UNC Football vs. Miami: Game info, preview, prediction and more

The UNC Football team heads to Miami for their second ACC game of the 2018 season but it won’t be an easy task

The North Carolina Tar Heels are fresh off their first win of the season after beating the Pittsburgh Panthers Saturday in Chapel Hill. After the 1-0 start in Atlantic Coast Conference play, UNC has a quick turnaround this week as they go on the road to take on Miami Thursday night.

Miami enters the game 3-1 and ranked No. 16 in the country as they are the early favorites in the ACC Coastal Division. Their only loss this season was the opener at a neutral site against LSU.

The Hurricanes have a potent offensive attack and a stout defense that has them as one of the best teams in the conference this season. But as they enter this game, there seems to be a question mark of who will start at quarterback.

Malik Rosier started the first four games for the Hurricanes this season but last week red shirt freshman N’Kosi Perry took over on the third series and threw three touchdown passes in the win over FIU. Head coach Mark Richt has yet to name his starter but all signs are pointing to Perry earning his first career start.

The Tar Heels have a quarterback decision of their own to make on Thursday.

Nathan Elliott played well in the win over Pitt, arguably his best performance in his career but Chazz Surratt is eligible to return after serving his suspension for selling shoes this past offseason.

Much like Richt, Fedora has yet to reveal his hand but it’s likely Elliott earns his fourth-straight start for the Tar Heels. Don’t be shocked if Surratt does enter the game at some point as Fedora could use the dual-threat quarterback on Thursday.

But no matter who plays at quarterback on Thursday, the Tar Heels are going to need to bring their ‘A’ game or it’s going to get ugly early.

Here’s our game preview for Thursday’s contest:

UNC key to victory

Controlling the clock with long scoring drives will be the main key to victory for the Tar Heels on Thursday night. UNC will need to not only control the time of possession, but they need to end drives with touchdowns not field goals.

If they can come out and punch Miami in the mouth early, they will have a shot at pulling off this upset.

Getting the run game going will certainly help that. Last week UNC got the run going early and often with Antonio Williams, Jordon Brown and Michael Carter and it paid off. They were able to take advantage of a poor Panthers defense, leading to a win.

This week the run game might have to do something similar. Miami is one of the best defenses in the country defending the pass, ranking 7th in passing yards per game allowed. It’s going to be difficult moving the ball through the air against the Hurricanes, but getting the run game could open it up for play-action.

Something to watch..

How much will Chazz Surratt play?

With Fedora likely turning to Elliott as the starter, we do expect to see Surratt play at some point in this game. But when?

Fedora could have a short leash with Elliott in this game, especially if he’s struggling and UNC gets down early. If things aren’t going good for Elliott, then expect Surratt to take over.

Elliott looked good against Pitt as he put together his best performance of his Tar Heels career but a lot of that had to do with the stellar offensive line play. Surratt can beat you with both his arm and legs, giving UNC a dual-threat quarterback.

Will Elliott play well and lead UNC to the upset? Or will we see Surratt and a QB controversy next week?

What you need to know

WHAT? UNC 1-2 (1-0 ACC) at Miami 3-1 (0-0 ACC)
WHEN? Thursday, September 26 at 8 p.m. ET
WHERE? Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, Florida
TV? ESPN. Dave Flemming, play-by-play; Gene Chizik, analyst; Jonathan Vilma, analyst; Laura Rutledge, sideline
RADIO? Tar Heel Sports Network. Jones Angell (play-by-play), Brian Simmons (analyst) and Lee Pace (sideline). Sirius 135, XM 193
WEATHER? Sunny with a high of 90 degrees
LINE? UNC + 20. Over/Under 56.
ALL-TIME SERIES? Miami leads the all-time series 10-9 and won last season’s meeting.
PREDICTION? Miami 45, UNC 23