The 3rd quarter doomed the 25th-rankd Miami Hurricanes in a 41-31 loss at the 12th-ranked North Carolina Tar Heels on Saturday night.

UNC (6-0 overall, 3-0 ACC) outscored Miami 21-0 during that decisive 15 minutes.

Expect Miami (4-2, 0-2) – which has lost 2 straight games – to drop out of The Associated Press Top 25 poll this week.

The Tar Heels were led by quarterback Drake Maye, who passed for 4 touchdown passes and no interceptions or lost fumbles; linebacker Kaimon Rucker, who had a game-high 2.5 sacks; hard-charging running back Omarion Hampton, who rushed for 197 yards and an 8.2 average; and wide receiver Tez Walker, who made 6 catches for 132 yards, a 22.0 average and 3 touchdowns.

Hampton had 217 scrimmage yards. Walker, in his 1st UNC start since transferring from Kent State, had 151 scrimmage yards.

Player of the week: It’s quarterback Tyler Van Dyke. Miami’s signature play of the game was TVD’s 35-yard touchdown pass to Jacolby George, giving the Hurricanes a 14-7 lead during the 2nd quarter. A split-second after throwing the ball, TVD took a huge hit, knocking the wind out of him momentarily.

That was the mark of the courage of TVD, who completed 31 of 48 passes for 391 yards, 4 touchdowns and 2 interceptions.

Freshman of the week: Defensive end Reuben Bain Jr. had 3 tackles, 1 sack and a forced fumble. For the season, he has an impressive 2.5 sacks in 6 games.

Biggest surprise: Running back Henry Parrish Jr. fumbled the ball just as he was trying to cross the goal line during the 1st quarter. North Carolina recovered what was Parrish’s 1st fumble since 2021, when he played for Ole Miss.

Miami turned the ball over 4 times to none for North Carolina, and that type of margin almost always spells defeat for a turnover-prone team.

The other crucial Canes turnovers were a TVD interception in which he didn’t see the linebacker dropping back into coverage; and a bad snap by center Matt Lee. The 4th turnover – a TVD interception — didn’t matter as it came on game’s final play with the loss already assured.

Stopping Maye: The projected 3rd overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft was held down during the 1st half before playing much better after intermission.

In the opening half, Maye completed just 8 of 19 for 106 yards and a touchdown. During the second half, however, Maye completed 9 of 14 for 167 yards and 3 TDs.

Miami also had some bad luck because it forced Maye to fumble in his own end zone. But instead of a Hurricanes defensive touchdown, a UNC offensive lineman recovered the ball and got the Heels out of a jam.

Maye also came up big with a pair of 3rd-down touchdowns. One of those scores came on a 3rd-and-18 play. The other was on a 3rd-and-20 play. Those are back-breaking conversions.

Biggest concern: A slump. Miami has lost 2 straight games. This marks 12 straight years the Canes have lost at least 2 in a row. Miami’s next game will be tough as well – a visit from Clemson on Saturday night.

Developing trend: For the 2nd straight week, the Canes coughed up a slim 2nd-half lead. The previous week it was a 20-17 advantage at home against Georgia Tech that was erased during the final seconds.

Key stat: It’s hard to believe, but the North Carolina Tar Heels – known as a basketball school – have beaten the Miami Hurricanes 5 straight years.

First impression after Game 6: Miami had some good performances from players other than Van Dyke. Parrish rushed for 73 yards and a 5.6 average in a performance spoiled by that unfathomable fumble.

At wide receiver, George had a career day with 6 catches for 125 yards, a 20.8 average and a touchdown.

Xavier Restrepo worked the underneath routes for a game-high 11 receptions, 96 yards and 2 touchdowns.

Brashard Smith had 168 yards in total offense, including kickoff returns. On offense, he had 3 catches for 90 yards, a 30.0 average and a TD.

Backup wide receiver Isaiah Horton made a big 4th-down catch. He finished with 4 receptions for 52 yards and a 13.0 average.