Costly pick seals Tar Heels' fate

ATLANTA - Judging by the number of first-time starters taking the field for North Carolina in its Saturday contest against No. 17 Georgia Tech, it might come as no surprise that the Tar Heels showed signs of fatigue, confusion and stagnation at crucial stints during the game.

But after his team squandered two chances for victory in the final two minutes, Tar Heel coach John Bunting left no space for excuses and all the room for improvement after UNC's 27-21 loss to the Yellow Jackets before 46,459 at Bobby Dodd Stadium.

"This was one giant M.O. - missed opportunity," Bunting said. "We made some plays, but we didn't make enough plays."

In just his first game as a starting quarterback, UNC's Matt Baker got the crunch-time experience he had lacked. With the ball at the Georgia Tech 46 and his team down by six, Baker looked poised to show his two-minute drill capabilities and create the winning score.

But the senior signal caller went for it all on a long bomb to wide receiver Mike Mason, only to have it all suddenly taken away. A hit from a Yellow Jacket defender caused a misguided throw by Baker and allowed Georgia Tech's Dennis Davis to pull down the pick.

"I got hit on the inside of my leg on that bomb play, so it trailed inside instead of outside to Mike," Baker said. "I don't know, maybe I made a mistake by going for that play."

UNC's defense gave Baker a chance to redeem the miscue by forcing Georgia Tech to punt with 44 seconds remaining.

But with no timeouts and the Tar Heels deep in their own territory, Baker got impatient again. After a sack on first down pushed UNC back to its own 3-yard line, the senior lofted a pass that Georgia Tech defender Dawan Landry picked off, sealing the win for the Yellow Jackets (2-0, 1-0 in the ACC).

"You can look at those last few drives on offense and it comes down to penalties, missed assignments, dropped balls and bad throws," Baker said. "We were not very precise (Saturday)."

On the other hand, Georgia Tech displayed incredible efficiency on third down and in the red zone, going 10-for-20 and four-for-four in those respective situations.

"When you get opportunities at third-and-long and let them stay on the field, you're not going to win many ball games that way," Bunting said. "I thought a couple guys wore down and didn't give us the pass rush we needed on third down."

After shaking off a slow start that saw the Yellow Jackets ride the play of tailback P.J. Daniels (21 carries for 103 yards) to a 14-0 lead, UNC began to find its rhythm.

Baker sparked UNC by doing his best Darian Durant impression on a 10-yard scramble for the Tar Heels' first score.

Four minutes later, Baker found wide receiver Derrele Mitchell, who turned a short sideline route into an 87-yard touchdown to tie the game at 14 before the half.

But the Tar Heels came out flat in a third quarter that played a major part in the game's outcome.

UNC running backs Cooter Arnold and Barrington Edwards found little success on the ground, compiling just 8 rushing yards in the final 30 minutes after combining for 42 in the first half.

"I thought (after halftime) we would start moving the ball, but they snuffed us," Bunting said. "They just stuffed us and stuffed us, and we couldn't convert anything. That is really disappointing."

Georgia Tech quarterback Reggie Ball took advantage, as he racked up stats in almost every offensive category. The senior threw for a career-high 320 yards, rushed for 20 and caught a 33-yard pass while ending up with three total scores on the day.

The Yellow Jackets also got an unexpected lift from senior receiver Damarius Bilbo, who pulled in eight catches for 131 yards and a touchdown - not to mention firing the pass for Ball's surprise reception.

But despite giving up these yards and suffering through a crucial third-quarter drought, it is the missed opportunities in the game's final moments that will haunt UNC.

"You can't have one, two or three of those (close games) a year and expect to have a successful season," Bunting said. "So if we have an opportunity like that again, we have to do a much, much better job of finishing the job."

 

Contact the Sports Editor at sports@unc.edu.