Staff photo by Robert Willett
CHAPEL HILL — North Carolina has a sign outside its locker room that reads “680 miles to Tampa.”
Getting to Tampa just got a lot harder.
The Tar Heels' game against Virginia Tech took an abrupt turn in the second half after an injury to quarterback T.J. Yates. The Heels allowed 17 unanswered points and the Hokies left Kenan Stadium with a 20-17 win.
With Carolina leading 10-3 in the third quarter, Virginia Tech defensive end Orion Marti sacked quarterback T.J. Yates.
Yates stayed in the game for the next play and limped off the field while the Tar Heels punted the ball away.
He was eventually taken by golf cart to undergo X-rays at UNC Student Health Service but he returned to the sidelines in the fourth quarter. The X-rays were negative, but he was unlikely to return.
On UNC’s next offensive series, back-up quarterback Mike Paulus checked into the game, and on his first handoff, tailback Greg Little ran straight up the middle for a 50-yard touchdown that stretched the lead to 17-3.
Before that run, Little had carried 15 times for only 23 yards.
That's where all of the positive momentum for the Tar Heels ended.
The Hokies soon cut it to 17-10 with 1:09 left in the third after Darren Evans scored on a 10-yard run. They would later tie the game after Kenny Lewis' 11-yard touchdown.
The Hokies took the lead on a 45-yard field goal by Dustin Keys and the Tar Heels' attempts to rally fell short. Paulus, playing in his first significant minutes of the season, threw two interceptions and Carolina couldn't get anything else going either.
Robbi Pickeral has covered ACC sports for The News & Observer since 2003. She can be reached at 
Comments
Go ahead and holler "whine"
Mon, 09/22/2008 - 02:08 — Jeff4daheels (not verified)Go ahead and holler "whine" if you want to but IF YOU ACTUALLY SAW THE GAME you know that what should have been a 4th down punt by the Hokies after the Heels defense held on a 3rd & 1/2 yard became a 1st and 10 on the 20 that resulted in the Hokies tying the score. If you want to cry fairness on bad calls, then go ahead and give them the safety and they still lose by 2 without the help from Ron Cherry who was probably just "giving them the business." He is a joke - take a look: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_TTGZJlZpyc
When are the REFS ever going to be held accountable. Just ask the San Diego Chargers if a ref can make the difference in a game?
NO...We Ain't RELATED
Sun, 09/21/2008 - 08:07 — tomgcherryWhy is it when ACC Ref Ron Cherry (no relation) calls an NCSU game there are NO howls of complaints....only comments about NOT blaming the refs... BUT when Mr. Cherry and company calls a UNC Game and the outcome is NOT as the light blue wants, the problem was biased and/or missed calls. In CASE one forgets, Mr. Cherry was the one who called the Personal Foul on a Woflpack player for "Giv'n him the business...." This video is STILL on YouTube and is a WRAL highlight real moment.
When I tuned in the game and heard Mr. Cherry's distinct voice, I thought..."the boys in blue will be complaining if they do NOT win". Woody Durham (the one that asked where Ted Brown was a few years ago during an AWFUL game) was in fine form.. He was denouncing (he technically NEVER announces...only give the score when one of his buddies kicks him under the table) Mr. Cherry and his crew for their lack of visual acuity and lack of understanding of the sublties of the rule book. I THINK that the UNC Defense failed to contain VT towards the end of the game...and THAT was after a UNC score by the backup QB. That is basically what the N&O headline says....
UNC lost...in a close game....the Pack won in a close game...WF beat (kicker's game) FSU. Mr. Tudor is NOW 0 & 3 for his weekend calls.
Saturday's results....PRICELESS! GO PACK
well said my friend
Sun, 09/21/2008 - 14:55 — Anonymous (not verified)well said my friend
what? the pack wins, the
Sun, 09/21/2008 - 04:24 — mad_maxwhat? the pack wins, the heels lose...you'd think the idiots would shut up now, at least temporarily. but now, it's all about the refs. enjoy that WHIIIIIIINE and cheese losers. is it bball season yet? hahaha
Good Win for State?
