No. 17 North Carolina won their 62nd victory Saturday afternoon 62-26 at Hard Rock Stadium. Historically significant the ball ran right through the hurricane defense. The game had a clash billing between the two best quarterbacks of the ACC with Sam Howell and De Eric King, but it was only a couple of punches from North Carolina that stole the show, running behind Javont Williams and Michael Carter. Williams ran with three touchdowns in 23 attempts, while Carter topped with 24 attempts and 308 yards in two runs. Williams and Carter have been some of the best players on national quick lists throughout the season, but Saturday’s performance, at 544 quick yards, is the highest in a single game by a pair of teams in FBS history. Those 544 quick yards were shown from the 778-yard North Carolina offense, with Miami totaling 314 yards. It’s the second worst release since Miami’s offense this season, with a total of 210-yard loss to Clemson at the start of this season. Adding to a historical identity for the wrong reasons, Miami’s 778 yards of crime allowed is the highest in hurricane history. “The opening statement was, we kicked our ass,” Miami coach Manny Diaz said after the game, which was a “disgraceful performance”. “I don’t recognize the football team I saw on the field tonight,” Diaz said. “I accept responsibility for that.” Since the loss to Clemson, Miami has found ways to win against teams such as the Pit, Virginia, NC State and Virginia Tech, not coming out with one-point wins from the last three games. But throughout that time, the bulk of the weight from any drawbacks can be tied to the issues of widespread player availability due to the COVID-19 protocols. Miami was not at full strength on Saturday, but it was good enough to win or at least did a great job of getting stops and having answers for North Carolina’s touchdowns. But the key third who decided this game was not the bottom or red zone chances. Miami’s defense was picked up for big gains throughout the afternoon, and it never seemed like they had the adjustment to limit the mix of Williams and Carter. After the Tar Heels recovered from a Miami stumble, the game was 7-3 early and 14-3 late in the first quarter. The game is important for the ACC and the New Year Six as the season for the conference kicks off. Miami has a better convention record than North Carolina with two-thirds of the loss of the Tar Heels, but if the college football playoff selection committee decides to drop the hurricanes based on this decisive decision, it will disrupt the Peking line for the Orange Cup. If the ACC wins only one team in the college football playoffs, Clemson or Notre Dame (who lost the ACC Championship game) will end up in the Orange Cup. However, if both are in the top four, they will get the “next team up” bid from the ACC. If North Carolina were ahead of Miami, it would be an argument for the team to consider when sowing those elite bowl games outside the national semifinals. Whether Miami or any other team went to the Orange Cup, it was a memorable day for North Carolina football. It was the first win against a top-10 opponent since 2004 when Top Heels fell to Miami on Chapel Hill, when then-newcomer Connor Barth reached a walking field goal. Mac Brown has talked many times about the steps to success and how to beat a ranking team on the road and now a top-10 team on the road, which are ways to gain long-term respect in the game. Teams may rise in the rankings as they finished 5th in the North Carolina AB Top 25 poll earlier this year, but games continue to be the way you can sustain longevity as a long -25 or first -20 project. That’s not the case for much of North Carolina football history in the 21st century, and Saturday afternoon at Miami Garden may be the beginning of that description. That kind of success adds pride to Brown, and inspires the 69-year-old Hall of Fame coach to dance some locker room.