Charlotte 49ers’ defense keeps UNC in check, but offense sputters in home loss

The Charlotte 49ers’ home-opener nearly had it all Saturday night.

It was the first collegiate win for North Carolina head coach Bill Belichick, shutting Charlotte out in the second half to score a 20-3 victory. The fans showed up in bunches, despite a 30-minute weather delay, breaking Jerry Richardson Stadium’s attendance record with 19,233 fans in the stands. There was a palpable buzz on Charlotte’s campus leading up to kickoff.

The Charlotte offense, however, didn’t get the memo.

Following a Week 1 loss to Appalachian State, where the scoreboard wasn’t indicative of how lopsided the game was, Saturday night’s matchup was the opposite. The 49ers were competitive throughout, missing opportunity after opportunity in a game that was much closer than the final score showed.

“I truly believe we got better. We’re frustrated. Tonight was about us getting better and showing improvement in a lot of areas, and we did that. The endgame is to win the football game; end of story,” Charlotte head Albin said after the game. “Obviously, we’re disappointed. I tip my hat to the opponent. They deserved to win the football game. We had our chances to put some heat on them.”

Here are four takeaways from Charlotte’s second-consecutive double-digit loss.

Missed opportunities

Although North Carolina had the game in hand for much of the second half, the 49ers beat themselves Saturday.

For the second straight game, Charlotte mustered just three points in the first half. But Saturday was much different than the season-opener on one side of the ball. The 49ers’ defense kept them afloat for much of the contest, but the offense couldn’t find paydirt.

The biggest whiff of the night came on a 26-yard field goal attempt from North Carolina transfer kicker Liam Boyd, which bounced off the left upright. The kick would have cut the Tar Heels’ lead to just four points late in the second quarter.

Charlotte’s second consecutive 11-play drive halted in the red zone after Harrell led the 49ers down the field with repetitive strikes through the air, finding his favorite target, Javen Nicholas, to set Charlotte up in scoring position. But after Harrell totaled 54 of his 140 passing yards on the drive, offensive coordinator Todd Fitch drew up consecutive handoffs in the redzone, stalling the drive.

Charlotte’s running game again struggled to find its footing, totaling just 21 yards and averaging 0.7 yards per carry. “The points were the (priority). The defense was settling in. That’s going to happen; you don’t want it to,” said Albin.

The final missed opportunity came early in the third quarter. Trailing by 14 points, Charlotte needed a touchdown to get back in the game, and as Albin said, put some heat on the Tar Heels.

Facing a fourth-and-six in plus territory, Albin kept the offense on the field. Harrell drifted to his right, floating a pass to the front of the end zone where wideout E. Jai Mason looked to have boxed out the North Carolina defensive back. The ball slipped through Mason’s hands, and what would have been a touchdown turned into a turnover on downs, effectively ending the 49ers’ comeback hopes.

“The tough one was the fourth down (in the third quarter). We had the coverage we thought we’d get. Maybe he could’ve thrown the corner route, but he was on the move. We just didn’t make the play. That was a tough one.”

Charlotte posted five different drives of eight plays or more, three of which surpassed 60 yards on the drive. The result of those five drives? Three points, two interceptions, a turnover on downs, and Boyd’s missed field goal.

Harrell’s improvement

After a slow start against the Mountaineers in the Duke’s Mayo Classic, tossing an interception and completing just 54% of his passes, Harrell showed slight improvements against the Tar Heels’ defense.

It was another slow start for Charlotte’s offense, totaling three consecutive three-and-outs before moving the chains for the first time on their fourth drive. Harrell started the game completing two of his first five passes before reeling off 12 consecutive completions and keeping the 49ers’ offense afloat.

As Albin said after the season-opening loss, it is challenging to play quarterback without a running game. And for the second-straight game, the 49ers’ rushing attack was a no-show, and Harrell didn’t contribute on the ground.

Fitch moved the pocket for Harell on a couple of occasions, but even with consistent glimpses of green grass on option plays, Harrell didn’t call his number and pull the ball. Harrell rushed six times for -24 yards (sack totals included), including a long of eight yards.

“He certainly helped us create some,” Albin said of Harrell. “To critique how he did, I need to watch the tape. I thought there were some good things in there. We have to figure out how to get the thing in the endzone.”

The improvements came in the passing attack, with wideout Javen Nicholas recording a career-best 11 catches for 122 yards, coming just one shy of tying Austin Duke’s program reception record of 12. And the biggest improvement of all — Harrell protected the ball, finishing the game 17 of 29 for 140 yards.

Grayson Loftis would enter the game for Harrell with just under six minutes to play, completing 8 of his 12 passes for 110 yards and two interceptions — the only two turnovers of the game.

Playmakers available, underused

Through eight quarters of Fitch’s offense, the 49ers haven’t been shy to spread the ball around. Charlotte had six skill players with more than two targets on the game, but the team’s leader in receptions from a season ago, wideout Sean Brown, is not one of those.

Brown, who totaled 470 yards on 35 catches last season, has two targets all season – and both have resulted in first downs, one in each game. His first and only target came mid-way through the second quarter – taking a hit in the ribs and exiting the game.

“He made a nice catch and took a pretty good hit,” Albin said of Brown. “I don’t think it’s anything serious.”

And Henry Rutledge, who missed the Week 1 matchup with a lower-body injury, returned to action and resulted in Charlotte’s longest rush of the night on his second carry – 14 yards. Rutledge was the only tailback to average more than three yards per carry in the game (5.5), but wasn’t re-inserted into the lineup after his 14-yard gain.

Charlotte’s lead back, CJ Stokes, saw 10 carries for 7 yards, and backup Rod Gainey Jr. saw six carries for 15 yards.

Defense kept Charlotte competitive

Charlotte did itself no favors to open the game, allowing North Carolina to score the game’s first points in just three plays, with North Carolina quarterback Gio Lopez finding wideout Chris Culliver for a 51-yard strike down the visitor’s sideline.

But after the game’s opening possession, Charlotte’s defense found its footing. In most college football games, if you allow just 20 points, you have a decent chance of winning. After allowing 18 chunk plays against Appalachian State, Charlotte surrendered just eight on Saturday night.

Charlotte forced five Tar Heels three-and-outs, held them to 33% on third-down attempts, and won the time of possession battle. All while allowing just 303 yards, after giving up nearly 600 (586) the week prior.

It was a stark improvement on the defensive side of the ball, outside of the game’s first three plays. Linebacker Shay Taylor, who totaled 5 tackles, a tackle for loss and a QB hit, thinks the loss was self-inflicted.

“We beat ourselves. We don’t feel like we lost to anyone – Appalachian State or them,” said Taylor. “It’s the fundamentals of not beating ourselves.”

Notes

— Wideout Jayden McGowan is out for the season, Albin announce

— Center Jonny King exited with injury in the second half and didn’t return.

This story was originally published September 7, 2025 at 5:00 AM.