BY BRIANA GORMAN

bgorman@heraldsun.com; 419-6668

CHAPEL HILL -- For the second time in the past three weeks, the North Carolina football team will face the top passing offense in the ACC.

But this time around, the Tar Heels' seventh-ranked defense is hoping to do a better job of silencing Duke's air attack than it did in a loss to Florida State two weeks ago. In that game, FSU quarterback Christian Ponder picked apart UNC's secondary for 395 yards and three touchdowns for a 30-27 comeback win.

"It's kind of like we have a second chance to go back and correct some of those mistakes from the Florida State game," UNC safety Deunta Williams said.

The Blue Devils visit Kenan Stadium today (3:30 p.m., ESPNU) led by quarterback Thad Lewis, who is second behind Ponder in the ACC with 289.4 passing yards per game. Lewis' impressive numbers not only have carried his team to the top of the conference in passing yards, but the Blue Devils are ranked fifth in the nation with 325.1 passing yards per game.

"Thad's good; he's real good," UNC quarterback T.J. Yates said. "He's an extremely smart guy, obviously he's a veteran. He's been around a long, long time. I was watching some of his game on the TV, and he seems to have it all together. He always knows where he's going with the ball."

And mostly the ball ends up in the hands of wide receivers Donovan Varner or Conner Vernon, who are ranked first and second in the ACC in receiving yards. Varner is averaging 82.5 yards per game, while teammate Vernon is averaging 80.3 yards.

The Tar Heels said they know the Blue Devils will gain yardage through the air, but their job is to try to limit those yards. And it starts with putting pressure on Lewis.

"I don't think we need to give him the time," Williams said. "I think we need to heat him up a little bit. I haven't seen how he responds to the blitz."

UNC's is ranked first in the ACC in total defense, giving up just 265 yards per game, but its pass defense ranks third and is yielding 163.4 yards.

Lewis acknowledged that UNC's defensive line is "relentless" and that he probably won't get much time in the pocket Saturday.

"It's a veteran group, and they're clicking on all cylinders," Lewis said. "They do a lot of things well. ... You have to go out there and execute. They're not going to give you anything."

Not only are both schools jostling for bragging rights, this is the first time since 1994 that both teams have a winning record headed into the rivalry matchup. UNC coach Butch Davis said that Duke is a dramatically improved football team from a year ago when the Tar Heels won in Durham, and Lewis is part of the reason.

"His poise and his stature and his mechanics in the pocket are very good," Davis said. "He's a very gifted athlete, and he makes things look easy. He's got an arm that he can throw it 50, 60 yards down the field. ... He's showing a lot more poise in the pocket and staying in the pocket this year than last year."

While Davis had plenty of praise for Lewis, Duke coach David Cutcliffe was also complimentary about UNC's defense. He said the Tar Heels are the best defense in the league and many players of those players will one day be playing on Sunday's.

"You've got to like a challenge," Cutcliffe said. "That's what you do this for, to play against those kinds of teams."