North Carolina

Maye-to-McCollum pass plays lead No. 20 North Carolina past Minnesota 31-13

Published

11 months ago

September 16, 2023

Press Room

Maye-to-McCollum pass plays lead No. 20 North Carolina past Minnesota 31-13

Drake Maye figured Nate McCollum was ready for a big game as North Carolina’s top target Saturday.

“He told me before the game: ‘Man, Drake, I’m itching to play,’” Maye said.

He sure looked like it, too.

Maye threw for a season-high 414 yards to go with two touchdowns, while McCollum flirted with a single-game UNC receiving record as the 20th-ranked Tar Heels pushed past Minnesota 31-13 on Saturday.

Maye overcame two interceptions and ultimately provided the only reliable source of offense for the Tar Heels (3-0), who were unable to run the ball against one of nation’s top defenses but still posted 519 yards.

And so much of it hinged on McCollum, who is in his first year at UNC after transferring from Georgia Tech. He had missed the season opener against South Carolina due to injury, then had one catch in limited snaps last week in a double-overtime win against Appalachian State. But coach Mack Brown said McCollum had indicated he was ready to play more, and he was terrific from the start against the Gophers (2-1).

McCollum had 15 catches and 165 yards with a first-quarter touchdown, and ended up falling one catch shy of tying the Tar Heels’ single-game record.

“This week, they pushed me a little bit, I pushed myself and did a little extra after practice and I felt good,” McCollum said.

Clearly. Maye targeted him on 21 of his 40 throws. The scoring catch came when McCollum got a step on his defender, then raised his arm to get Maye’s attention on the rollout. Maye went deep to McCollum, who snagged the 46-yard score through contact from defender Aidan Gousby.

“It just kind of happened that way,” Maye said of McCollum’s targets. “Obviously I’m just trying to throw to the open guy, and Nate got open a lot tonight.”

Omarion Hampton and British Brooks each ran for short TDs, with Brooks’ 1-yard punch-in clinching this one by pushing UNC to a 31-13 lead at the 5-minute mark of the fourth quarter.

Darius Taylor ran for 138 yards and a touchdown shortly before halftime to lead Minnesota, but the Gophers generated little else beyond the dynamic running from the true freshman.

“We had plenty of opportunities,” Minnesota coach P.J. Fleck said. “I think everybody saw that. We had people open all over down the field. We had dropped balls, tipped balls, balls that were inaccurate, balls that missed the explosive plays. And we were still in the game.”

THE TAKEAWAY

Minnesota: The Gophers had gone 19-1 against nonconference foes under Fleck, and the defense had led this year’s effort by entering this game ranked in the top 10 nationally in total defense (223.5 yards) and scoring defense (8.0). That unit smothered UNC’s rushing game most of the day (105 yards allowed, 2.8 yards per carry) after the Tar Heels got 234 yards on the ground from Hampton last week. But the Gophers struggled to stop Maye from pushing the ball downfield.

UNC: Maye finally had a big passing game to start his season of high expectations, but this was as much about McCollum’s performance, too. The Tar Heels have needed to find a new top target with Josh Downs in the NFL. That was expected to be Kent State transfer Devontez Walker, but he has been unable to receive a waiver to play immediately. On Saturday it was McCollum — and now his chance to keep it.

ROUGH DAY

Athan Kaliakmanis threw for just 133 yards on 11-for-29 passing for Minnesota. He also left briefly in the third quarter due to leg cramps, with backup Cole Kramer coming on to take over but ultimately throwing a deep-ball interception to end a drive with UNC leading just 21-13.

“I feel like everybody showed up but me, honestly,” Kaliakmanis said.

THE STAT THAT MATTERED

UNC converted 12 of 17 third downs in this one after entering the game as one of the national leaders in that category. Minnesota went just 3 for 12.

POLL IMPLICATIONS

North Carolina, which opened the year at No. 21 and was No. 17 last week, could see a modest bump with a second nonconference win against a Power Five opponent. A win would’ve given Minnesota the chance to crack the AP Top 25 after spending one week at No. 21 last September.

FREE TEZ

Walker’s situation remains prominent in the minds of UNC’s players and fans. The team wore shirts with his No. 9 and name before the game, while Walker paced the sideline checking in on Maye and teammates during the game.

By the final minutes, UNC students were loudly chanting “Free Tez Walker!”

UP NEXT

Minnesota: The Gophers return to the Big Ten looking for a 2-0 start in league play when they visit Northwestern next Saturday.

UNC: The Tar Heels open Atlantic Coast Conference play by visiting Pittsburgh next Saturday night.

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North Carolina

NC has some of the most dangerous roads in the US: See how Wilmington-area counties rank

Published

4 hours ago

August 4, 2024

Press Room

NC has some of the most dangerous roads in the US: See how Wilmington-area counties rank

With a recent study revealing North Carolina as one of the states with the riskiest roads to travel, some may wonder how safe the roads are here in the Cape Fear region.

MarketWatch Guides, a site that provides “reviews of consumer products and services to help readers make educated purchasing decisions,” focuses in part on car insurance comparisons, vehicle safety and more.

