DALLAS (FWAA) – With their 31-28 win over Miami, the North Carolina Tar Heels are the FedEx Orange Bowl National Team of the Week, as selected by the pollsters of the FWAA's Grantland Rice Super 16 Poll for games of the weekend of Oct. 30.
Connor Barth hit a 42-yard field on the game's final play to cap a nine play, 54-yard drive and give the Tar Heels (4-4) the upset win in Chapel Hill. Miami, which trailed 21-14 at halftime, had tied the game with 2:59 left in regulation.
In his first start for Carolina, Chad Scott rushed for a career-high 175 yards and two touchdowns and quarterback Darian Durant completed 21-of-29 passes for 266 yards and two touchdowns. The UNC defense held Miami to just 77 yards rushing on the night.
Other FedEx Orange Bowl National Team of the Week nominees for the weekend of Oct. 30 included:
Baylor (3-5): Shawn Bell and Dominique Ziegler hooked up for a touchdown and a two-point conversion in overtime as the Bears snapped a 13-game losing streak against Texas A&M with a 35-34 win over the Aggies in Waco.
California (6-1): In Berkeley, J.J. Arrington ran for 188 yards and a score as the Golden Bears blanked Arizona State, 27-0, to record their first back-to-back shutouts since 1968.
The FWAA has named a national team of the week since the 2002 season. This is the first season that the award
has been sponsored by the FedEx Orange Bowl.
The 16 pollsters of the Grantland Rice Super 16 Poll decide the weekly honor. Each Monday during the 2004
college football season, the FWAA will name the FedEx Orange Bowl National Team of the Week through Nov. 29.
This season, FedEx Orange Bowl will match the two top-ranked teams in the final BCS standings. It will be played
at Miami's Pro Player Stadium on Jan. 4, 2005.
The Grantland Rice Super 16 Poll has resumed this season
and will be released each Monday. The top-ranked team in the final poll
will be awarded the Grantland Rice Trophy as the FWAA's national champion. The FWAA has awarded the trophy each
season since 1954.
For more information on the FedEx Orange Bowl National Team of
the Week, go to
www.footballwriters.com or
www.orangebowl.org.