CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (AP) — No. 10 North Carolina is making a habit of jumping on teams out of halftime.
Heading into Saturday's visit from Virginia, the Tar Heels (6-0, 3-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) are nearly tripling their opponents' scoring output in the third quarter. That showed in last week's win against a then-ranked Miami team and has highlighted one of the reasons they're off to their best start in more than a quarter-century.
“They’re smart guys, their football IQ is pretty high," offensive coordinator Chip Lindsey said of the players. “We’ve got a strong staff that we’re disciplined, I think, about understanding our responsibilities and having answers within our system. What you don't want is a guy coming in and saying, ‘Hey, we need to do this’ but we've never done that before.”
The results have come on both sides, including defensive players being more experienced in Year 2 of coordinator Gene Chizik's scheme.
North Carolina has outscored opponents 71-24 in the third quarter. That includes scoring four TDs and a field goal on initial second-half drives in six games. By comparison, the Tar Heels have allowed two TDs and one field goal to opponents on those drives.
Last weekend, Miami led 17-14 at halftime, outgaining UNC (273-218) and pressuring star quarterback Drake Maye with four sacks. But things changed quickly after halftime, first when Maye found Devontez Walker for a 56-yard touchdown less than 2 minutes into the second half.
Walker followed with a 33-yard scoring catch from Maye two drives later, then running back Omarion Hampton had a short TD catch to cap a 21-point third quarter.
Coach Mack Brown pointed to changes such as UNC using more quick throws, putting Maye on the move and also changing protections to manage Miami’s aggressive pass rushers.
Meanwhile, Miami lost two turnovers and UNC took a 182-32 edge in total offense.
“Some people are better at game plans than they are adjusting,” Brown said. “Some people get stubborn. I always felt like you need to be simple enough to know what to go to when what you're doing's not working. What's next? And you need to go fast.”
That could set up a difficult scenario for the Cavaliers (1-5, 0-2 ACC). They're coming off an open week following their first win against William & Mary to snap an eight-game skid, and they've been outscored 52-34 in the third quarter.
“We're fighting, man,” coach Tony Elliott said. “These young men want to go to a bowl, right? That was the goal. Several guys on the roster have never been to a bowl game. They're scrapping and fighting every single game.”
LONG TIME
North Carolina is off to its best start since winning the first eight games in 1997, which was the final year of Brown's first coaching tenure at UNC before leaving for Texas. And its only the second time since 1983 that UNC has reached 6-0.
QB OPTIONS
The Cavaliers have used two starters at quarterback this year with Monmouth transfer Tony Muskett and freshman Anthony Colandrea. Muskett has missed time after suffering an injury to his non-throwing shoulder in the season-opening loss to Tennessee, but he's listed atop this week's depth chart.
PLAYMAKERS TO WATCH
Walker and Virginia's Malik Washington offer playmaking potential at receiver, while Hampton and Virginia's Perris Jones provide rushing production.
Walker's three TD grabs against the Hurricanes came in this second game since winning a long eligibility battle with the NCAA after his transfer from Kent State. Hampton ran for 197 yards for his second huge day this year.
Washington leads the ACC with 668 yards receiving to go with five touchdowns, and his 111.3-yard average ranks eighth in the Bowl Subdivision ranks. Jones ran for a career-high 134 yards against William & Mary, the most by a Cavaliers tailback since 2018.
UNSUSTAINED
Virginia has blown double-digit leads in three of its five losses this season.
The Cavaliers led James Madison 28-17 and 35-24 before losing 36-35, led Maryland 14-0 before surrendering 42 unanswered points, then led 14-0 and 21-7 in a 27-24 loss to Boston College.
SOUTH'S OLDEST RIVALRY
Virginia and UNC are meeting for the 128th time in a series that was first played in 1892. Only the Wisconsin-Minnesota series (131 meetings) has been played more in FBS history.
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AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/college-football and https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll
