North Carolina took care of FCS member Western Carolina on Saturday at Kenan Stadium, defeating the Catamounts 49-9 in a game the Tar Heels led by 39 at halftime.

The Tar Heels scored touchdowns on six of their seven first-half possessions while racking up 424 yards by halftime and led 42-3.

UNC improved to 7-3 on the season with a game at Miami next weekend remaining in the regular season. The Catamounts, playing an abbreviated season as an FCS member, fell to 0-3.

Here are our 3 Stars from UNC’s win over Western Carolina:

The sophomore quarterback was nearly flawless in his half of football, as he completed 20 of 23 pass attempts for 287 yards and two touchdowns. His QB rating was 220.5. Howell also showed off his legs some running the ball twice for 41 yards, which included a career-long 30-yard run.

The senior wide receiver was quite productive in his final home game catching six passes for 82 yards, a touchdown and running one time on a slightly backwards swing pass, in which he picked up 15 yards. In addition, Newsome returned two punts for 32 yards.

The true freshman defensive end turned in a terrific performance in the 25 snaps he played. Rucker racked up seven tackles, including two for a loss of yardage, and he had four STOPs, which are plays regarded as failures by the offense. Rucker’s PFF grade was 70.5.

Also receiving votes: Michael Carter