found Jasmin for 31 yards. Add a roughing call on Jocques Dumas on the play, and what should have been a sack for Carolina was now the Tigers at the Carolina 14 yard-line. Clemson scored in one play, and the onslaught was underway. "We need to go out and start the second half with a great defensive stand, and instead we kind of give it to them with penalties and big plays," Bunting said. "Now it's a real tough game. What was a close ball game now is really tough. We've got to make big plays. We've talked about our young defense, but we've got some young guys on that offensive line as well. Now they're under duress. I've played defense in games like that -- you pin your ears back and go after the quarterback. Now it's a different ball game." Tar Heel fans can take some solace in the football debacle of 2002 with the displays of the Carolina basketball team in exhibitions the last two weeks following the football games. Matt Doherty had success his first year as Carolina's head basketball coach in 2000-01, riding the significant talents of Joe Forte and Brendan Haywood. Carolina was out-manned during its catastrophic season last year, but Doherty has recruited his way out of the hole and there's new excitement around a blockbuster freshman class. Bunting has no other choice than to solve his personnel shortages through recruiting. All Tar Heel fans can do is weather the storm and wait for the day they can find their own team back on SportsCenter.
SQUIB-KICKS - Cornerback Michael Waddell broke his lower left leg and will miss the last two games of the year. Waddell has another year of eligibility provided he graduates in four years, which is expected to happen in May. *** Of the 14 seniors who were introduced before the Clemson game, only three were fifth-year seniors who played in the game -- tight end Zach Hilton, receiver Chesley Borders and safety DeFonte Coleman. Three players listed as juniors coming into the season (members of the 1999 signing class who were red-shirted as freshmen) suited up for their last games as well -- offensive lineman Marcus Wilson, defensive tackle Darryl Grant, receiver Isaiah Robinson. *** Punter John Lafferty was benched in the second half of the Maryland game in favor of Paul Roberts. They competed for the starting job all week with a decision made to give both of them an opportunity Saturday. Roberts' one effort resulted in a punt off the side of his foot and a total of eight yards of carry. Lafferty punted the rest of the game, hitting five punts for a 38.4 yard average. Asked last week about the progress of true freshman kicker David Wooldridge, who is being red-shirted, Bunting said, "He's got a big-league leg." *** Bunting and offensive coordinator Gary Tranquill had a couple of gutty calls on one second-quarter possession, one which worked and one which fizzled. On fourth-and-inches at the Tar Heel 18, Bunting called for a fake punt, with upback Jacque Lewis taking a direct snap and barreling 29 yards. Then on fourth-and-inches at the Tiger 20, Tranquill called for a play-action fake into the line and a pass to the right side with two receivers. Clemson did an excellent job staying with the receivers, and Stephens' pass to Blizzard misfired.
Many Tar Heel fans enjoyed Lee Pace's six-part series chronicling the playing and coaching careers of coach John Bunting that appeared at TarHeelBlue.com last year. Those stories are still available in Born & Bred, which will be on sale this fall at UNC Student Stores, Johnny T-Shirt, the TarHeelBlue.com FANStore and assorted other locations on Franklin Street. To order by phone, call (800) 554-6862.
Extra Points will be published 16 times during the 2002-03 subscription cycle -- on the Mondays following 12 regular-season games, in addition to pre-season, bowl/post-season, recruiting and spriing practice issues. Subscriptions are $30 per year, payable by check, money order or Visa/MC. The newsletter is available in its entirety each week at no charge right here at TarHeelBlue.com.
Lee Pace, Carolina '79
NOTE: Readers are encouraged to view this week's Extra Points in the convenient PDF Format. PDF Format contains all material seen below, as well as additional content that is only available through PDF.
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