UNC Football Dominates Richmond, Tar Heels Run Wild in NFL, Meet Jonathan Powell
Plus: Football recruiting "flip watch," another basketball visit cancellation, big UNC Olympic Sports update, and more
It was another big sports weekend, with UNC Football dominating Richmond, Tar Heels scoring touchdowns left and right in the NFL, Olympic sports continuing to stack impressive performances, football recruiting visits, basketball recruiting cancellations, and more. On to the updates…
Football
It was the Defense and Demon June show on Saturday at Kenan Stadium, as the Tar Heels rolled to a 41-6 victory over the Richmond Spiders.
Freshman running back Demon June and the UNC defense were the stars of the game and were highlighted prominently in the postgame notes (PDF file):
June’s 148 rushing yards were the most for a Tar Heel freshman since Michael Carter had 157 against UVA on Oct. 14, 2017.
The UNC defense has stopped opponents from scoring a touchdown in back-to-back weeks for the first time since 2012.
Mikai Gbayor’s 62-yard fumble recovery for a TD was the first for the Tar Heels since Trey Morrison in 2021.
After the game, Bill Belichick and Chancellor Lee Roberts presented the game ball to UNC Football Chaplain Mitch Mason:
“Mason, who was named UNC's team chaplain in 2012, was diagnosed several years ago with idiopathic small fiber neuropathy, a rare illness that has put him through regular bouts in and out of the hospital. The most recent has him in the UNC Hospital and his condition has worsened.”
Next up for UNC Football is a trip to Orlando to face UCF on Saturday at 3:30 on FOX. UCF is 2-0 on the season after a 17-10 win over Jacksonville State and a 68-7 blowout of North Carolina A&T two weeks ago. The Knights have had an extra week to prepare for UNC after being off this past weekend.
In the NFL, Tar Heels accounted for eight(!) touchdowns during the 1:00 games on Sunday. Here’s the full rundown from R.L. Bynum at Tar Heel Tribune.
Drake Maye, New England (2 passing TDs, 1 rushing)
Mack Hollins, New England (1 receiving TD)
Tez Walker, Baltimore (2 receiving TDs); All 3 of Walker’s career NFL receptions have been for touchdowns!
Dyami Brown, Jacksonville (1 receiving TD)
Javonte Williams, Dallas (1 rushing TD)
Football Recruiting
It was another big football recruiting weekend on campus for the Tar Heels’ blowout of Richmond. Several big-name UNC commits and recruiting targets, including a Miami Hurricanes 4-star DB commit) posted about their visits on social media. Here’s who was at Kenan Stadium:
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