CHAPEL HILL - North Carolina’s 38-31 loss to Virginia at Kenan Stadium on Saturday came down to the final drive, a theme the Tar Heels have become all-too-familiar with this season.

UNC currently sits at 4-5 overall and 3-3 in the ACC, with its other losses coming to Wake Forest, Appalachian State, Clemson and Virginia Tech. All of those defeats, including its most recent to the Cavaliers, have been decided by seven points or less. The combined margin is 19 points.

While the Tar Heels’ close losses show the program is trending in the right direction, they’ve still come out on the wrong end in those games, which has been extremely draining for the players and coaches for more reasons than one.

“Physically, psychologically, emotionally, these guys have played their guts out every week,” UNC head coach Mack Brown said. “Every game’s come down to the end, it’s been unbelievable.”

Not only have their losses been close, the majority of their wins have been, too. Before the Heels’ defeat to UVA, seven of their eight games had been decided by six points or less, the most by a team through eight games in the AP Poll era, which dates back to 1936.

Despite coming up just short on a consistent basis, senior left tackle Charlie Heck said this program is capable of dealing with it better than most.

“I think we’re definitely a team that can handle it,” Heck said. “We’ve been handling it well this entire season and, those close games that haven’t gone our way, we have to find a way to finish those.”

According to Heck, the coaches, in particular, have played an integral role in getting the group refocused and rejuvenated following a defeat.

“These are emotional battles every game, but the coaching staff does a great job bringing us back in, having us getting rid of this game (and) focusing on the next,” he said.

The down-to-the-wire fashion of UNC’s contests shows the team is battling for 60 minutes. At such a high level of football, however, even the smallest mistake can be costly, something freshman quarterback Sam Howell has quickly learned through his first nine career starts.

“It just comes down to the details,” he said. “It seems like every single week we’re in a close fight, so every play really matters. We’ve just got to make sure we’re locked in and do what we’re supposed to do on every single play.”

Players often speak about the 24-hour rule, which means a team can dwell on their previous game for a day before setting their focus on what lies ahead.

Fortunately for UNC, it has a 12-day gap between the Virginia loss and its Thursday night matchup at Pittsburgh, so there’s plenty of time to rest, recover and prepare for another crucial ACC Coastal Division showdown against the Panthers.

“Honestly, we’ve just got to focus on the next game, there’s nothing we can do about this one now,” senior safety Myles Dorn said. “Just getting each other’s minds right and making sure we do everything to win the next one.”

Regardless of their losing record, the Tar Heels continue to battle and still have a shot at reaching a bowl game for the first time since 2016. They’ll have to win two of their last three games to do so and, based on how the season has gone so far, there’s no reason to think this group won’t have a chance at achieving that goal, as they’ll be in each game until the very end.

“I’m so thankful to be around guys like this that don’t ever quit,” junior running back Michael Carter said. “My teammates are my brothers, family, and they’ll never quit on me and that’s such a good feeling. Even after football ends, I know they still got me.”

Late game heroics and heartbreaks have been a constant theme for UNC in 2019, but the players continue to fight, and that speaks volumes about their desire to turn the program around sooner rather than later.