Extra Points: Pitt Stop

The heat. The tragedy-induced layoff. The first-half hiccup. The Nathan Elliott of Pitt games of yore. Over and over Saturday in Kenan Stadium, stories and scripts from yesterday kept coming full circle in the Tar Heels' 38-35 victory. Saturday happened to be the 39th anniversary of No. 13-ranked Pitt with coach Jackie Sherrill and defensive end Hugh Green coming to Chapel Hill. (GoHeels.com)

UNC’s Snapshot of Potential

In the midst of another game filled with myriad mistakes, UNC put together a nearly flawless third quarter that turned a possible loss into victory and offered a glimpse of winning football that has proven elusive for Larry Fedora’s program since 2016. While UNC has held to 23 rushing yards in the third quarter, Nathan Elliott completed 7-of-10 passes for 96 yards and a touchdown. (Inside Carolina)

No. 5 UNC Women's Soccer Prevails In Defensive Battle At Clemson

The fifth-ranked North Carolina women's soccer team remained unbeaten in the ACC, defeating Clemson 1-0 Sunday at Historic Riggs Field (Highlights). Both teams entered undefeated in the ACC and the Tar Heels prevailed on a first half goal by Rachel Jones to improve to 8-2-1 and 3-0 in the ACC. UNC had an 11-6 edge in total shots and a 3-2 margin in shots on goal. (GoHeels.com)

UNC Volleyball Drops Five-Set Heartbreaker to Louisville

North Carolina battled point-for-point with reigning ACC Champion Louisville but fell short in five sets Sunday at Carmichael Arena. The Tar Heels and Cardinals traded sets and battled through 29 tie scores before Louisville came out on top, 3-2. Despite the loss, several Tar Heels had record performances on the court. Ava Bell hit 20 kills on an errorless 35 attempts. (GoHeels.com)

Antonio Williams leads strong running back trio in UNC's 38-35 win over Pittsburgh

Minutes before the North Carolina football team ran out of the tunnel and onto the field at Kenan Stadium to play for the first time this season, Antonio Williams was deep in his own head. The junior running back thought. He thought about his journey from Columbus to Chapel Hill. He thought about those that doubted him. Williams certainly proved himself Saturday. (Daily Tar Heel)

Penalty Spurs UNC Eruption vs. Pittsburgh

When Pittsburgh jumped offsides midway through the third quarter Saturday, it didn’t seem like one of the biggest plays of the game at North Carolina. But it was. The penalty and much more manageable third down opportunity gave UNC life, and the Tar Heels made the most of it. “That might have been one of the biggest plays of the game,” UNC QB Nathan Elliott said. (Tar Heel Illustrated)

UNC Still With Major Flaws

Carolina picked up a win Saturday against Pittsburgh but this is still a team that has major flaws heading into much tougher games. UNC’s offense is just too predictable and that starts at the quarterback position. On defense, the line did a good job creating pressure and occupying blocks but the linebackers and safeties were often either out of position or missed tackles. (Inside Carolina)

One to build on

What’s the locker room like after a football team wins their home opener, conference opener, first game of the season, and second win over a Power-5 team in fifteen tries? “Lot of jumping around, yelling, dancing,” junior tailback Antonio Williams said. “The atmosphere afterwards was absolutely amazing.” Linebacker Cole Holcomb put it more succinctly. “It was pretty lit.” (Argyle Report)

UNC Wilmington opening basketball practice at UNC due to Hurricane Florence

UNC Wilmington will open preseason basketball practices at North Carolina due to effects of Hurricane Florence. The Seahawks men’s program will have a brief workout Monday in Chapel Hill before the first official practice Tuesday in the Smith Center's practice gym. The men’s program is coached by C.B. McGrath, who was an assistant under UNC coach Roy Williams for 14 seasons. (Associated Press)

Tar Heels lend helping hand to Robeson County

While head coach Larry Fedora and the North Carolina football team were preparing for their home opener at Kenan Stadium on Saturday, the program's equipment truck was rolling toward Lumberton. The 18-wheel, 53-foot truck arrived around 11 a.m. Saturday with more than 40,000 pounds of donations to support those affected by Hurricane Florence. (Fayetteville Observer)

