Now that North Carolina has qualified for a bowl game for the second straight season, the Tar Heels will be looking to improve their position in the selection order in their final two games, both on the road.
The Heels, who have beaten both Virginia Tech and Miami in their current three-game winning streak, finish the regular season at Boston College, up next, and at North Carolina State on Nov. 28.
"This season is not over with," coach Butch Davis said. "We want to finish well."
The Tar Heels are 7-3 overall and back to even at 3-3 in the ACC after falling to 4-3 and 0-3 with the late collapse in the loss to Florida State. A nine-win season would be their most victories since the 1997 team went 11-1 under Mack Brown.
In fact, the Heels have had only two seasons with as many as eight wins since then, going 8-5 in 2001 and 8-5 again last season. This will be first time since the 1997 and '98 seasons that they will make back-to-back bowl appearances.
"We've put a big emphasis on these last two games because that determines our bowl game," cornerback Kendric Burney said. "We want to go to a big bowl game. We don't want to be just bowl eligible.
"We want to make a statement and have fun doing it."
The Tar Heels also have the opportunity to play spoiler in the game at Boston College. A win over the Eagles knocks BC out of the Atlantic Division race, giving the berth in the ACC championship game to Clemson even before the Tigers play their last conference game against Virginia later in the day.
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North Carolina Tar Heels
