North Carolina at Pittsburgh

Mieneke Car Car Bowl - Bank of America Stadium - Charlotte, NC. Bowl results very often come down to motivational factors. The Pittsburgh Panthers have really taken a step down from where they could be. This is a team that took on unbeaten Cincinnati for the right to play in the Sugar Bowl. In that game they scored the go ahead TD with just a minute and a half left, but missed the extra point! Wouldn't you know it, the Bearcats drove the field, tied the game and kicked the decisive extra point. What a blow for the Panthers. It would be a miracle if their "A" game followed them into this Bowl game. The Tar Heels bring one of the nations best defenses into this one, allowing just 16.9 points per game. They also get the luxury of playing in their own back yard in what will amount to a home game for them. The Heels offense really struggled early, but vastly improved down the stretch. The reason they won their last four ACC games, after an 0-3 start, was an improved offense. The Heels put up 31 and 33 in their last two ACC matchups. I don't deny that Pitt is the better team here, but the problem is that a Bowl team that is playing in a much lesser Bowl than they had thought, oftentimes lays an egg. The way Pitt lost and missed the Sugar Bowl will make it tough for them to put their full hearts into this one. N. Carolina is 13-4 ATS under Butch Davis vs. winning teams including 6-0 ATS vs. teams that outscore their opponents by 10+ ppg. Pittsburgh has now gone 38-62 ATS after a loss. North Carolina gets the call.