Marquise Williams lances Cavaliers

As he exited the field after a 45-14 win against Virginia, quarterback Marquise Williams paused to shake the hands of the fans in the front row of North Carolina’s student section.

He stopped for a hug with the team’s mascot Rameses, spoke with a few alumni and then proceeded down the tunnel to the locker room.

UNC (4-5, 3-3 ACC) was his team now and those were his fans.

No longer could Williams defer to No. 2, calling UNC Bryn Renner’s team. Now he was No. 2, donning Renner’s jersey to honor the quarterback who had season-ending shoulder surgery last Wednesday.

Williams said when Renner learned his season was over, the former starting quarterback let him know he needed to go out and show what he could do.

“I was like ‘Bryn, I’m doing this for you cause because you were all I had coming into school as a 17-year-old being a puppy,’” Williams said. “He took care of me and always was my background and always did everything he could for me to make me happy.

“I give him credit — that’s why I’m more mature today.”

In his second career start, Williams contributed to four touchdowns — two passing, one rushing and one receiving— and became the first UNC quarterback to catch a touchdown pass since 1984.

UNC scored its second touchdown when Williams tossed the ball to running back T.J. Logan, who flipped it to wide receiver Quinshad Davis on what looked like a reverse play. Davis then stepped back and found Williams by himself along the UNC sideline for a 29-yard touchdown, putting the Tar Heels up 14-0.

“I was just praying ‘God, please don’t let me drop this ball,” Williams said of his catch.

UNC’s strong start was in large part due to Williams’ efficiency on third down. On his first two drives, Williams converted four third-and-long situations requiring nine yards or more.

Coach Larry Fedora said Williams’ seamless transition to full-time starter didn’t surprise him. Fedora had seen flashes of Williams’ leadership capabilities while he was Renner’s backup.

“It’s kind of amazing. We never talked about it,” Fedora said. “Marquise, (his teammates) feel good about him. They understand he’s going to take care of his business.”

Williams completed 15 of 28 passes for 185 yards and two touchdowns and ran for 46 more yards.

UNC’s ground game accounted for a season-high 201 yards rushing, which freshman running back Khris Francis said was a result of Williams keeping the Cavaliers defense on its toes.

“That (defensive end) isn’t just crashing down on me every play,” said Francis, who added 57 all-purpose yards and scored his first career touchdown. “He has to worry about, ‘Hey, this guy might keep the ball and make a play with his feet.’”

Even when the Virginia defense had Williams wrapped up, he found a way to keep the play alive.

Driving in Virginia’s red zone during the third quarter, the Cavaliers sniffed out a designed Williams keeper and started to bring him to the ground, but the quarterback found tight end Eric Ebron open across the middle. Ebron ran after the catch down to the Virginia 4-yard line, setting up a 3-yard Williams touchdown that gave UNC a 28-0 lead.

“To me, it puts more of a strain on a defense when you have a quarterback who can make something happen with his legs,” Fedora said. “He can extend plays.”

Francis said Williams distinguished his role as the leader of UNC’s offense Saturday.

“He took control of the offense,” he said. “Every time we were out there he was making sure everybody was up, making sure everybody knew what we were doing.”

It’s Williams’ team now, and he made sure Virginia knew it.

sports@dailytarheel.com