UNC football has lost 3 straight, with ACC championship blowout. What's gone wrong?

CHARLOTTE — A season that held such promise less than a month ago continued a downward spiral for the North Carolina Tar Heels on Saturday at Bank of America Stadium.

For a third straight game, UNC's offense sputtered, heralded redshirt freshman quarterback Drake Maye struggled, and the defense surrendered too many big plays as Clemson routed the Tar Heels, 39-10, in the ACC Championship game.

It all added up to a third straight defeat for North Carolina, which stood 9-1 and ranked 11th in the College Football Playoff Poll less than a month ago. The Tar Heels were being mentioned as a potential playoff contender and Maye had become a Heisman Trophy hopeful at that time.

So what has happened to UNC?

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Even Tar Heels head coach Mack Brown wasn't sure in the aftermath of Saturday's setback.

"If I could answer that I'd be making more money than I am coaching,'' Brown said. "We'll have to go back and look at it tonight and see what it is that's been a consistent problem the last three weeks that wasn't the first 10. I have no idea.''

Actually, Brown did have some idea and mentioned several failures against Clemson that led to the loss.

The Tar Heels committed two critical turnovers that led to 14 Clemson points, had a field goal blocked and converted just one touchdown in five trips to the red zone against the Tigers. On defense, UNC gave up seven plays of 16 or more yards, and four of 26 or more.

The red zone failures were most glaring for a North Carolina offense that was averaging more than 40 points a month ago.

Three times UNC reached the red zone in the first three quarters while still in striking distance of Clemson. The biggest of those failures came early in the third quarter with the Tar Heels desperately needing a score. They were at the Clemson 5-yard line when Maye rolled right with the Tiger defense in pursuit. The normally cool Maye hurried his throw that sailed over the head of tight end John Apenhaver and into the hands of Clemson cornerback Nate Wiggins. Wiggins raced 98 yards back up the field for a touchdown that essentially ended any hopes UNC had of winning its first ACC title since 1980.

"I was rolling out and looking left, but came back right because I thought John was going to stay in the same spot,'' Maye said. "He moved a little right. I should have thrown it away, probably. Throwing it away would have been a better answer, or maybe try to run.''

The three series consisted of 37 plays that gained 173 yards, but only resulted in three points for North Carolina.

Maye, who was named ACC Player of the Year earlier in the week, completed 26 of 42 passes for 268 yards, but failed to throw a touchdown pass for the second time in three games.

The Tar Heels (9-4) now await word on their postseason destination, which had they beaten Clemson would have been the Orange Bowl. But with three straight losses, their potential destinations are now more of a mystery. Bowl bids are expected to be extended Sunday after the College Playoff pairings are announced at noon.

Brown hopes lessons learned from Saturday's defeat will help UNC produce a different outcome in its bowl game.

"We'll all grow from playing a great team,'' Brown said. "When you play a team that's been in the playoffs every year for about six out of the last eight it shows you what you have to do to get to where we want to go. We're better than everybody else because we got here. But we weren't better than they were.''