Jeffrey A. Camarati An absolutely insane second half of football saw the Tar Heels come back to life twice against the Tigers. Whoa! The second meeting between Clemson and UNC this season at Historic Riggs Field was absolutely bonkers. Well, at least in the second half. To catch up, the Heels defeated Clemson at Dorrance Field on 9 October in rather dramatic fashion, scoring the game’s only goal off a set-piece scramble in the dying moments of the second half. FILIPPO ZATTARIN WINS IT FOR THE HEELS AT THE BUZZER! #SCTop10 pic.twitter.com/QilM8vlfiX— UNC Men's Soccer (@UNCmenssoccer) October 10, 2020 In a game that lacked much drama, it packed it all into the last five seconds of the game. The return match promised to be a better overall aesthetic experience. The first half of last night’s match didn’t meet that expectation, though both sides will feel they should have had a goal. Clemson captain James Brighton had a ball in Carolina’s net called offside and UNC had a hand ball shout in Clemson’s box that was ignored. In the second half, the contest swung heavily in Clemson’s favor when Englishman Kimarni Smith went on a rampage. While driving toward’s Carolina’s box, he was fouled just outside of the area and took the ensuing free kick. UNC’s wall jumped, and Smith shot low to the right corner, just out of goalkeeper Alec Smir’s reach. 1-0. 39 seconds later, after Clemson played the ball into Carolina’s box again, Kimarni Smith got his second goal after finding the ball on a scramble and burying it in the top right corner. The Tar Heels were on mighty thin ice and Clemson looked like they had more goals in them. 2-0. .@ClemsonMSoccer's Kimarni Smith goes BACK TO BACK pic.twitter.com/IpUDg3Gv7u— ACC Network (@accnetwork) October 28, 2020 Carolina began pressing aggressively on defense and put pressure on Clemson’s passing game. Sophomore Key White, playing his first game of the season, pressured Clemson defender Justin Malou, who seemed to get his feet crossed and kicked his own ankle while trying to clear the ball off the bench-side of the pitch. Malou went down writhing in pain, as soccer players are want to do, but White correctly played on and dribbled into Clemson’s box with a full head of steam before curling across the face of goal. 2-1, game on! CAROLINA GOAL! Key White scores his first of the season to cut the deficit in half!Tune into the final 20 minutes: https://t.co/lyDAiSDGC0 pic.twitter.com/RRZw3tAmaG— UNC Men's Soccer (@UNCmenssoccer) October 28, 2020 With 18 minutes left in the second half, Giovanni Montesdeoca crossed from the right wing into the box, and Lucas del Rosario expertly guided the ball past the keeper with a soft touch. 2-2. CAROLINA GOAL! We've pulled it all the way back! Lucas Del Rosario scores to set up a dramatic finish in Clemson!Tune in on ACC Network or right here: https://t.co/lyDAiSDGC0 pic.twitter.com/Y59xL3izu3— UNC Men's Soccer (@UNCmenssoccer) October 28, 2020 Six minutes later, Clemson midfielder Callum Johnson poked a deep pass to forward Grayson Barber, who snuck past a napping Filippo Zattarin and rounded Smir who had come out beyond his line to slot home. Clemson was back up, 3-2. BARBER!!! - https://t.co/jwUibP0D08 - https://t.co/Za5BxJRd82#ClemsonUnited pic.twitter.com/hM3vc4AAUf— Clemson Men's Soccer (@ClemsonMSoccer) October 28, 2020 With just three minutes left in the second half, UNC’s Milo Garvanian hit a long free kick into the box. 6’6” defender Matt Constant gently headed it forward, and Venezuelan forward Santiago Herrera took it off his body, and volleyed in the equalizer. 3-3. CAROLINA GOAL! There is no quit in this team! Santiago Herrera equalizes in the 87th minute! 3-3 in Clemson!Watch on ACCN or tune in here on watchespn: https://t.co/5wnJmRk6OA pic.twitter.com/Ii6GC64ErP— UNC Men's Soccer (@UNCmenssoccer) October 28, 2020 Neither team looked too threatening in overtime, though Mohamed Seye was given a second yellow in the 99th minute, and Clemson played the rest of the match with ten men. Re-live the drama of tonight's 3-3 thriller with the full game highlights! ?? pic.twitter.com/EfFTJEj72t— UNC Men's Soccer (@UNCmenssoccer) October 28, 2020 All in all, it was a good result for the 5th ranked Tar Heels to get a point away to #3 Clemson. There’s no rest for the weary as Clemson take on #2 Wake Forest on Friday and Carolina hosts NC State on Sunday, 1 November. It may come as a mild shock to you, but NC State’s soccer team is 0-5.

Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images A blowout win against a (non)rival has the future looking bright. Welcome to the Tar Heel Hangover. This is our opportunity to review last week’s game, second-guess all of the key moments, and set the game plan for the week ahead. The Elevator Speech: What happened last week. I am not going to re-post it, but I thought the Wolfpack hype video was very well done. It clearly did not work, but that does not mean that the staff should be devoid of compliments. In fact, those social media editors were perhaps the best State participants of the week. All joking aside, the Heels have now blown out both of their top 25 opponents this year. That seems like a source of optimism. Water Cooler Discussion: If I were the coach . . . Mack Brown relayed this week that the Heels do not know how to handle success. He is correct. The next several weeks will be a good test to see if they have learned their lesson. With two upcoming games against one win teams, complacency could be easy to find. Instead, the focus must remain on execution and blowout wins. Success plays out in a handful of ways for this team. Special teams remains a question but at least the last two fields goals were a nod in the right direction. I would have pulled Grayson Atkins after the chip-shot miss but credit Coach Brown with taking my advice from last week and sticking with the transfer. One day, Carolina fans may look back on that decision as pivotal. Of course, it is made easier with a big lead and a dominating offensive performance. Atkins should thank Sam Howell, Javonte Williams, and Michael Carter for yet another chance. The secondary specifically and pass defense generally, stressed from injuries, turned in a good performance. Three interceptions including one by Chazz Surratt, is a big step forward. Giving up 358 yards passing is not great. Blow out victories allow substitutions from the bench and grant precious time to heal. This could be a very different unit in a month or so. The big question for the coaching staff is what the offense should look like. This is a dominant running team, which usually equates to major ball control. Nearly 40 minutes of possession against State is exhibit one. That seems like an odd juxtaposition against the no huddle kind of hurry that Carolina runs. Finding the balance will be key. Now, let’s check in on the playoff checklist for the week: The Heels must win out. Check. The ACC Championship win has to be against Clemson. Check. Florida State has to not be totally terrible. Not great. It is very uncomfortable for Carolina fans to root for the Seminoles, but the time has come. No Pac-12 team will make the playoff. TBD. By the way, how does an Oregon team that has defeated only offseason slumber pass Carolina in the ranking? No one from outside the Power 5 will make the playoff. I did not see the blowout of SMU coming. Cincinnati is now in a good spot with no ranked opponents left. This one is in question. There are not two one-loss SEC teams. Still four teams left with one or fewer losses and no one with a tough matchup this week. Key stat for the week. First half scoring margin. 21 point lead in the first half against Virginia Tech and 10 against NC State. Both top 25 opponents were forced to play from behind and that is a tremendous amount of pressure against the Carolina high-scoring offense. Everyone knows how good Carolina is in the fourth quarter, but the best comeback is one you do not have to make. Play hard early and win big. Looking Forward: A quick peek ahead. On first glance, the 1-4 Cavaliers appear to be terrible. They score about 24 points a game and can move the ball, but this has not been a successful year. Keep in mind, however, that two of those losses are against Miami and Clemson. One could argue that a total margin of defeat of only 23 points against those two teams is actually pretty good. Sticking to the game plan and surviving a night game could be scary. When Dr. Seuss meets Halloween, all the Hoos down in Hooville will will all cry BOO hoo. Final Thoughts A great win over State gets the season back on track. This is a team that could be finding its stride and getting ready to make big moves. Go Heels!