Sun, 09/21/2008 - 10:09 — ECU overrated (not verified)Good job State, way to beat a team that has been waiting to lose. Who is next week? Another loss????
lol good one. of course the
Sun, 09/21/2008 - 14:53 — Anonymous (not verified)lol good one. of course the only reason state won is because ecu wanted to lose right? haha get real. the pack has one of the toughest schedules out there and they are 2-2 right now. NOBODY in this state has the right to talk smack to state fan right now. get over it loser
dude youre out there
Sun, 09/21/2008 - 21:34 — Statewho? (not verified)Good win over a sorry OVERRATED ecu team and William and Mary. Be proud. I am sure you will lose atleast 6 more, s 4 and 8 isnt bad I guess! It just depends on your standards. Dont tell me ECU isnt overrated, they almst lost last week. They will now be banished back to obscurity! bye, bye
I am a die hard State fan,
Sun, 09/21/2008 - 01:46 — Anonymous (not verified)I am a die hard State fan, and I attended the game today. ECU is far from overrated. State is young and in rebuilding mode. We have 11 injuries, 9 of which are starters. 4 are out for the season. Yes we beat William & Mary, and ECU. UNC fans with their snide remarks are rather comical to me, considering you barely beat McNeese St(WHO?) and you beat a Rutgers team that just lost to Navy, who lost to Duke. Everyone should shutup until you have a big win under your belt. Wait, #15 in the country sounds like a big one to me. Exactly. SHHHHH
Funny!
Sun, 09/21/2008 - 00:53 — J (not verified)"I apologize for my fellow Wolfpack fan. ECU isn't garbage."
That cracks me up. Seriously. It was funny.
Well, We won.....again! The
Sun, 09/21/2008 - 00:06 — hokieman (not verified)Well, We won.....again! The hokies lost 12 players to the NFL last year and we ended up beating GA tech and UNC. Now we have a more experienced group of young guys after the last two weeks. I knew we had a chance to win after the first half because i have never seen a poorer first half by the hokies in my life and we weren't that far behind. We have some amazing backs and our receivers are starting to catch on. We might just have an unexpected great year. I also lost respect for B davis today after seeing him whine after an offiacial review that clearly showed our player was down before the ball was stripped! We got a W and we got some more experience and we are going to whip the baby blues in Bburg next year. Oh and basketball is gay.
unc CRYS again
Sat, 09/20/2008 - 22:55 — Chief (not verified)Oh my...not again...whenever unc loses (whatever sport) they blame it on the ref. Never we should have played harder, or we could have played better, but that the refs had it in for us...they missed this call or that call. It really just gets so old. Please for the love of God and everything that is good in this world...stop crying...LOSERS
still crying
Sun, 09/21/2008 - 00:06 — Heelswho? (not verified)Exactly! Bunch of babies..... Hey Rutgers lost to Navy today. Didnt Duke beat Navy last week? There you go UNC, there is your quality win down the drain. You wiped out Rutgers because they are horrible! Way to measure up.
Wow, im neither NC State or
Sat, 09/20/2008 - 22:00 — Anonymous (not verified)Wow, im neither NC State or UNC fan but it seems that since NC State beat ECU they think they are unbeatable and cant be stopped. Truth is ECU was given way to much credit and never should have been ranked 15 or w/e it was.
I was really impressed with R. Wilson effort today..
UNC beat UNC! yeah Yates got hurt and and it all went down hill from there... but does Yates being hurt have anything to do with Little fumbling that football? no! , that was really the main turning point in the game.
Although u never like to blame games on refs, that Personal Foul call on UNC was complete garbage. It gave VT momentium when they should have had 4th down. but hey, ACC refs...
What about the call on the
Mon, 09/22/2008 - 11:32 — Anonymous (not verified)What about the call on the safety? There are always calls both sides can "blame" in every game. When the team makes 11 penalties in the game, is it reasonable to blame 1 of them? Get it down to 5 penalties and then blaming one doesn't sound so silly.
Finally, if the score had been tied, VT probably would have been more aggressive trying to score at the end. How can you say that one call "gave them the game" when there was more time for them to score if they needed to.
Congrats...
Sat, 09/20/2008 - 21:58 — Anonymous (not verified)Wolf puppies, good win at home today...it's nice to be able to pee in the stands...home sweet home.
To me, it wasn't that VT was
Sat, 09/20/2008 - 21:49 — Alex (not verified)To me, it wasn't that VT was necessarily the better team, but that UNC kept doing things to shoot themselves in the foot. Stupid penalties, turnovers at the wrong times, etc. Paulus played at the end of the Rutgers game for a couple of minutes, and obviously being thrust into the game for an injured Yates wasn't the optimal time for him to get his first real playing time, when there was so much riding on him. Can't blame him for everything that went wrong, because it was a whole-team loss. It should be a hard week of practice for them, but they'll hopefully take a lesson from this and come out and blow Miami away.
Officiating was terrible
Sat, 09/20/2008 - 21:33 — sweetseaA VT player grabbed the facemask of Quan Sturdivant and pulled him forward. Quan shoved him back and was called for a big penalty that was the turning point in the game. This and other calls determined the outcome. These officials should have to review the game tapes with a supervisor. They need a lot more training.
HAHA
Sat, 09/20/2008 - 21:39 — Anonymous (not verified)BooHoo, Im sure there was alot of that on both sides! Or, maybe the ref only missed that one call......... Are you playing football or hoping for penalty calls??????????
