Proof Of Concept

The No. 3 team in the country had UNC on the ropes early on at Kenan Stadium Saturday. The way the Tar Heels responded was a bright spot during a 37-26 loss to the Fighting Irish, offering hope for what's ahead this season.

Notre Dame, already ahead by two touchdowns, was driving deep into the red zone midway through the second quarter, threatening to extend its lead to three scores.

Following their loss to Clemson last time out, multiple Tar Heels talked about how that defeat was an opportunity to learn lessons on the need for toughness and resilience within a game when things aren't going your way.

And here was a chance to apply them.

UNC took advantage — through all three phases of the game.

It started with a goal-line stand, with the Tar Heels dropping Notre Dame quarterback CJ Carr for a one-yard loss on third down at the 2 yard line and then forcing an incompletion on fourth down.

Then came the definition of a methodical drive. UNC marched 97 yards on 15 plays, chewing up seven-plus minutes of clock before quarterback Billy Edwards hit one of his favorite targets, tight end Jelani Thurman, for a 14-yard score with 21 seconds remaining in the half.

"There were times in the game where our execution was good," head coach Bill Belichick said. "We took the ball at the goal line and got it in a position where we were able to score and also not leave them any time to counterattack."

Edwards was a 7-of-8 for 77 yards on the drive, with all of the completions going to Thurman and fellow tight end Shamar Easter.

The Tar Heels took that momentum into the break, putting pressure on Notre Dame.

And on the first play of the second half, the Tar Heels struck again thanks to true freshman Jaden Jefferson.

Touching the ball for the first time ever at the collegiate level, the wide receiver from Oakland returned the kickoff 98 yards, going untouched on his way to the end zone and sending the home crowd into a frenzy.

"J. Jeff's put in a lot of work," said UNC wide receiver Jordan Shipp. "You can't teach the speed he has. He's great with the ball in his hands. I know we're going to find more ways to get him the ball."

Jefferson might've had the biggest play of the game, but Shipp was UNC's most consistent big-play producer.

The junior wideout set a career high with 109 receiving yards on seven catches, five of which went for first-down yardage. A diving one-hand catch for 13 yards and a 44-yard catch-and-run from Shipp powered the Tar Heels' opening drive, which ended with a 6-yard TD catch by Easter (the first of his career).

Complementing Shipp in Carolina's passing attack was Thurman, who made five catches for 50 yards as he recorded his first multi-TD game. Edwards also tied a career high with three TDs, completing 17-of-28 passes for 208 yards against the nation's second-best scoring defense.

Following Jefferson's score in the kickoff to start the second half, the Tar Heel defense had multiple opportunities to make another stand on Notre Dame's ensuing drive. But the Fighting Irish converted three fourth downs, including a 3-yard TD run by Carr that extended the visitors' lead to seven.

"In the future, when they're on fourth down, we know we got to get them off the field," said UNC cornerback Jaiden Patterson, who finished with seven tackles and two pass breakups.

Facing an excellent opponent, the consistency needed throughout a full 60-minute game wasn't quite there for UNC to knock off the third-ranked team. But the manner in which UNC made Saturday's matchup competitive through complementary football is a blueprint for the Tar Heels to follow.

"That's a really good football team over there," Shipp said of Notre Dame. "But I feel like today and in all the games we've played, we've proved we're a good football team, too. We did it versus TCU. These last two weeks, we just need to figure out ways to make plays when we need them."

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Players Mentioned

Shamar Easter

Jaden Jefferson

Jaiden Patterson

Jordan Shipp

Jelani Thurman

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