North Carolina wins 21-17 at No. 25 Pitt after four fourth-down stops

North Carolina beat No. 25 Pittsburgh 21-17 on the road Saturday. The Tar Heels were outgained by 100 yards and held to 20 rushing yards, but they stopped the Panthers on downs on each of Pitt's last three possessions.

Buck Sanders of On3's Inside Carolina wrote that Carolina came in as a 3.5-point underdog. The week before, the Tar Heels had lost to Notre Dame by 11 as a 21.5-point underdog, a game Sanders saw as a sign of progress. On Saturday they beat a ranked team while missing several players of their own. Pitt was also shorthanded. Its starting quarterback watched from the sideline in street clothes, and Holden Geriner played quarterback.

By the numbers, Pitt had the better day. The Panthers ran 34 more plays, held the ball 13:04 longer and went 7 of 16 on third down. Carolina went 3 of 11. Pitt ran for 150 yards, 114 of them in the first half. North Carolina averaged 0.8 yards per carry. Each team threw two interceptions, and neither side scored off a turnover. With left tackle Jordan Hall out, Andrew Threatt moved over from left guard, and Pitt kept loading up on that side of the line.

Carolina's passing game made up the difference. Billy Edwards Jr. completed 18 of 26 passes for 249 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions. The biggest play came on a Bobby Petrino call. Edwards hit tight end Shamar Easter near midfield, and Easter outran the defense for a 75-yard touchdown. That put North Carolina ahead 21-17 with 12:36 left. Demon June added a 1-yard touchdown run, and the Heels outscored Pitt 14-7 after halftime.

The defense then protected the lead. Pitt went 0 for 4 on fourth down. With 6:21 left, the Panthers took over at the UNC 41 after an interception, but that drive ended when Cataurus "Blue" Hicks, wide open, dropped a high fourth-down throw. With 2:33 left, La'Vell Wright was stopped a yard short on fourth-and-2. On Pitt's last chance, Jaiden Patterson broke up Geriner's fourth-down pass. "Three chances. Three stops. No more points," Sanders wrote.

The Heels attempted no field goals and were called for just three penalties for 22 yards. Aeron Burrell kicked off and punted, and Trech Kekahuna fielded punts without trouble.

North Carolina plays at Duke next. Sanders cautioned against reading too much into one win given Pitt's injuries. Still, the Tar Heels have now played well in back-to-back weeks heading into the rivalry game.

Pitt has to recover quickly. The Panthers play at Boston College next, and the market has them clearly ahead in that game. Pittsburgh is favored at -285 on Novig, one of the venues listing the game. FanDuel has the best sportsbook price on the Panthers at -265. Prices and matchup details are on the Pitt at Boston College page.