Early TD holds up as Tar Heels upset Virginia 7-5

By John Onan  |   Saturday, October 22, 2005  |  Comments( 0 )

College Football
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North Carolina got a two-yard scoring pass from quarterback Matt Baker to Rikki Cook late in the first quarter, and that turned out to be all they'd need, as they hung on to pull a slight upset at home over the Virginia Cavaliers on Saturday afternoon 7-5.

After being humiliated 69-7 against Louisville two weeks ago, the Tar Heels defense came up big all day against a team that pulled their own surprising win the week before, against Florida State. In the final two minutes of the game, and with Virginia driving down to the Tar Heels 36-yard line, Cedrick Holt intercepted Cavalier quarterback Marques Hagan to preserve the victory.

Junior tailback Reggie McGill had a solid game running the ball, going for 116 yards on 22 carries. He turned out to be important, as quarterback Matt Baker struggled against the Virginia secondary, completing 13-of-24 for only 98 yards and was picked off once.

The Cavaliers had problems moving the ball all day, but got a decent performance out of running back Wali Lundy, who had been slowed by injuries most of the season. He gained 60 yards on 18 attempts, but couldn't find many openings against the strong Tar Heels defensive front. Quarterback Marques Hagan was stifled also, throwing for only 110 yards on 14-of-28 passing.

North Carolina evened their record at 3-3 on the year with the victory, while Virginia fell to 4-3 and more than likely, out of the top 25.
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