CHAPEL HILL, N.C. _ Few things had stopped, or even slowed, the North Carolina offense during the past month. Not the highly-recruited, former blue-chip prospects on Florida State's defense, or the tense circumstances in the fourth quarter of an improbable victory against Pittsburgh.
Not James Madison, before that, or Illinois. But the 17th-ranked Tar Heels (4-2, 2-1 ACC) met their match on Saturday at Kenan Stadium, where they had few answers amid the whipping rain and wind on the outskirts of Hurricane Matthew, and equally few solutions for a punishing Virginia Tech defense.
The elements, nasty throughout, undoubtedly contributed to UNC's demise. Yet Virginia Tech played in them, too, and thrived, especially defensively, during a 34-3 victory that reshapes the Coastal Division race.