I agree the officiating was questionable at times.
Sat, 09/20/2008 - 21:43 — UNCAlumnusUNC just has to learn to take the refs out of the game where they can't affect the outcome.
Not one to pass the blame?
Sat, 09/20/2008 - 21:47 — Anonymous (not verified)Next game it will be something else right? If you arent one to pass the blame....... then put on the big boy pants and get ready for next year in Blacksburg. There were calls not made on both sides, such as the safety for intentinal grunding in the endzone. stuff happens!
I was there, one of the few among us experts
Sat, 09/20/2008 - 21:18 — UNCAlumnusUNC played well early, especially on defense. When Yates went out, the offense was useless. Basically, Most of VT's points were because of bad play by the UNC offense. By my count, Yates was either directly or partially responsible for 3 turnovers. As for you wolfpack fans, congratulations. Oh, and by the way...keep up the classiness. I'm glad NCSU won, because they may not win again this year. UNC will be fine. If Yates misses time, Paulus will get his reps with the first team offense and they will iron out the problems. UNC's defense was put into some tough spots. They also put themselves in some bad spots with penalties. The refs got some calls right and a lot of calls and noncalls wrong. I'll take Hochule (sp) any day.
Did you watch the game???????????????????
Sat, 09/20/2008 - 21:31 — Anonymous (not verified)The reason UNC lost is because the Vt defense finally woke up! If you want to complain abut the officials then that could go both ways.( ie, the safety we should have had for intentional grounding in the end zone). Dont live and die by the ref! Your best bet is to hope Yates is alright, otherwise UNC is done! Paulus is Yates of last year. remember that?
the VT defense "woke up"
Sat, 09/20/2008 - 21:47 — gvillegatrthe VT defense "woke up" when Paulous came into the game. keep thinking you have a vaunted defense!! its amazing when 2 people see things entirey different!! wont be the last time.
Nice yardage!!!!!!!!!!!
Sat, 09/20/2008 - 22:38 — GvilleGatrs buddy (not verified)Hey I like Tate and Nicks all purpose yards today. 0 and -5! Great stat. And I am willing to bet that turn over margin might have changed a bit after today!!!!!!!!!!!!
Vaunted D?
Sat, 09/20/2008 - 21:57 — Anonymous (not verified)Nothing vaunted, just better than the Offense! sorry or were those 4 turnovers the work of those silly refs again? At least we all can agree that UNC is 2-1. right???
Oh, I was there alright
Sat, 09/20/2008 - 21:41 — UNCAlumnusIt's true, when Yates played UNC did well. I'll also say UNC's defense let the team down with it's play at times. Paulus will be good, eventually. I just hope it doesn't come to that this year. I am also saying the refs put points on the board for VT. If you disagree, good for you.
silly!
Sat, 09/20/2008 - 21:53 — Anonymous (not verified)Well! Lets go and yell at those refs! They are bad, bad , boys that had it out for UNC. Its a conspiracy! Remember it was 17-3, Yates got hurt and your team fell apart. Tech score 17 unanswered! ( or the ref, I dont know) plain and simple.... but we will let the ref take the fall, no problem. Please come to Blacksburg next year, it is so nice up there this time of year.
I've heard Blacksburg is nice.
Sun, 09/21/2008 - 18:28 — UNCAlumnusI'll have to say the chances of me making it next year are slim. I'm trying to budget in an increase in my Rams Club pledge and by more season tix for next year. My kids are getting to the age where they'd like to go. As far as the game. It's over. I'm thinking Miami today. Let's hope the UNC players can do the same thing. VT is going to be the UVa of last year. Win close games with luck and taking advantage of opportunities. UNC still has a lot to play for. I'd like to see them get better with every game. They can start toward that goal on Monday. Yates, Paulus, or whoever...play with who you've got and win.
all I got to see was the
Sat, 09/20/2008 - 21:06 — gvillegatrall I got to see was the second half. there were a combination of things that went wrong when up 17-3.
UNC is up for the challenge. just got a little unlucky today.
party hard this evening State fans ... there wont be another weekend like this for some while!!
Class
Sat, 09/20/2008 - 20:44 — J (not verified)Any fan that acts/talks without class is, I believe, garbage. All schools have some poorly acting fans, as evidenced by some of my fellow Wolfpack fans comments. Sorry about them, although I am happy you lost.
Heels' ACC Championship hopes dashed
Sat, 09/20/2008 - 20:44 — jimcaudill34The Heels finally played a real team and got beat. This is the same Hokie team that lost to ECU at home. Remind me who beat the Pirates today? Go Pack.
????????? Confused?