What you don't know about the Bengals' belief in RB Giovani Bernard

The Bengals are 9-1-1 the last 11 games Giovani Bernard has carried at least 15 times. He's averaged at least five yards per carry in all but one of the last six of those. One more season as efficient as last year will historically put him in the top 10 of all time. His respect level inside Paul Brown Stadium is close to unparalleled. “He’s a warrior,” offensive coordinator Bill Lazor said. (Cincinnati.com)

Bengals believe Giovani Bernard is more than just a scatback

Bengals running back Giovani Bernard almost seemed to be holding back laughter when discussing his expanded role in the offense with reporters Wednesday. Bernard looked amused as he answered questions about getting 20 touches a game with Joe Mixon out. The questions seemed to imply that the 5-foot-9, 205-pound Bernard might break if he reached that threshold. (ESPN.com)

Panthers working towards bigger role for Julius Peppers

Though concessions should be made for a 38-year old defensive end coming off of shoulder surgery, Julius Peppers' impact on the beginning of the Carolina Panthers' season has not been as big as expected. Peppers hasn't been a slouch by any means, and he continues to recover from his offseason surgery and get back in shape after he missed training camp. (247 Sports)

Eyeing the signs of Bears QB Mitch Trubisky’s growth in a ‘microwave society’

On the Chicago Bears’ first third-down play against the Seattle Seahawks on Monday night, quarterback Mitch Trubisky could be heard yelling “kill, kill” at the line of scrimmage. Trubisky motioned running back Jordan Howard into the backfield, gestured to his receivers and switched the play. “We give him the keys to the car,” Bears head coach Matt Nagy said. (Chicago Sun-Times)

It's just football, and that's a good thing for Nathan Elliott, UNC

Cooped up inside last weekend, the point that Coach Larry Fedora had been trying to make came into focus for Nathan Elliott. “At the end of the day, it’s just football,” Elliott said. A new perspective in mind, Elliott just played football Saturday — the best he’s played it at UNC — completing 22 of 31 attempts for 313 yards and two touchdowns as the Tar Heels topped Pitt 38-35. (Greensboro News & Record)

Nathan Elliott gives stiff arm to critics

Nathan Elliott spent the first two games of the 2018 season as a whipping boy, blamed for all the problems that ailed North Carolina’s football team during an 0-2 start. But Elliott gave his critics a stiff arm to the face Saturday by delivering a steady, mistake-free performance in leading the Tar Heels to a 38-35 win in their ACC opener against Pittsburgh in Chapel Hill. (Fayetteville Observer)

Ten Takeaways from UNC-Pitt: Playmakers Emerge

It was far from perfect but Nathan Elliott was very solid at quarterback and the defense did just enough to survive a late Panthers push. The offensive playmakers made plays and the defense stepped up at key moments, registering three sacks and five tackles for loss. A combination of individual performances led to team win. Here are ten takeaways from North Carolina's win. (Inside Carolina)

Angry Williams runs down victory for Tar Heels

The “chain-moving gang” was true to its name Saturday, spearheaded by its “angry” leader. With the trio of Antonio Williams, Michael Carter and Jordon Brown playing together for the first time, North Carolina’s wielded some dangerous options out of the backfield and held on for a 38-35 victory over Pittsburgh. “I’ve always been angry on the football field,” Williams said. (Triangle Sports Network)

UNC receivers spring teammates free in big day for offense

“If they can’t block they won’t be out there," Larry Fedora said following UNC's win over Pitt. We spend a lot of time blocking because being a complete receiver is doing those things when you don’t have the ball in your hands. I thought our guys did a nice job of that. We had a holding call on one of those that we would've liked to not have, but those guys are battling.” (Rocky Mount Telegram)

Tar Heel Tailback Committee Runs Through Pitt

The running-back-by-committee approach proved effective in North Carolina’s 38-35 win over Pittsburgh on Saturday. With Antonio Williams back in the fold and Michael Carter back in action, Larry Fedora stuck with his plan of utilizing all three running backs. Carter, Williams and junior Jordon Brown combined for 171 rushing yards and each scored at least one touchdown. (Inside Carolina)

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