UNC Learns Important Life Lessons

Good call.

Sure, North Carolina did not upset and stun the Sooners, finishing the game on the bad side of a 41-27 score. But the Tar Heels answered some very important questions that had been plaguing them before the season's start.

First, and maybe foremost, there is life beyond Ronald Curry. During UNC's media day, when asked about his backups, Curry said, "hopefully," there would not be any need for them.

But Saturday was not Curry's day, and the decision to pull him in the third quarter was a sound one. Backup Darian Durant needed to take snaps in a live game, not just some scrimmage against the rest of the Tar Heels.

Durant gave UNC hope, and in the fourth quarter threw a pair of touchdown passes to two unlikely candidates -- backup wideout Chesley Borders and tailback-turned-wide receiver Brandon Russell. He also led the Tar Heels so close to a eight-point deficit, you could almost sense the heart attacks on Oklahoma's sidelines.

Curry is UNC's quarterback, but at least Bunting can sleep better at night knowing that if Curry goes down, the rest of the season doesn't go with him.

Durant was 12 for 26 for 152 yards in a quarter-plus worth of action. He mounted the offensive drive culminating in Borders' 26-yard touchdown. UNC has to feel good about that.

UNC also has to feel good about itself. Down 24-0 in the blink of an eye, they did not give up. Julius Peppers took advantage of an inexperienced quarterback to put UNC on the board, and when ESPN panned to the sidelines, the team's excitement was palpable.

Bunting was hyped. The players jumped up and down screaming. They might have been in a hole, but there was still fight in them. That is new.

In recent years, Florida State has slapped UNC every which way early on, so it's not like OU's lead was anything new. But when it's your own fault and not Peter Warrick that put you far behind, it's harder to bounce back.

The Tar Heels' drive chart went like this in the first quarter -- fumble, punt, fumble, punt, fumble, punt, touchdown. By comparison, Oklahoma's was field goal, touchdown, touchdown, punt, touchdown, interception, touchdown.

Immediately after Peppers picked off Nate Hybl, Antwone Savage returned a kickoff 88 yards for a touchdown. That's just the sort of thing that should have killed UNC.

It did not, and Bunting has to feel good about that. Down 41-14 at the half, the Tar Heels looked so far out of the game, it seemed like they were in Oklahoma City.

To be a fly on the wall during that halftime would have been fascinating. Curry's evening had only gotten worse from his fumble on the second down of UNC's first series. Bunting got a view of how poorly the Tar Heels -- who finished 113th in the nation last season in turnovers -- could play. The only things UNC had going for it was Peppers' interception and a kickoff return for a TD by Michael Waddell, who fumbled earlier at the UNC 33 after being hit by the Sooners' punter.

Still, they came back. They cut back on stupid mental errors. The defense did not let Oklahoma score in the second half. And in the fourth, a redshirt freshman without a lick of college experience cut OU's lead nearly in half.

True, the Tar Heels learned there's still plenty of problems too. The running game looked terrible. Turnovers dug UNC in insurmountable hole. And Curry was sacked three times.

But after game one, UNC learned that it has character, and that might be the most important lesson of all.

Rachel Carter can be reached at racarter@email.unc.edu.