Pitt loses to UNC 41-24
Pitt is hosting North Carolina at Acrisure Stadium tonight. Here’s the latest from the game.
FIRST QUARTER
North Carolina won the coin toss and deferred, giving Pitt the ball to open the game. After Kenny Johnson took the kickoff, the Panthers took over at their own 22 and opened with a predictable pair of handoffs to Rodney Hammond that gained seven yards. Facing third down for the first time, Phil Jurkovec threw to Konata Mumpfield for nine yards to move the chains, and then Jurkovec picked up 20 yards on his own with a designed run into UNC territory.
A pair of Hammond runs picked up another first down and Jurkovec and Mumpfield converted a third down to get inside the 20. Those two did it again to convert third-and-2 from the 10. On the next play, Hammond ran outside to the left for a seven-yard touchdown to open the scoring.
The drive covered 78 yards In 13 plays and ran the clock under the 7:00 mark, giving Pitt a near-ideal start to the game.
PITT 7, NORTH CAROLINA 0 - 6:56, 1st quarter
Pitt almost followed the touchdown with a huge play when Dayon Hayes hit Drake Maye on UNC’s first offensive snap, forcing a would-be fumble that was recovered by Shayne Simon. But official replay showed that Maye’s hand was coming forward, changing the ruling to an incomplete pass. A dropped pass on the ensuing second down led to third-and-10, but the Tar Heels picked that up when P.J. O’Brien was called for pass interference. Maye converted the next third down himself with a 10-yard scramble and then hit passes of 13, 18 and 13 to inside the 5. From there, Omarion Hampton finished the drive with a three-yard run.
PITT 7, NORTH CAROLINA 7 - 3:38, 1st quarter
Jurkovec got the next drive started on his own with a nine-yard run on a quarterback keeper and then got the ball close to midfield with a nine-yard screen pass to Hammond, who made the longest gain of the game on the next snap with a 23-yard run.
Jurkovec topped that gain on the next play, though, when he ran play-action and connected with tight end Gavin Bartholomew for a 30-yard pickup that ended the first quarter at the UNC 1.
SECOND QUARTER
Pitt needed just one play in the second quarter to take the lead back with a handoff to fullback Daniel Carter.
PITT 14, NORTH CAROLINA 7 - 14:55, 2nd quarter
Pitt’s defense came up with a big stand on the next drive when Devin Danielson and David Green sacked Maye on third-and-8 to force a three-and-out punt, but the Panthers’ offense couldn’t capitalize. Pitt faced third-and-11 at its own 29 after a false start, and Jurkovec responded with his first incomplete pass of the game, leading to the Panthers’ first punt of the game.
After a long punt return, UNC took the ball at the 50 and struck quickly on an end-around that put the ball back in Maye’s hands, leading to a 40-yard pass to tight end John Copenhaver, with five more yards added on after a roughing the passer penalty.
Pitt’s defense made a valiant effort at the goal line, stuffing UNC twice from the 1. But on fourth-and-goal, Maye kept it himself and ran in for the game-tying score.
PITT 14, NORTH CAROLINA 14 - 9:09, 2nd quarter
Pitt’s offense didn’t have an answer for the touchdown. Jurkovec lost two yards on another quarterback run attempt, and on third-and-12, he was sacked for a 21-yard loss to the Pitt 1. That put Caleb Junko in the end zone for his punt, and Alijah Huzzie took it from the UNC 48 all the way back to the end zone for another Tar Heels score.
NORTH CAROLINA 21, PITT 14 - 7:23, 2nd quarter
Pitt’s offense came back to life on the next drive after the touchdown. On second-and-9 from the 26, Jurkovec and Mumpfield connected for 21 yards, and on the next play, Jurkovec hit Bartholomew for another 29-yard gain. That play put the Panther inside the UNC 24, but a run, a screen pass for a loss and an incomplete pass led to stalling the drive. Ben Sauls closed it out with points, though, connecting from 44 yards out for a field goal.
