CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – The North Carolina Tar Heels, led by wide receiver Mack Hollins, rolled past the Wake Forest Demon Deacons 50-14 at Kenan Stadium on Saturday.
Hollins’ three receptions in the game were all touchdown scores, a career-setting mark as the two teams met for the 106th time in front of a crowd of 50,500.
Quarterback Marquise Williams (14-20, 282 yards, 3TD, 2 INT) had a shaky start, but finished strong connecting with Hollins and scoring a touchdown himself while rushing 59 yards.
“Great win for our team tonight – great overall team effort in all three phases against an in-state opponent,” Tar Heels head coach Larry Fedora said.
“Our guys are playin’ well right now and feel good about themselves as a team – the chemistry, the love that they have for each other. It’s fun to coach this team.”
Williams picked apart Wake Forest’s passing defense that was ranked eighth nationally and that had allowed only 17 points per game coming in.
“Last week we tackled,” Wake Forest head coach Dave Clawson said.
“We made plays in space. We got off the field on third downs. This week we didn’t pressure the quarterback. We didn’t make plays in space.”
Following a bye week which was preceded by a 38-31 come-from-behind victory over Georgia Tech, the Tar Heels won their second Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) game, and extended their overall record to 5-1.
The 2-0 conference start is North Carolina’s first since doing so in 1997 and the win was the largest margin of victory over Wake Forest in the two teams’ all-time series.
It didn’t start easy for the Tar Heels though.
Williams was intercepted early – not once, but twice – on UNC’s first two possessions.
After tossing up a missed floater towards Wake Forest cornerback Brad Watson on his third first-down snap during Carolina’s opening drive, Williams’ pass was blocked, tipped, and collected by the Demon Deacons’ Demetrius Kemp on the next series.
The Demon Deacons (3-4, 1-3) managed to score on the second of the two consecutive scoring opportunities they were afforded.
While placekicker Mike Weaver (0-2 FGA) missed a 47-yard field goal attempt wide right, quarterback John Wolford (16-22, 176 yards, 2 TD) completed a five-play, 30-yard drive with a pass to tight end Cam Serigne (6 catches, 65 yards) that put Wake Forest ahead 7-0 with 7:07 to play in the opening quarter.
North Carolina continued to struggle offensively, while the defense took out its aggression on Wolford.
After completing a 19-yard pass to K.J. Brent, Wolford struggled to run off the field following a big tackle absorbed upon releasing the ball.
Backup pivot Kendall Hinton (4-8, 21 yards) came into the game for the Demon Deacons with 3:53 to play in the quarter.
Hinton struggled to get the offense moving and faced a third-and-23 sequence which he couldn’t convert on the rush.
Still trailing by seven, Williams went to work quickly to start the next quarter for Carolina.
“I found ways to work through adversity,” Williams said.
“I love to seize my opportunities.”
Right from the first snap, Williams put up a 57-yard pass to Hollins who split the secondary and evened the score 7-7 following Nick Weiler’s PAT.
A fumble recovery by Jeff Shoettmer (1 tackle) came about on Wake Forest’s next possession.
As a result of a Shakeel Rashad tackle, one of his seven in the game, Shoettmer’s pick-up helped give the Tar Heels prime field position.
Williams subsequently rushed for a touchdown and gave UNC a 14-7 lead with 13:06 remaining in the half.
Even with Wolford back in the game, Wake Forest’s offense was suffocated by the Tar Heels defense.
Just under two minutes later, Elijah Hood (8 carries, 101 yards) capped off another quick North Carolina offensive sequence, and ran the ball in from 36 yards out to extend the lead to 22-7 following a two-point conversion.
Wake Forest didn’t back down as Wolford orchestrated a 12-play, 75-yard drive that resulted in a touchdown reception by Tabari Hines (2 catches, 13 yards) that cut UNC’s lead to eight points.
Once again, the Tar Heels responded quickly.
On second down from the North Carolina 38-yard line, Williams’ 61-yard pass to Austin Proehl helped to set up the next scrimmage play from the one-yard line, and led to a T.J. Logan (7 carries, 17 yards) touchdown that stretched the lead to 29-14.
Proehl, whose father played at Wake Forest, had two receptions for 94 total yards, including his career-long catch that set up Logan’s score.
“We all just want to win,” Proehl said.
“That’s the best part about this team. No matter who’s catching it, who’s runnin’ it, we just wanna win games. T.J. came up after me and said, ‘That was for you’. I said, ‘No, that was for you’. That was big for him, his first one of the year. He’s a great player and he deserves everything he gets.”
Weaver missed again, this time a 41-yard field goal attempt to end the half, and Wake Forest couldn’t chip away any further at North Carolina’s lead.
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Highlights – ACC Digital Network – TheACC.com
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Penalties marred much of the third quarter as both teams went scoreless until Hollins pulled down a four-yard floater that Williams lofted to him with four seconds remaining in the period.
Hollins tried to keep his eye on the ball, but lost it before grabbing it as it bounced off Wake Forest corner Dionte Austin who fronted him and pushed him towards the sideline in the end zone.
“When he threw the ball, it was, ‘Oh crap, I can’t see’,” Hollins said.
“Then I heard it hit him and I was like, ‘Oh, I might get lucky’. I turned around and got lucky.”
North Caroline led 36-14 heading into the final quarter of play.
After Hinton couldn’t get the Demon Deacons offense further ahead, Williams needed only two throws to put more points on the board for North Carolina.
A 33-yard strike to Proehl moved the chains to the Wake Forest 42-yard line before Hollins made his third catch and scored with 12:34 to play.
Backup quarterback Mitch Trubisky came in on the Tar Heels’ next possession and rushed into the end zone from 10 yards and rounded out the Tar Heels’ scoring.
It was an efficient performance from North Carolina as it only snapped the ball 59 times and gained 538 yards, its second-highest total this season.
Defensively, the Tar Heels gave up 310 net yards which resulted in only two Wake Forest touchdowns.
“They love scoring quick,” Fedora said.
“It makes it tougher on the defense when you’re scoring that quick, but I don’t think the defense gets too upset about it.”