6:30 P.M." SATURDAY DEC. 27 CHARLOTTE – During Saturday's postgame press conference" Hakeem Nicks was asked if even he was surprised by one of the ""SportsCenter catches"" he made in the Meineke Car Care Bowl.
Maybe the reporter was thinking of Nicks' first touchdown pass" a 73-yard bomb from T.J. Yates he thrust into the end zone with one hand dragging a Mountaineer defender along with him.
Or it could have been the 66-yard TD catch-and-run Nicks pummeled through from a pass from fellow receiver Cooter Arnold ending the run with a few broken tackles using that signature stiff arm.
Of course that's ignoring Nicks' simply unbelievable behind-the-back one-handed catch on a third down in the third quarter.
So Hakeem were you surprised by the nature of any of those catches?
Coach Butch Davis raised his eyebrows and looked down at Nicks before the Charlotte native answered" grinning.
""No" it didn't really surprise me" he said. Because I make a lot of catches like that throughout the week in practice. It was more of me just being an athlete and being determined to catch the ball when it comes my way.""
Nicks' determination was evident Saturday – and his talent moreso. And those spectacular catches were only three of the eight he made all day"" setting five UNC records on the way. That included marks for career receiving touchdowns (21) and receptions (178) set by Nicks – as a junior.