Drake Maye passed for 442 yards and three touchdowns and added a rushing score to highlight a dominant performance by No. 14 North Carolina, which rolled over visiting Syracuse 40-7 on Saturday in Chapel Hill, N.C.
The Tar Heels (5-0, 2-0 ACC) outgained the Orange 644-221 and scored on eight of their first nine possessions in remaining perfect on the season. Nate McCollum (seven catches, 135 yards) and Kobe Paysour (three catches, 100 yards, one TD) were among North Carolina’s receiving standouts.
Garrett Shrader went 15 of 21 for 124 yards with an interception for Syracuse (4-2, 0-2). LeQuint Allen chipped in 38 rushing yards and a score.
The first half was an absolute mismatch, as the Tar Heels scored on all five of their possessions, while the Orange punted on all four of their possessions before kneeling to end the half. North Carolina outgained Syracuse 424-70 in the opening 30 minutes.
North Carolina’s first two drives were time-consuming treks — a 14-play drive that resulted in a 29-yard field goal by Noah Burnette and a 16-play, 94-yard march that ended in Maye’s 1-yard TD run. The Tar Heels actually punted in the middle of that drive, but the kick was blocked by the Orange and recovered by North Carolina for a first down.
After a three-and-out by Syracuse, the hosts marched down the field and cashed in on Maye’s 23-yard touchdown pass to Bryson Nesbit. The next Tar Heels drive ended with another TD pass, this one a 1-yard connection from Maye to John Copenhaver.
The cherry on top of the dominant first half was a 24-yard field goal by Burnette in the waning seconds.
Syracuse finally woke up on the opening possession of the second half. Shrader’s 34-yard pass to Umari Hatcher highlighted a drive that ended with Allen’s 1-yard TD plunge.
The Tar Heels’ offense was not to be denied, however, as Maye’s 32-yard pass to McCollum set up Burnette’s 36-yard field goal. Shortly thereafter, Maye hit Paysour for a 77-yard touchdown pass in which the wideout tipped it to himself and ran the distance to make it 37-7.
–Field Level Media
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Inside The Box Score (Courtesy GoHeels.com)
• Carolina played its best first half of the season, dominating and piling up 424 total yards (and 7.2 yards per play) to Syracuse’s 70 in the first 30 minutes. UNC built a 280-55 advantage in passing yards and a 144-15 edge rushing the ball in the first half. UNC had 23 first-half first downs to Syracuse’s four.
• Carolina improved to 55-22 as a ranked team in 15 seasons under head coach Mack Brown.
• Maye has thrown for at least 200 yards in all 19 starts of his career and has tossed multiple TD passes in 15 of those starts. He reached both of those thresholds in the first half against the Orange.
• Maye posted his ninth career 300-yard game and his third 400-yard effort.
• Carolina scored on each of its first seven drives of the game while building a 37-7 lead through three quarters.
• After completing 33 of 47 passes Saturday vs. the Orange, Maye is the only UNC quarterback to begin a season by completing at least 20 passes in five straight games.
• Carolina has scored at least 30 points in each of its first five games in 2023 and has won 10 consecutive games when scoring 30 or more.
