Virginia 20, North Carolina 14
When: 3:30 PM ET, Saturday, October 14, 2017
Where: Kenan Memorial Stadium, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
Temperature:
78°
Head Official:
Jeff Flanagan
Attendance:
50000
By The Sports Xchange
Virginia quarterback Kurt Benkert threw two touchdown passes and his team's defense had a big game in a 20-14 victory against North Carolina on Saturday in Chapel Hill, N.C.
Virginia (5-1, 2-0 ACC) continued its best start to a season since 2007 while snapping a seven-game losing streak in the series.
The Cavaliers had a possession of more than eight minutes in the fourth quarter, but that drive ended with a fumble by Benkert. A 13-yard return by Cayson Collins gave North Carolina the ball at its 40-yard line with 2:56 remaining.
The Tar Heels (1-6, 0-4) reached the Virginia 37 before a fourth-down sack with 1:07 sealed the outcome.
Benkert completed 19 of 31 passes for 249 yards.
Virginia junior Jordan Ellis posted his first career 100-yard rushing game by racking up 136 yards on 27 carries.
Quarterback Brandon Harris, playing the entire game in place of ill starter Chazz Surratt, was 7-for-18 for 46 yards for the Tar Heels, who lost their fourth game in a row.
Virginia led 17-14 after Olamide Zaccheaus took Benkert's short pass and turned it into an 81-yard touchdown play with 3:25 left in the third quarter.
A.J. Mejia's 27-yard field goal stretched Virginia's lead to 20-14 just 46 seconds into the final period.
North Carolina's Michael Carter ran for 127 of his 157 yards in the third quarter, when he scored on runs of 1 and 47 yards. The freshman finished with 13 carries.
The Tar Heels drove 75 yards with the opening possession of the second half. Carter's 56-yard burst early in the drive set up the scoring chance.
North Carolina had only 75 first-half yards on 25 plays.
After North Carolina missed a field goal, Virginia opened the scoring on Mejia's 20-yard field goal on the second play of the second quarter to cap an 18-play drive that included a fourth-down conversion.
The Cavaliers boosted their lead to 10-0 when tight end Even Butts barreled into the end zone to complete a 10-yard pass play from Benkert with 57 seconds left in the half.
North Carolina is 0-5 at home this season, stretching its home losing streak to six games.
Top Game Performances
Rushing
| Virginia |
|
North Carolina |
|
Jordan Ellis
|
Player |
Michael Carter
|
|
27 |
Attempts |
13 |
|
136 |
Yards |
157 |
|
5.0 |
Avg Yards |
12.1 |
|
0 |
Touchdowns |
2 |
|
0 |
Long |
0 |
Team Stats Summary
| |
Yards |
Scoring |
Defense |
| Team |
Tot |
Rus |
Pas |
TD |
FG |
INT |
Sck |
FF |
| Virginia
|
405 |
156 |
249 |
2 |
2 |
3 |
2.0 |
1 |
| North Carolina
|
257 |
211 |
46 |
2 |
0 |
0 |
4.0 |
3 |
For more information, contact us