Carter, Williams Have Historic Day
MIAMI GARDENS, FL – Some days, everything just goes right.
For North Carolina running backs Michael Carter and Javonte Williams, that day was Saturday, and the unfortunate reality for No. 10 Miami is it was on the Hurricanes’ watch.
UNC routed Miami, 62-26, as Carter and Williams put on a show never-before seen in an FBS game. They combined to run the ball for 544 yards, eclipsing the previous mark. Buffalo had two backs combine for 507 yards just two weeks ago, and before that a pair of Ball State backs ran for 504 yards in 2009. But this was at the Power 5 level and at a top-10 team.
“I don't think that I had any clue how many yards we had rushed for at the end and I didn't understand how many that those guys had rushed far,” UNC Coach Mack Brown said. “It was just amazing and I should have because you just see chunk after chunk after chunk. But, these guys run tough up inside.
“Tonight, a lot of their yards were up inside and bounced out and that's something that we didn't have opportunities against Notre Dame. So, just really, really proud of everybody involved with that offense.”
Carter led the way with 308 yards on 24 attempts, becoming just the second UNC player to ever pass the 300-yard mark. Derrick Fenner went for 328 yards in a 27-7 win over Virginia in 1986. Aiding Carter’s effort were a series of big runs that went for 23, 25, 38, 58 and 65 yards. He also had three 12-yard scampers and scored two touchdowns. Carter’s per-carry average on the day was 12.8 yards.
“First, I want to thank God,” Carter said. “Second, I want to thank my offensive line. Third, I want to thank my receivers, they blocked down the field. Anytime you have a big game with a lot of rushing yards, you can't do without receivers that block. And so, my twin Javonte, he had a great game as well.”
Williams finished with 236 yards on 23 carries while scoring three touchdowns. His per-carry average was 10.3 yards. His three touchdowns give him 19 on the ground of the rushing variety, plus he has three receiving scores for a total of 22 touchdowns, which is a UNC single-season record, breaking the mark set by College Football Hall of Famer Don McCauley in 1970.
Some of Williams’ longer runs went for 23, 25, 27, 43, and 65 yards. He wasn’t all that interested in boasting about himself afterward, but Williams did explain why they had so much success.
“After the first couple of drives, we saw that they were just keeping one linebacker in the box, so we knew we were gonna start running the ball a lot,” he said. “And it just worked out well tonight.”
Along with having a special day, Carter and Williams blew past the 1,000-yard mark in the first half to become the fifth duo to each run for 1,000 yards in the same season. The previous times it’s happened: 1974 James Betterson and Mike Voight; 1980 Kelvin Bryant and Amos Lawrence; 1983 Kelvin Bryant and Ethan Horton; and 1993 Curtis Johnson and Leon Johnson.
This is also the 28th and 29th times in UNC history a Tar Heel has run for 1,000 yards in a season.
Carter now has 1,245 yards and moved up the fourth all-time at UNC with 3,404 yards in his career. In front of him in third place is Leon Johnson with 3,693 yards.
Williams now has 1,140 yards on the season and has set a new scoring record with 132 points, passing the mark previously held by Nick Weiler with 127.