<!MJ>Sept. 13, 1997
Stanford Battles UNC but Falls Short 28-17
Oscar Davenport threw a 15-yard scoring pass to Octavus Barnes for the go-ahead score andQuinton Savage blocked a punt that Antwon Black recovered for a touchdown as North Carolinatopped Stanford, 28-17.
The Tar Heels (2-0) trailed 17-14 heading into the final quarter before Davenport, who plays lessthan starter Chris Keldorf, found Barnes to make it 21-17 with 12:42 remaining.
"We came back with Oscar because of his mobility and he did a great job of sprinting out," saidNorth Carolina coach Mack Brown. "He made a tremendous decision on the touchdown throw toOctavus. He dropped back to throw and then pulled it down. I was hoping he was going to runbut he was able to find Octavus for the touchdown."
Seven minutes later, Kevin Miller took a bad snap and Savage, a safety, broke through andblocked the punt. Black, also a safety, picked up the loose ball in the end zone and the teambegan to celebrate with a 28-17 lead.
"(Savage) had the ball first and it jumped out of his hands into mine," explained Black. "Ibobbled it, recovered and took it in for the touchdown. It just popped into my hands and I thankGod for that."
"That play obviously changed momentum," said Stanford coach Tyrone Willingham. "Withoutthat play, we have a chance to drive down the field and win the game. The snap was just a little tothe right. It took a little longer to get off and that obviously increases the chance of abreakdown."
Chad Hutchinson drove Stanford (1-1) deep into North Carolina territory in the final minute, butsafety Greg Williams iced the victory with an interception in the end zone. It was his secondinterception of the game as he benefited from Hutchinson consistently throwing away fromAll-American cornerback Dre' Bly.
North Carolina held a 14-7 lead at halftime but Hutchinson ran five yards for a score and Milleradded a 27-yard field goal in a 69-second span of the third quarter that gave the Cardinal a 17-14lead.
Davenport rallied North Carolina with a nine-play, 76-yard drive that covered nearly five minutesand ended with the scoring pass to Barnes for the go-ahead points. Davenport was 12-of-14 for116 yards and two scores with no interceptions, while Keldorf finished 8-of-12 for 42 yards.
"Coach Brown tells us to take care of the ball and throw completions," Davenport said. "That'spretty much what we did. It just so happens tonight that we had receivers that were open and wegot the ball to them."
Hutchinson found fullback Jon Ritchie in the right flat for an 11-yard score as Stanford assumeda 7-0 lead 5:01 into the game. Hutchinson was 16-of-34 for 191 yards with a touchdown andtwo interceptions.
Davenport responed by hitting tight end Alge Crumpler for a six-yard score 2:22 into the secondquarter. That capped a 17-play, 99-yard drive that gobbled 8:35 off the clock. North Carolina hadjust three plays exceeding 10 yards on the march, none longer than 12 yards.
"When you face a drive that goes 21 plays, I think that would take a lot out of anyone and itobviously took a lot out of our team," Willingham said.
Jonathan Linton, who had 96 yards on 28 carries, bulled in for a one-yard score with 27 secondsleft in the first half to give North Carolina the lead. The 16-play drive covered 71 yards and ateup 4:22.
"On defense, they were tired," said North Carolina receiver Na Brown, who caught six passesfor 49 yards. "We tried to find weak spots in their defense and we did. The middle was wideopen. We just tried to exploit that and do the best we could."
The Tar Heels held the ball for nearly 12 minutes more than Stanford and outgained the Cardinal,294-234. North Carolina gained 136 yards on the ground and its vaunted defense allowed just43. Stanford had just 12 first downs to UNC's 22.
"They got after us," Hutchinson said of the Tar Heels' defense. "They held up to their numberone in the nation ranking."
"We're disappointed in our effort," said Stanford defensive end Kailee Wong. "We did a coupleof things to shoot ourselves in the foot."