bgorman@heraldsun.com; 419-6668
CHARLOTTE -- According to North Carolina coach Butch Davis, the Tar Heels already had moved on from their 19-17 loss to No. 17 Pittsburgh less than 30 minutes after the Meineke Car Care Bowl on Saturday at Bank of America Stadium.
"We're already over it," Davis said at the end of his postgame news conference. "It's 2010 as far as I'm concerned. We already talked about the direction this program's headed and the people that are going to be here to help this program continue to grow in the right direction."
The Tar Heels (8-5) saw their season end in Charlotte for the second straight season, having lost to West Virginia 31-30 a year ago, and they fell short of recording their first nine-win season since going 11-1 in 1997.
But there were no tears after the loss to Pittsburgh (10-3), just disappointment and regret at UNC's many costly mistakes. The Tar Heels lost a fumble, had an interception on the goal line, had a kickoff go out of bounds and were whistled for eight penalites for 78 yards.
"We've got to learn to play smarter, more efficient and not worry about the big spectacular plays -- those things are going to come," Davis said. "We've got some damn good football players that are going to make some big plays. You just can't go out there and shoot yourself in the foot and not give yourself a chance to win the game."
UNC's most costly penalty came late in the fourth quarter during Pittsburgh's time-consuming drive to the go-ahead field goal.
The Tar Heels led 17-16 when the Panthers got the ball on their 5-yard line with 9:39 to play. Pittsburgh then marched down the field against UNC's No. 6-ranked defense and lined up for a 47-yard field goal attempt on fourth-and-2 with 1:55 to play.
But at least three Tar Heels jumped offside, giving the Panthers a fresh set of downs. Four plays later, Dan Hutchins booted a 33-yard field goal -- his fourth of the game-- to put Pittsburgh up 19-17 with 52 seconds to go.
"We knew it was a big field goal, and we wanted to get on the ball and try to get penetration," UNC defensive lineman Marvin Austin said. "When the center lifted his head up, we were timing it up from the previous field goal and he just delayed a little bit."
The Tar Heels' offense got the ball back at their 38 with 46 seconds remaining but turned the ball over on downs with six seconds left in the game.
"You go in the game thinking you should have no mental errors, but that's just the way it is, that's just football," UNC cornerback Kendric Burney said. "No matter what, you're going to have mental errors. The biggest thing is [that] we didn't quit."
A UNC mistake also gave the Panthers some momentum, and the lead, headed into halftime. A 37-yard field goal by UNC's Casey Barth tied the score at 10 with 1:05 to play in the first half, but then the sophomore hit the ensuing kickoff out of bounds.
The Panthers' drive then started from their 40, and six plays later, Pittsburgh trotted into halftime with a 13-10 advantage after a field goal by Hutchins.
"It's terrible, almost unforgivable," Davis said. "Kick it out of bounds -- you can't do that."
But Barth wasn't the only player with an error in the first half.
An illegal formation penalty wiped out a Zack Pianalto touchdown on UNC's opening drive.
Two plays later, UNC's Greg Little celebrated his 15-yard touchdown catch by punting the ball into the stands for a personal foul penalty.
Receiver Erik Highsmith also fumbled, and quarterback T.J. Yates was picked off on the Panthers' 1-yard line.
"I should've just thrown it away," said Yates, who was 19-of-32 for 183 yards. "I was just trying to make a play. I thought I had Ryan Houston on the edge of the end zone right there. I've just got to throw it away and take the three points."
Despite the missteps, UNC took the lead with four minutes remaining in the third quarter when Little caught his second touchdown reception of the game. Yates connected with Little -- who opted for a celebratory chest bump on his second score -- for a 14-yard touchdown pass and a 17-16 lead. Little, a Hillside High alum, finished with seven catches for 87 yards.
But on the final drive, Pittsburgh handed the ball off to their freshman phenom, running back Dion Lewis, and the third-leading rusher in the nation helped put together the game-winning drive. Lewis finished with 159 yards and one touchdown to earn the Meineke Car Care Bowl most valuable player award and broke Pittsburgh's freshman rushing record with 1,799 yards this season.
"He was the best back we've ever faced," Burney said. "He was good in between the tackles, and he could also bounce it. Pitt's a good run team, and they did a great job tonight."
