North Carolina Tar Heels lose in coach Mack Brown's finale - ESPN

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — Hollywood Smothers slipped through the middle of the line for a 2-yard touchdown with 25 seconds left to help NC State beat rival North Carolina 35-30 on Saturday night in the Tar Heels' final game under Mack Brown.

Smothers' short TD run capped the go-ahead 75-yard drive that pushed the Wolfpack (6-6, 3-5 Atlantic Coast Conference) to bowl eligibility. The key play was CJ Bailey's deep ball to Noah Rogers, who snagged a 44-yard catch while taking contact from two defenders to set up the go-ahead score.

That capped a wild finish that saw the Tar Heels (6-6, 3-5) take a 30-29 lead on Omarion Hampton's 47-yard catch and run to the end zone with 1:51 left in a huge day for UNC's top weapon. Hampton ran for 185 yards and a touchdown to go with four catches for 78 yards.

«Great time for me to get out; this isn't the game I signed up for,» Brown said in his final postgame news conference. «I'm leaving it better than I found it.»

The Tar Heels were coming off a lopsided loss at Boston College, which killed optimism about the team's trajectory during a three-game win streak immediately preceding it. Then came the announcement on Tuesday that Brown wouldn't return as coach to set this up as a farewell moment for the winningest coach in program history who also led Texas to the 2005 national title.

«I'm absolutely amazed that they were able to compete like they did tonight and play as hard as they did, with all the pressure on them and with the uncertainty in their future,» Brown said of his players. «So I'm really, really proud of them.»

Athletic director Bubba Cunningham informed Brown of his decision on Tuesday, but at the time, a decision had not yet been made about whether he would coach the Tar Heels in