UNC Football: Helmet sticker honorees working overtime

Jeremiah Gemmel

In our pregame preview article, we discussed the need for the UNC football program to force timely turnovers against Pittsburgh quarterback Kenny Pickett.

It took the Tar Heels’ defense quite some time to force a turnover, but man was it a huge turning point in the game.

Late in the fourth quarter, the Tar Heels found themselves trailing by a field goal. Pickett stepped back to pass and had his pass deflected into the hands of Jeremiah Gemmel, setting up the Tar Heels with great field position that ultimately led to them tying the game and forcing overtime.

It was fitting that the Tar Heels’ defensive leader was the one to haul in the interception. Not only did the Newnan, Georgia native make this play, he also led the Tar Heels with 10 total tackles (eight solo) along with a sack and a pass break-up.

The Tar Heel defense deserves a ton of credit for the way they settled down in this game, and Gemmel deserves a lot of credit in helping them do so. His leadership was evident, as he not only made big plays throughout but was also being the vocal leader that he has shown throughout his time as a Tar Heel.

Of course, the night didn’t go as planned for the UNC football program, but if you’re looking for positives from it, they easily could’ve gotten blown out in this game. Give credit to this group for once again for showing resiliency in battling back into games, as no deficit seems to ever be fully out of reach for this group.

Check back with the Keeping It Heel team next weekend to find out which UNC football players will earn helmet sticker honors on Senior Day against Wofford.