UNC football's Caleb Hood, Noah Taylor leave game with early injuries vs. Pitt
No. 21 UNC lost a pair of valuable players in the first quarter of Saturday night's football game against Pitt in Chapel Hill.
Sophomore starting running back Caleb Hood appeared to land hard on his left shoulder and left the game after a low hit on a 3-yard pass play. The injury was reported as "upper body" and Hood will not return to the game.
The Tar Heels' top pass rusher, graduate linebacker Noah Taylor, also left in the first quarter with an apparent non-contact knee injury, according to the ACC Network. He, too, will not return to the game for UNC.
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Late in the second quarter, Heels quarterback Drake Maye was hit while sliding and left the game with a bloody finger on his right hand. He came back after one play with a bandage on the hand and threw a pass that was incomplete as UNC turned it over on downs.
Pitt's Calijah Kancey was disqualified for targeting on the play that injured Maye.
Saturday's game is a big one for UNC as it seeks to claim the ACC Coastal Division title. If the Tar Heels can defeat the Panthers, they would hold at least a two-game lead in the Coastal with four conference games remaining in the regular season. Two of those are inter-division contests against Georgia Tech and Virginia, who are a combined 6-8, while the other two are against Atlantic Division members Wake Forest and N.C. State. If UNC beats Georgia Tech and Virginia, and lose to Wake and N.C. State, they'd still finish atop the Coastal regardless of ties because of an advantage in head-to-head division competition.
This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: UNC football's Caleb Hood, Noah Taylor go out with early injuries vs. Pitt