NORTH CAROLINA 21, PITT 17 - 3:38, 2nd quarter
The next drive started with positive momentum for Pitt. UNC began the possession at the 9 after a penalty on the kickoff, and the Tar Heels were pushed back seven more yards when Samuel Okunlola sacked Maye on first down. But a late-substitution penalty on Pitt gave UNC five yards, and a 19-yard pass for a first down earned another 15 when Donovan McMillon taunted the UNC receiver after the play.
A 29-yard pass moved UNC across midfield, and a 15-yard scramble by Maye got the Tar Heels inside the 15. On second-and-4 from the Pitt 7, Maye was in the clutches of Nate Temple, but he pulled up with his left hand to toss a touchdown pass to Kobe Paysour.
NORTH CAROLINA 28, PITT 17 - 1:00, 2nd quarter
Pitt got the ball back with one minute to play and picked up six yards on a screen pass, but another screen pass fell incomplete, setting up third-and-4 at the Pitt 31. On that play, Jurkovec kept the ball and ran; when he was tackled, UNC cornerback Tayon Holloway came in late with a hit to Jurkovec’s head, leading to a targeting ejection and 15 yards for Pitt.
Jurkovec had to come out of the game for the next play, bringing in Christian Veilleux, who connected with Daejon Reynolds for 15 yards to put the ball at the UNC 40.
With one second remaining, Sauls took the field for a 58-yard attempt, but the snap and hold were bobbled and his kick fell short.
NORTH CAROLINA 28, PITT 17 - Halftime
THIRD QUARTER
Pitt kicked off to start the second half, and UNC struck rather quickly when Maye threw to J.J. Jones for a 52-yard gain on second-and-7, moving the ball from the UNC 28 to the Pitt 20. The Panthers had the Tar Heels in third-and-10 from that spot, but Hampton ran for 11 yards against the Delta defense, and three plays later, Maye snuck into the end zone.
NORTH CAROLINA 35, PITT 17 - 12:32, 3rd quarter
When Pitt took the field again, Veilleux led the offense as Jurkovec did not return to the sideline after halftime. On first down, Veilleux ran for three yards, but he threw incomplete on second and third downs, leading to another punt.
UNC kept rolling after that punt. On the first play, Hampton broke a 26-yard run, and two snaps later, Maye hit Paysour for 22 yards to get to the Pitt 25. The Tar Heels stalled at that point, but kicker Noah Burnett converted from 43 yards to extend the lead.
NORTH CAROLINA 38, PITT 17 - 8:44, 3rd quarter
Some energy returned to Acrisure Stadium right after the touchdown, though, when freshman Kenny Johnson took the kickoff with his foot on the goal line, found a seam on the right side and raced down the sideline for a 100-yard kickoff return.
NORTH CAROLINA 38, PITT 24 - 8:32, 3rd quarter
After giving up a quick 10-yard pass on the first play of the next drive, Pitt forced UNC into a third-and-8, but Maye converted that with a 10-yard pass to Paysour and moved the ball into Pitt territory with a 17-yard throw to Jones. The drive stalled at the Pitt 30, but Burnette added three points with a 48-yard field goal.
NORTH CAROLINA 41, PITT 24 - 3:58, 3rd quarter
Pitt got a first down on its next drive when Hammond broke a 16-yard, but on second-and-10 from the UNC 40, Veilleux threw up a prayer under pressure and it was intercepted by Huzzie at the 1.
That field position was no problem for Maye and the Tar Heels, though, as the UNC quarterback threw for five yards and then 16 to get away from the end zone as the third quarter came to an end.
FOURTH QUARTER
Pitt’s defense stood tall against UNC to open the fourth quarter and forced a punt. Even better, the Panthers got a splash play when Rasheem Biles blocked the punt and Braylan Lovelace recovered it at the 20. But on the first play after the block, Veilleux and Kenny Johnson fumbled a handoff and UNC got the ball right back.
Pitt’s defense forced another punt, but the offense stalled after picking up two first downs and couldn’t convert fourth-and-6, giving the ball back to the Tar Heels again.
What followed was an ongoing series of failed fourth-down conversions from both teams - plus another interception from Veilleux - before the game ended just before 11:30 pm.
NORTH CAROLINA 41, PITT 24 - Final