Syracuse (4-1, 0-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) at No. 14 North Carolina (4-0, 1-0), Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET (ESPN)
Line: North Carolina by 8 1/2, according to FanDuel Sportsbook.
Series record: Tied 3-3.
WHAT’S AT STAKE?
The Tar Heels emerge from their open date after beating Pittsburgh for their best start since 1997, which was the final season of coach Mack Brown’s first tenure in Chapel Hill before leaving for Texas. They need to keep winning to stay in the no-division chase for a spot in the ACC championship game. The Orange lost last week to Clemson and need to avoid an 0-2 league start.
KEY MATCHUP
Syracuse QB Garrett Shrader against UNC’s defensive front. The Tar Heels have had their troubles against mobile quarterbacks in recent years, and Shrader presents a challenge. He has already run for six touchdowns this season and has 29 rushing scores at Syracuse in three seasons since transferring from Mississippi State. Most impressively, he ran 25 times for 195 yards and four scores in the win at Purdue. The Tar Heels have been better defensively in Year 2 under coordinator Gene Chizik, but they’ll have to keep Shrader corralled.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Syracuse: RB LeQuint Allen. He’s had two 100-yard rushing performances this season and has scored seven total touchdowns this season.
UNC: WR Nate McCollum. The Georgia Tech transfer has a huge game under his belt (15 catches, 165 yards, TD against Minnesota) since getting into the lineup following injury.
FACTS & FIGURES
UNC star quarterback Drake Maye is completing 72.7% of his passes and has a chance to become the first player in program history to hit 70% in each of his first five games in a season. … UNC is 7-1 when Maye throws for better than 300 yards. … This is only the second 4-0 start for UNC since 1983. … The Tar Heels are playing the first of three straight ACC games at home, while the Orange will play three straight league road games. … The Orange don’t play at home again until facing Boston College on Nov. 3. … UNC won the last meeting 31-6 to open the 2020 season, a game played in a practically empty Kenan Stadium due to public-gathering protocols. … Syracuse is No. 3 in the ACC in both scoring offense (38.2) and scoring defense (14.8). … The first meeting between the teams took place to open the 1995 in Chapel Hill, with the Orange taking a 20-9 win behind a freshman quarterback making his college debut: program great and eventual NFL passer Donovan McNabb.
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