UNC's Sam Howell matches Lamar Jackson with crazy stat

UNC quarterback Sam Howell’s performances over the last two weeks against Georgia State and UVA put him in rare company. 

Howell threw for 307 yards and rushed for another 112 against the Cavaliers last weekend after throwing for 352 yards and adding another 2014 on the ground in Week 2 against the Panthers. The only quarterbacks to accumulate 300 yards through the air and 100 yards on the ground in back-to-back games since at least 2004? Howell and Louisville’s Lamar Jackson, per Bryan Ives.

In the first two weeks of the 2017 season, Jackson accomplished this feat against Purdue and, ironically, UNC. He went 30-for-46 with 378 yards through the air and ran for 107 yards on 21 carries versus Purdue. The following week in Chapel Hill he went 25-for-39 with 393 yards and had 132 yards on 19 attempts. Jackson had six touchdowns in the UNC game: three through the air and three on the ground. 

UNC beat UVA 59-39 last weekend in a shootout that featured 1,276 yards of offense. Howell had five touchdown passes to four different receivers. Wide receiver Josh Downs led the team with eight receptions for 203 yards and two touchdowns. Tennessee transfer Ty Chandler was the other big contributor on the day for Carolina with 198 yards on 20 carries and two scores.

UVA quarterback Brendan Armstrong nearly doubled Howell’s yardage through the air, throwing for 554 yards and four touchdowns. UVA and UNC lead the ACC in total yards this year with 559.3 and 553.3 per game, respectively.

Divisional rivalry on tap for Tar Heels this weekend

On Saturday, UNC faces a Georgia Tech team that is struggling on the offensive side of the ball but that just held Clemson’s offense to two scores last weekend in a 14-8 near upset of the Tigers. The game this weekend will be held at the home of the Atlanta Falcons, Mercedes-Benz Stadium. 

Preseason starting quarterback Jeff Sims was injured in the Yellow Jacket’s opening loss to Northern Illinois and was rumored to potentially be ready to go, at least in some capacity, against Clemson last weekend. He ultimately did not play. Redshirt freshman Jordan Yates is talented, but his offensive line has given him issues this year. Yates has been sacked nine times. 

Despite being division rivals, these two teams did not face each other last season due to COVID-19 scheduling changes. UNC is currently a 12-point favorite, and Georgia Tech leads the series all-time 30-21-3.