UNC Football: Tar Heels pick up first win of the season over Pitt
North Carolina wins shootout over Pitt for first win of 2018 season
The North Carolina Tar Heels racked up nearly 500 yards of offense and 38 points on Saturday to notch their first victory of the 2018 college football season.
After dropping back-to-back road contests against Cal and East Carolina to begin the season, North Carolina played its first home game in 307 days. That the win came against Pitt should be a shock to no one, given the teams’ recent history. North Carolina has now won six consecutive games against Pitt, and never lost to the Panthers as members of the same conference.
Junior quarterback Nathan Elliott put together his best game of the season, completing 22-of-31 passes for 313 yards and two touchdowns. His 177.1 passer rating against Pitt was more than his first two games of the season combined, and his 71 percent completion percentage was a career-best.
The Tar Heels got a nice performance out of junior running back Antonio Williams, who carried the ball 16 times for 114 yards and two touchdowns. It was Williams’ first multiple-score game in better than a year, and his first 100-yard performance as a collegiate.
UNC wide receivers Dazz Newsome and Anthony Ratliff-Williams combined for 10 catches and 194 yards on the day, but it was Michael Carter and Dyami Brown that got into the end zone on the receiving end of Elliott passes.
The Tar Heels limited their mistakes against the Panthers, committing just five penalties for 45 yards. They did give the ball away once on a Ratliff-Williams fumble and miss a 38-yard field goal, but took better advantage of scoring opportunities than they had in the previous two games.
North Carolina will have a tough test on Thursday when it takes the field against Miami in Coral Gables. The Hurricanes will likely be 3-1 when they play the Tar Heels, with their lone defeat coming against LSU in their season opener.
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Stick with Keeping It Heel for more on the Tar Heels’ first victory of the season, as well as complete coverage of their upcoming road contest with Miami.