Late FG lifts Terps over Heels

Staff photo by Robert Willett

• First Look

COLLEGE PARK, Md. — So much for the ACC Championship Game.

No. 17 North Carolina, which began Saturday in the driver's seat to win the Coastal Divison almost certainly lost its chance at a trip to Tampa by losing to Maryland 17-15 at Byrd Stadium.

UNC was leading 15-14 with 10:25 left in the game when the Terps — who dominated time of possession — marched 81 yards on 19 plays and scored on a 26-yard field goal.

The Tar Heels had a chance to take back the lead, but Cameron Sexton threw an interception with 49 seconds left to seal the Terps' victory.

Technically, UNC could still advance to the league title game, but the chances are remote With two games left in the regular season, Miami, Virginia and Virginia Tech would all have to lose at least once, and Carolina would have to win out. 

With 13:46 left in the first half, back-up tailback Davin Meggett gave the Terps a 14-12 lead when he capped an 80-yard drive with a one-yard touchdown run. UNC simply couldn't stop him, as he accounted for 57 of the yards on that drive total.

Then Carolina turned over the ball for the first time in three games when Sexton took off running and it slipped out of his hands. Maryland's Adrian Moten recovered. But UNC's Michael McAdoo halted any scoring hope when Maryland when for it on 4th and 7 and he sacked Chris Turner. It was only the sixth time this year the Terps have allowed a sack.

UNC freshman Casey Barth kicked his second field goal of the day, this time a 28-yarder with 4:12 left, to give the Tar Heels a 15-14 lead at the break.

With 2:02 left in the third quarter, Barth missed a 28 yarder when it hit the left upright.

It all began with a frenetic first quarter.

UNC got on the board first when Maryland long snapper Andrew Schmitt hiked the ball over punter Travis Baltz’s head. Baltz picked it up at the 4-yard line and dove into the end zone for a safety.

Once Carolina's offense actually got on the field, a Hakeem Nicks 26-yard reception helped set up a Barth 38-yard field goal.

But with 6:26 left in the first quarter, Maryland tailback Da'Rel Scott — who was "non-contact" in practice all week because of a nagging shoulder injury — capped a 76-yard drive with a 3-yard touchdown run. That gave the Terps their first lead of the game, 7-5.

But it took UNC only two plays to counter. On a 2nd-and-5, Cooter Arnold caught a pass from Cameron Sexton — off defensive back Kenny Tate's tip — at the 33-yard line, then cut left and sprinted the rest of the way to the end zone. His 59-yard reception marked the first touchdown of his career.