After the Patriots beat the Dolphins 24-19, a reporter asked quarterback Drake Maye about the rain during the game, but the former North Carolina star noticed the reporter’s suit was North Carolina blue. Maye chuckled, took a quick detour to the Tar Heels’ loss to Miami the night before, and then went back to the serious answer. The detour was short, but his remark was very clear.
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“I like that suit, North Carolina blue. We got rigged last night, man. We got rigged against Miami,” said Maye, reported by BR Gridiron on Instagram.
Maye followed up with a chuckle, as a few reporters could also be heard laughing in the background. Still, it came from someone who spent his college career at UNC.
No. 1 Miami won 38-35 on Saturday night at Kenan Memorial Stadium to move to 8-0. North Carolina dropped to 4-4, which gave head coach Belichick his fourth loss of the season. The loss also left UNC 0-12 against No. 1-ranked opponents.
The game stayed close deep into the second half. Demon June’s one-yard run gave UNC a 28-24 lead with 11:46 left in the fourth quarter. Miami answered when Mark Fletcher Jr. scored on a two-yard, fourth-down run with 7:49 remaining. Then came the turning point.
On UNC’s next possession, Marquise Lightfoot forced a fumble by Billy Edwards Jr., and Justin Scott recovered it with 5:33 left. Lightfoot explained how it happened.
“He decided to take a second decision, bat the ball, hold the ball a little longer, so I was able to get there,” said Lightfoot.
Head coach Mario Cristobal made clear how much that one play mattered.
“In games like that, really important, like we tell our players, you just keep playing. Because you don’t know what play is going to turn the whole thing around. And certainly the fumble was a massive turnaround that swung the momentum in the game,” said Cristobal.
Miami used the turnover to extend its lead. Darian Mensah threw a nine-yard touchdown pass to Malachi Toney, making it 38-28 with 2:33 left. The Tar Heels thought they had recovered two onside kicks, but penalties wiped out both. On the third try, Miami’s Ezekiel Marcelin grabbed the ball at the UNC 34-yard line with 1:36 left, and the Hurricanes ran out the clock.
Mensah finished with 274 yards and three touchdown passes, while Fletcher scored three total touchdowns. Toney caught seven passes for 75 yards and two scores. For UNC, Edwards put up a season-high 341 yards and four touchdowns, completing 28 of 34 passes.
Belichick praised his team’s fight after the game, but he didn’t hide his frustration with a second straight loss.
“Lot of effort, lot of toughness, lot of mental toughness, lot of competitiveness. Just disappointing to come up short here two weeks in a row,” said Bill Belichick.
Edwards made it clear he was not looking for comfort in how close it was.
“This isn’t the business for moral victories,” said Edwards Jr.
Miami’s side was not spotless either. Its defense gave up its highest point total in regulation this season, and Cristobal pointed to the coverage. He said there were some soft spots in Miami’s coverage, and that the team’s zone drops weren’t as sharp as they should have been.
Both teams now move on quickly. Miami visits No. 5 Notre Dame on Saturday, November 7, a rematch of last season’s game that influenced the College Football Playoff bid. North Carolina travels to UConn the same day, outside ACC play.