J’Mari Taylor scored in overtime and No. 16 Virginia stopped North Carolina’s two-point conversion attempt, defeating the Tar Heels 17-16 on Saturday afternoon in Atlantic Coast Conference play at Chapel Hill, N.C.
Both teams scored on their only overtime possessions. North Carolina went for the win but was denied less than a yard from the end zone on the two-point conversion play.
Chandler Morris threw for 200 yards on 20-for-35 passing for Virginia (7-1, 4-0 ACC), which has won six games in a row – including three in overtime.
Taylor’s 69 rushing yards, including 9 in overtime, were the most for any player in the game.
Gio Lopez threw for 208 yards on 23-for-36 passing for North Carolina (2-5, 0-3). He tossed one scoring pass and was intercepted twice.
Virginia went first in overtime and scored on Taylor’s 1-yard run on the seventh play.
Lopez threw to Davion Gause for North Carolina’s OT touchdown on the fifth play of the possession. Then the Tar Heels were denied in coach Bill Belichick’s first game against a ranked opponent, they fell to 0-5 against power-conference opponents.
Virginia played in its third overtime game in its last four outings plus a two-point victory a week earlier vs. Washington State.
Neither team scored in the second half. North Carolina outgained Virginia 328-234 in regulation.
North Carolina made a goal-line stand in the third quarter by halting Virginia at the 1-yard line to keep the score at 10. Later in the third quarter, Morris and Lopez traded interceptions.
The score was tied at 10 at halftime with North Carolina holding a 246-126 edge in total yards. North Carolina’s Rece Verhoff missed on a 50-yard field goal attempt on the last play of the half.
Virginia got on the board first on Will Bettridge’s 34-yard field goal following North Carolina’s 74-yard drive that ended when receiver Kobe Paysour fumbled the ball through the end zone for a touchback.
Lopez threw for 97 first-quarter yards. The Tar Heels tied it 3-3 on Verhoff’s 34-yard field goal on a possession that included 45 yards worth of Virginia penalties.
The Cavaliers responded later in the second quarter with a six-play, 60-yard drive with Morris throwing to Trell Harris, who broke a tackle on a 30-yard TD play.
North Carolina pulled even with 1:24 left in the first half on Lopez’s 1-yard sneak to cap a 10-play, 75-yard drive.
This matchup is billed as the oldest rivalry in the South, and this was the 130th meeting between the teams.
