Miami (FL) Hurricanes vs North Carolina Tar Heels Match Player Stats On Oct 28, 2017

The Sports Xchange
Oct 28, 2017

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. -- Malik Rosier threw for 356 yards and three touchdowns as No. 8 Miami held off stubborn North Carolina 24-19 Saturday afternoon at Kenan Stadium.

Miami (7-0, 5-0 ACC) has a 12-game winning streak for its longest stretch since 2002 and has its best start in conference play since joining the ACC.

The Hurricanes didn't gain much breathing room until the final 10 minutes -- and that didn't last long.

Rosier threw a 5-yard scoring pass to Braxton Berrios as Miami stretched its lead to 24-13 with 9:26 remaining with an 85-yard drive.

Beau Corrales scored on two touchdown receptions for North Carolina (1-8, 0-6), which hast lost six games in a row. The Tar Heels have lost seven consecutive home games dating to last season.

The second Corrales touchdown catch came with 3:03 left, with a failed two-point conversion pass leaving the score at 24-19.

North Carolina failed to recover an onside kick, but Miami fumbled on the next play and the Tar Heels moved into Hurricanes territory. The Hurricanes got the ball back on running back Jordon Brown's fumble at the Miami 34, and then ran out the clock.

North Carolina turned to third-string quarterback Nathan Elliott in the first quarter when starter Chazz Surratt was injured on a roughing-the-quarterback penalty. Backup Brandon Harris wasn't in uniform because of an injury.

North Carolina tried a variety of trick plays, and four players threw at least one pass.

Rosier completed 16 of 38 passes with one interception. Elliott was 16 of 39 for 173 yards and three interceptions.

Miami didn't score until tight end Christopher Herndon IV's 51-yard catch from Rosier with 1:58 left in the first half. Herndon broke free from would-be tacklers to cover about the final 25 yards on the play.

The lead grew to 14-3 on the second snap of the second half when Rosier's threw a 78-yard pass to Jeff Thomas. That was Miami's longest play of the season.

Jonathan Garvin of the Hurricanes blocked a North Carolina punt, but even though the Hurricanes started at the Tar Heels' 13 they managed only Michael Badgley's 21-yard field goal.

The Tar Heels responded with a 53-yard drive in four plays, with receiver Anthony Ratliff-Williams throwing 18 yards to Corrales, a freshman who scored his first career touchdown with 7:59 remaining in the third quarter.

North Carolina took three possessions into the Miami red zone in the first 23 minutes but managed only three points. The Tar Heels failed on fourth-and-goal from the 1 on one drive and didn't convert on a fake field goal on another.

Freeman Jones booted a 24-yard field goal in the first quarter and added a 45-yarder with 3:48 left in the second quarter.

The Tar Heels moved into Miami territory again in the final minute of the half before an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty thwarted that possession.

NOTES: North Carolina's two-game winning streak in the series was snapped, but the Tar Heels still lead 11-10. ... Sophomore TE Michael Irvin Jr. was back in uniform for the Hurricanes after a one-game suspension. ... North Carolina QB Brandon Harris, who started two games (including two weeks ago at home vs. Virginia), was in street clothes and out with an undisclosed injury. He played a week earlier at Virginia Tech. ... RB Michael Carter, a freshman leading North Carolina in rushing, did not play because of an undisclosed ailment. ... Miami, which plays its next three games at home, takes on Virginia Tech next Saturday, while North Carolina is off next weekend before going to Pittsburgh for a Nov. 9 game.