DURHAM, N.C.—Drake Maye connected with Antoine Green on the right side of the end zone for an 8-yard score with 16 seconds left to lift North Carolina past rival Duke 38-35 on Saturday night.
Maye’s throw capped a nine-play, 74-yard drive for a touchdown that stood on the slimmest of margins. Replays showed Green’s left foot land barely inside the sideline — with only a sliver of grass detectable between Green’s foot and the white paint — before officials declared after a review that the touchdown call would stand for the Tar Heels (6-1, 3-0 Atlantic Coast Conference).
Duke (4-3, 1-2) drove to midfield in the desperate seconds for a possible tying field goal, but UNC’s Noah Taylor batted Riley Leonard’s pass skyward for teammate Will Hardy to make a clinching diving interception with 2 seconds left.
That sent UNC fans into wild cheers with a still-unbeaten record in Atlantic Coast Conference play as the Coastal Division leaders, not to mention the chance to keep the Victory Bell that goes to the winner of the longstanding rivalry for a fourth straight year.
Maye threw for 380 yards and three touchdowns to lead the Tar Heels, while Josh Downs had nine catches for 126 yards that included a couple of spectacular grabs.
Leonard threw for 245 yards and a touchdown to go with a 74-yard scoring keeper to lead the Blue Devils. Jordan Waters ran for 91 yards and two scores, including his own highlight-reel moment with a 38-yard cutback run past multiple UNC defenders for a score and a 35-31 lead with 10:12 left.
Yet this one ended like each of the three since Mack Brown returned for a second stint leading the UNC program: with the Tar Heels jubilantly clanging the Victory Bell again on their way off the field.
THE TAKEAWAY
UNC: The Tar Heels have looked wobbly all season defensively while being carried by a stat-producing offense led by Maye, so much so that Brown said UNC is never out of a game with Maye. The last drive reinforced that fact, keeping the Tar Heels in control of the always-unpredictable division race. And considering the Tar Heels were the top vote-getter among unranked teams last week, they could find their way into Sunday’s new AP Top 25 poll, too.
Duke: The Blue Devils did plenty right in this one, including running for 297 yards while getting two takeaways. But they came up empty on a drive with a missed field goal that could’ve pushed the late lead to seven, then couldn’t come up with a final stop on Maye in the Tar Heels’ go-ahead drive.
UP NEXT
UNC: The Tar Heels are off next week and return to action Oct. 29 at home against Pittsburgh in another division matchup.
Duke: The Blue Devils visit Miami next Saturday.