A recent study by the site analyzed factors including annual miles driven per 100,000 system miles, percentage of rough roads and fatal injuries per 100,000 licensed drivers. States were given a rating out of 10 points, with 10 being the most dangerous.

More: Distracted driving in Wilmington: How big of a problem is it?

North Carolina’s ranking among the most dangerous

According to the study, the states with the most dangerous drivers based on the factors studied are:

Louisiana – 7.55/10

California – 7.21/10

New Mexico – 6.74/10

Hawaii – 6.73/10

Delaware – 6.67/10

New Jersey – 6.53/10

Mississippi – 6.47/10

North Carolina – 6.39/10

Massachusetts – 6.33/10

Maryland and Texas – 6.26/10

According to the study, North Carolina had 32.5 fatal injuries per 100,000 licensed drivers, but only 2.1% of rough roads, which was the lowest percentage out of the other ranked states.

For a more localized perspective, the North Carolina Department of Transportation releases annual traffic crash facts data. The most recent 2022 report includes a ranking of counties based on several factors, including reported crashes, crash severity, crash rates based on population, registered vehicles and estimated vehicle miles traveled.

The most dangerous county for drivers, ranked at No. 1 for the past five years, was Robeson County. The county had 60 fatal crashes in 2022 with 1,136 non-fatal injury crashes. The rest of the total 4,056 crashes were property-damage-only. The county with the best ranking was Hyde County, coming in at No. 100. The county had one fatal crash in 2022 and 10 non-fatal injury crashes. The county had a total of 45 crashes, the rest of which were property damage only.

More: MyReporter: Which intersections see the most red-light camera violations in Wilmington?

Here’s where the Cape Fear region counties ranked.

Brunswick County

Ranked No. 76 in 2022, Brunswick County had 25 fatal crashes and 715 non-fatal injury crashes. The total crashes for that year were 3,146. The remainder of the crashes were property damage only.

New Hanover County

Ranked No. 58, New Hanover had 19 fatal crashes and 1,313 non-fatal injury crashes, both of which went down from 2021. The total crashes in New Hanover were 5,617. The remainder of the crashes were property damage only.

Pender County

Ranked No. 47, Pender County had the worst ranking despite having the lowest number of crashes. The county had 12 fatal crashes and 374 non-fatal injury crashes, and a total of 1,156 crashes. The rest of the crashes were property damage only.

Iris Seaton, USA Today Network, contributed to this report.

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North Carolina

Tropical Storm Debby expected to bring rainfall to Virginia & North Carolina

Published

12 hours ago

August 3, 2024

Press Room

Tropical Storm Debby expected to bring rainfall to Virginia & North Carolina

Tropical Storm Debby already has parts of Florida under tropical storm warnings. The Florida Big Bend is currently under a Hurricane Warning. Debby is forecast to briefly strengthen into a category 1 hurricane as it moves over the Gulf of Mexico where water temperatures are near 90 degrees.

As it continues its path over land it is expected to dial back to tropical storm strength as it reaches the Carolinas mid to late next week. Moderate rainfall is possible for northeast North Carolina and southern Virginia by the end of the week.

Higher amounts of rain are possible for southernmost portions of the Outer Banks but generally models show 2-4 inches for northeast North Carolina and 1-2 inches for southern Virginia through Thursday.

Stay with News 3’s First Warning Weather Team for the latest updates as the storm develops.

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North Carolina

Tropical weather update for Wilmington: What we can expect and when

Published

19 hours ago

August 3, 2024

Press Room

Tropical weather update for Wilmington: What we can expect and when

The National Hurricane Center continues to monitor a tropical depression over Cuba. It’s expected to become a tropical storm later Saturday, bringing impacts to the Carolinas around the middle of next week.

Heavy rainfall and flooding are the primary impacts expected, according to the National Weather Service in Wilmington.

“Gusty winds are also possible, but it is too early to predict specific impacts in great detail at this time,” the weather service said.

At the same time, there is the potential for heavy rainfall and some flooding associated with front expected to stall inland this weekend.

As of 11 a.m. Saturday, the center of the tropical depression, which would be name Debby if it becomes a tropical storm, was over Cuba and moving west-northwest near 15 mph. The hurricane center said a turn toward the northwest is forecast for Saturday, followed by a northward motion on Sunday and then a slower northeastwardmotion Sunday night and Monday.

Maximum sustained winds were near 35 mph. Slow strengthening is expected throughout the day Saturday. Faster strengthening is possible Sunday, with the storm nearing hurricane strength when it reaches the Florida Gulf Coast, the hurricane center said.

STORM TRACKER: Monitor the latest tropical developments here.

Here’s a look at what we can expect in the Wilmington area, according to the latest briefing from the National Weather Service in Wilmington.

Wind

The probability of tropical storm force winds has increased, especially for the South Carolina coast. The most likely time of arrival of for northeast South Carolina is Tuesday night into Wednesday morning, and for Southeastern North Carolina is during Wednesday morning.

Rain

The potential for significant rainfall exists with 8 to 12 inches possible from near Cape Fear to portions of thenortheast South Carolina coast. Flash flooding and urban flooding are possible. Some rivers, including the North Cape Fear River and the Waccamaw River, could exceed flood stage next week.

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