No. 1 Miami Holds Off North Carolina 38-35 to Stay Unbeaten as Fletcher Scores Three Touchdowns and Breaks School Record
No. 1 Miami held off North Carolina 38-35 on Saturday night, October 31, at Kenan Stadium in Chapel Hill to improve to 8-0 (6-0 ACC) and stay unbeaten, while the Tar Heels fell to 4-4 (2-3 ACC) and to 0-12 all-time against top-ranked teams under head coach Bill Belichick.
Malachi Toney opened the scoring on a 2-yard pass from Darian Mensah. North Carolina answered all night: Jelani Thurman caught two 8-yard touchdown passes from Billy Edwards Jr., and Jordan Shipp's 16-yard touchdown catch put the Tar Heels ahead 21-17 in the third quarter before Mark Fletcher Jr. reclaimed the lead on a 2-yard run.
The fourth quarter turned into a shootout. Demon June's 1-yard run gave North Carolina a 28-24 lead; Miami's defense then strip-sacked Edwards, setting up Fletcher's second 2-yard touchdown run for 31-28, and Mensah hit Toney for a 9-yard score with 2:37 left to make it 38-28. Edwards found Trech Kekahuna for 15 yards with 1:42 remaining to cut it to 38-35, but Miami recovered the ensuing kickoff, Javian Mallory's runs burned North Carolina's final timeout, and Mensah kneeled out the clock.
Fletcher scored three touchdowns (a 31-yard catch and two 2-yard runs); the 31-yard score in the second quarter was the 36th total touchdown of his career, breaking the Miami record of 35 shared by Stephen McGuire and Edgerrin James. Toney caught seven passes for 75 yards and two touchdowns, tying Leonard Hankerson's 2010 school single-season record with 13 receiving touchdowns. Mensah finished 22-of-29 for 274 yards and three touchdowns; Edwards was 28-of-34 for 341 yards and four touchdowns in defeat.
The win was Miami's first over North Carolina since 2018, ending a five-game losing streak in the series. Miami visits Notre Dame next week; North Carolina travels to UConn.
Related: 大学橄榄球第9周今晚上演三场排名队对决：Ohio State远征USC、榜首Miami客战Belichick的North Carolina
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：Chapel Hill 的 Kenan Stadium 内场全景，本场比赛的举办地（资料图）。Alexander H. 摄，CC BY-SA 4.0，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / Interior panorama of Kenan Stadium in Chapel Hill, site of the game (file photo). Photo by Alexander H., CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
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