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The Daily Tar Heel

Tar Heels dominate Old Dominion on the ground in first win of season

Jordon Brown against ODU

Running back Jordon Brown (2) fights off an ODU defender on Saturday at Foreman Field.

NORFOLK, Va. — The North Carolina offense was stuck at its own 12-yard line. 

A pair of pre-snap penalties were to blame for the poor field position. It was third down on the Tar Heels' first possession of their first road game of the season. Eighteen yards separated them from moving the chains.

A patchwork, injury-ridden offensive line dug its knuckles into the turf. A redshirt first-year, who hadn’t quite claimed the starting quarterback job, set up in the shotgun. A sophomore running back, who hadn’t even carried the ball 50 times in his UNC career, lined up beside his quarterback.

And yet — despite the sub-optimal hand the team was dealt — North Carolina’s (1-2) third play from scrimmage proved to be emblematic of its 53-23 thrashing of Old Dominion (2-1) at Foreman Field. Running back Jordon Brown took a handoff from quarterback Chazz Surratt and cranked out a 21-yard gain for a Tar Heel first down.

The drive that ensued was capped off by a 35-yard field goal, but it sent a message to a sold-out ODU crowd that would ring clear throughout the game until the time on the scoreboard hit zeros: North Carolina wasn’t going to squander its size advantage up front.

“The offensive line did a nice job,” head coach Larry Fedora said. “I haven’t watched (the film), but again, to rush for that, to do that. I mean, we were getting the back to the second and third level quite a bit, so that was impressive.”

Jordon Brown had a career day, running for 125 yards and two touchdowns on 17 attempts, and first-year Michael Carter ran for 67 yards and two touchdowns on 13 carries. The two running backs returned after an abysmal showing against Louisville, in which the team had just 17 rushing yards.

“Chemistry is one of the biggest parts of an offensive line,” said Charlie Heck, a sophomore offensive tackle who played every down of Saturday’s game. “And I mean, that’s why we practice. It is different when you got different guys who you’re blocking, but we were able this week to work together and find that chemistry before the game.”

Surratt, who took all meaningful quarterback reps, also contributed to the Tar Heel rushing attack. He added 19 yards and two touchdowns and said his job was made “easy" thanks to the protection and playmaking around him.

“You know, I was more relaxed today,” said Surratt, who threw for 257 yards and a touchdown on 16 of 24 passing. “I just feel like I’m getting better every week … The offensive line, our receivers, our running backs were all making plays, so it was really easy for me.”

The offensive unit — despite its season-best performance — certainly benefited from early and often Monarch mistakes. Two shanked punts in the first half gave UNC the ball on ODU’s side of the field. A blocked field goal kept the Monarchs' score at zero while the Tar Heels’ score kept ballooning. And a fumble at the one-yard line right before the break absolutely deflated the once-raucous stadium.

But no matter how it happened, North Carolina won its first game in impressive fashion after falling flat in each of its first two weeks.

The win may not have come against the most complete team, and the Tar Heels will be the last to say they were flawless — but, on Saturday, they found a way to navigate out of the winless doldrums.

And they’ll take that any weekend of the year.

@alexzietlow05

sports@dailytarheel.com

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