Sat, 09/20/2008 - 21:24 — Anonymous (not verified)Blacksburg, Va. not Charlotte pal. State could be good but needs some work. Obrien is a good coach and will get it turned around! ECU is definitely overrated........ not deserving of any ranking for sure, thats why you will now see them disappear!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
i'll call you Richard (you
Sat, 09/20/2008 - 21:43 — gvillegatri'll call you Richard (you know what I mean!) since you are too much of a puss to sign up.
you tell me what th sentence means to you ...
"This is the same Hokie team that lost to ECU at home."
to me, this means VT lost at home to ECU. well the game was played in Charlotte ... hence my post I didnt realize VT had moved their campus to Charlotte.
I was not aware Virgina Tech
Sat, 09/20/2008 - 21:01 — gvillegatrI was not aware Virgina Tech had up and moved to Charlotte, NC??
See you n the field!!!!!!!!!!!
Sat, 09/20/2008 - 21:13 — Heelswho............... (not verified)See you on the field saturday!!!!! Isnt that what you said Gvillegatr? As I said....... even without Tyrod our D would take care of it. And guess what? Hey atleast the crowd got into it a little......... GO HOKIES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
what are you taslking
Sat, 09/20/2008 - 21:38 — gvillegatrwhat are you taslking about?? your defense!!?? congrats on dominating our 2nd string QB who, to my knowledge, had never taken a snap in college football!?
as far as your 1st TD, it was given to you on a silver platter by the refs on TWO 3rd and long bogus penalties against UNC. your tieing TD, you had to only go 30 yds for. the first FG you made ... you started on the UNC 7 or 8.
I'd say UNC beat themselves more than you won the game outright. none the less, your team won and that is all that matters. congrats.
talsking about!!!!!!!``
Sat, 09/20/2008 - 22:06 — Tatewho? (not verified)Its all in the positins you put yourself in. If Tech only had to go 3 yards, is that their fault? Either a turnover or punt return could get them there, right? Once again, the reason that Tech started at the 7............ isnt their fault. It was because the Defense came up big! Hey out of curiosity,how many yards did Nicks, Tate, and Little have?
Heels Real... NC State Keep it Shut
Sat, 09/20/2008 - 20:43 — Anonymous (not verified)Look... Heels played a team that simply doesn't lose on the road. Maybe not VT best season, but still a solid team.
NC State... enjoy your win over an overrated team. Look. A luck win over VT. A big win over a terrible Big East. Now a good win over an average team.
The future looks great for VT, good for UNC and, well, average for NC State.
unc fan, do you know how
Sun, 09/21/2008 - 04:21 — mad_maxunc fan, do you know how ridiculous you sound? state beat an ecu team that beat vt! ya know, that team that beat unc today? get real, you losers
exactly keep it zipped wolfy!
Sat, 09/20/2008 - 21:37 — Anonymous (not verified)ECU is garbage and has beaten two ranked teams that were overrated in the beginning of the season! Tulane shuld have beaten ECU last week so good job State, you beat another overrated team........ oh yeah and William and Mary!
Where's the cheese?
Sat, 09/20/2008 - 20:36 — Autenien (not verified)I see the "whine" has been flowing freely post-game with the rank and vile crowd over at Tarhole town,
Where's the cheese?
Sat, 09/20/2008 - 20:35 — Autenien (not verified)I see the "whine" has been flowing freely post-game with the rank and vile crowd over at Tarhole town,
1 mile to the UNC Dorms
Sat, 09/20/2008 - 20:02 — Anonymous (not verified)That should be the sign on the locker room, because that team is going home for the Holidays... My gosh, why would any recruit want to attend that school? They have beat McNeese St & Rutgers and you'd think they won the Orange Bowl. ONE GOOD PLAYER ON THE TEAM, thats it !!!
crackers
Sat, 09/20/2008 - 19:13 — Mike (not verified)I am glad the carolina lost because I do not like the carolina, no I do not.
ROFL, the "whine" is
Sat, 09/20/2008 - 20:03 — Autenien (not verified)ROFL, the "whine" is definitely flowing freely within the Tarhole rank and vile after this game.
TOO BAD TARHOLES
Sat, 09/20/2008 - 19:09 — CHIEFJAHA1 (not verified)Really that is all that needs to be said...except when the excuses start flowing about how it was a turnover at the end of the game, rememeber it should have been a safety (because of inteJAntional grounding). GO PACK!!
Now, now, be nice
Sat, 09/20/2008 - 19:08 — Anonymous (not verified)I apologize for my fellow Wolfpack fan. ECU isn't garbage.
Tarheels"inflated headed football fans"
Sat, 09/20/2008 - 18:50 — wolfpacker (not verified)Just like ECU, THEY ARE GARBAGE !!! I'll take NC State and that 2-2 squad over the Heels any day any place. Way to go Butch Davis...a total flop!! enjoy last in the Coastal Division. Remember, You were picked 2nd by the great Media. LOL Tarheel Fans !!!