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USA Today Sports Media Group
USA Today Sports Media Group
Sport
Michelle R. Martinelli

North Carolina, Appalachian State scored a combined 62 (!!) points in a wild 4th quarter

North Carolina (Organization) Appalachian State Chase Brice Mountaineers Drake Maye App State Tar Heels Christian Horn ESPN Heels

The North Carolina-Appalachian State game Saturday treated fans that tuned in to a wild game that came down to the last few seconds.

It wasn’t wild in the Iowa-South Dakota State sense where the Hawkeyes’ defense outscored its offense on the way to victory. In fact, it was the exact opposite kind of chaos with the Tar Heels barely walking away with a 63-61 win over the Mountaineers, thanks in part to two failed two-point conversion attempts from Appalachian State.

But forget the final score for a second because the massive momentum swings in this game led to a bonkers fourth quarter in which the two teams combined to score 62 (SIXTY-TWO) total points — Appalachian State put up 40 while North Carolina scored 22.

Despite the loss, the Mountaineers gained 664 total yards compared with the Tar Heels’ 567. North Carolina quarterback Drake Maye threw for 352 yards and four touchdowns, while Appalachian State’s passer, Chase Brice, finished with 376 yards, six touchdowns and an interception. Those are some very big numbers.

Let's back up to see how we got there.

The Mountaineers got on the board first and held a 14-7 lead at the end of the first quarter before jumping out to a 21-7 advantage early in the second.

The Tar Heels responded with 21 unanswered points to close the half and enter the break with a 28-21 lead, and they just kept pushing. In all, North Carolina scored 34 unanswered points between the second and third quarters and held a commanding 41-21 lead going into the final 15 minutes.

And this is when things really got nuts.

The two teams combined for 62 total points and nine touchdowns in the fourth quarter.

Appalachian State running back Nate Noel ran for a touchdown, North Carolina then fumbled and lost the ball and the Mountaineers quickly capitalized with Brice connecting with tight end Miller Gibbs for a 13-yard touchdown, cutting the Tar Heels’ lead to 41-35 with more than 10 minutes left.

Barely a minute later, North Carolina running back Omarion Hampton ran for a two-yard touchdown, and Maye ran for a successful two-point conversion to extend the lead to 49-35.

In the final eight minutes alone, App State scored four touchdowns.

The intensity and madness of the fourth quarter picked up with a huge play from Brice and receiver Christan Horn, who connected for a big-time 46-yard touchdown. 49-42.

After an unsuccessful drive from North Carolina, Appalachian State kept digging, and running back Camerun Peoples took off for a 38-yard touchdown run. And just like that, the game was tied at 49-49.

But the Tar Heels responded, and Maye found D.J. Jones for another massive score, this time a 42-yard touchdown to take 56-49 lead with 2:50 left in the fourth. But that was far from the final dagger for the Mountaineers, who put up a valiant effort at the end to try and come away with the win.

Two failed two-point conversions...

With just 31 seconds left, Brice found receiver Dashaun Davis for a 28-yard touchdown, leaving Appalachian State trailing by just one point. So the question became: Tie with the extra point or go for the win?

The Mountaineers opted for the latter, but it didn’t work with Brice overthrowing the ball to a wide-open receiver. 56-55 in favor of North Carolina.

Then Appalachian State went for an onside kick that ended about as poorly as any onside kick could. North Carolina’s Bryson Nesbit returned it 43 yards for a touchdown, giving his team a 63-55 lead. This game is over, right? Nope.

With nine seconds left in the game, the Mountaineers scored, this time with Brice finding receiver Kaedin Robinson for a 26-yard touchdown.

And again, they attempted a two-point conversion, this time out of necessity to tie the game at 63. Brice tried to run it in this time, and, again, it didn’t work, as the Tar Heels let out a giant exhale and walked away with the win.

WHAT. A. GAME.

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