Torbush’s shirt (and hair) were the victims of an impromptu Gatorade shower shortly after his Tar Heels stunned N.C. State 10-6 at Ericsson Stadium on Thursday night.

“I was just standing up there in the locker room talking,” said Torbush. “Then all of a sudden I got drenched. But maybe I’ll at least get a new shirt out of this.”

That Torbush, who grew up in East Spencer, could smile and make wisecracks Thursday says a lot of good things about the man.

Remarkably, he still has a sense of humor even though his second season as North Carolina’s head football coach has become a walk-through-fire ordeal. Torbush has had to hear things and read things that no one should be subjected to. But he hasn’t lost the ability to joke around. Even with a gang of reporters, some of whom have been calling for his head for a month.

“I can’t control those things outside the program,” shrugged Torbush after his team snapped a seven-game losing streak, its longest in a decade. “All I know is that I am still the leader of this football program.”

This year’s Tar Heel team was probably only going to be average if everything had gone just right.

Few things did.

Torbush lost the heart of his defense when linebacker Brandon Spoon tore a muscle in the second game. Then he lost star quarterback Ronald Curry at Georgia Tech in Game No. 5. Then he lost his No. 2 QB, and then his No. 3.

There was a similar situation in the late ‘60s when the Baltimore Colts lost star QB Johnny Unitas to injury one week, then lost his backup, Gary Cuozzo, the next. The Colts finished the season with a halfback, Tom Matte, who had written a handful of plays on his wristband, trying to play quarterback. It was heroic, but it was also hopeless.

These days, North Carolina’s third-string tailback, Domonique Williams, is Tom Matte. He does what he can, but the offense is severely limited. Basically, it’s Williams scrambling around, trying to make something happen.

When the Tar Heels scored a touchdown on their first possession on Thursday it was their first TD in three games. It was also their last touchdown. They spent the rest of the game hanging on behind a too-young-to-shave defense.

“No excuses, but we’ve got a third-string tailback playing quarterback,” said Torbush. “We’re a patchwork offensive team. I’m proud of Domonique and with enough reps he might be a decent quarterback some day. But, right now, it’s not fair and it’s not fun.”

Fair or not, Torbush has borne the brunt of the criticism for the Tar Heels’ agonizing season and for all those empty seats at Kenan Stadium on recent Saturdays.

Fans quickly forgot about the exciting win at Indiana and respectable near-misses against Virginia, Clemson and Georgia Tech. Instead, they wanted to talk about the disaster at Maryland and the disappointing home losses the depleted Heels suffered to Houston and Furman.

“I don’t think what’s happened this season is Coach Torbush’s fault,” said Tar Heel fullback Deon Dyer. “I don’t believe in excuses, but I believe we caught a tough break.”

“When you have injuries and things go wrong, everyone wants to blame the head coach,” added safety Billy-Dee Greenwood. “We, as players, wanted to rally around Coach Torbush and get a victory for him.”

And rally around Torbush the players did. From the opening kickoff until the victory dance.

“There’s all this talk about their coach not being around (next year),” said Wolfpack lineman Todd Boyle. “I’ve been in that position before when there was talk about (N.C. State coach) Mike O’Cain. You want to win for your coach. Obviously, Carolina’s emotion was high. They had the emotional upper hand all night.”

It was an ugly game. Carolina had pathetic penalties and blew a 32-yard field goal. But the Heels hung together. They played with a spirit that’s been missing. And they somehow won.

Carolina had to dodge a ghastly offsides penalty against freshman Julius Peppers that moved the ball down to the UNC 4 late in the game. But Torbush calmly joked about that gaffe, too.

“We just wanted to add some excitement for the media,” he said. “Thought that might give you a couple of extra paragraphs to write.”

Torbush’s victory was in doubt until Tar Heel Errol Hood made a saving tackle inside the UNC 1 with 1:28 left on the clock.

“My first thought was that he had scored,” said Torbush. “I couldn’t believe it had happened to us again. ButI kept looking for the official’s hands and they never went up.

“Then (assistant coach Ken) Rucker started whooping and hollering and I knew we’d stopped them. How did I feel? I don’t know. It’s been so long since I won that I really don’t know how I feel. I do know it would have been a shame for our kids to lose this game at the end.”

As the final seconds ticked off, a stunned Torbush hugged his assistants, ran his fingers through the hair of his 9-year-old son Trey and shared embraces with O’Cain and UNC Athletics Director Dick Baddour.

Then came a surprise Gatorade shower from a team that obviously wants him to weather the current storm.

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Torbush said he appreciates the support he’s gotten from his friends in Rowan during the difficult month and called the “Torbush Drive” dedication this summer in East Spencer one of the finest experiences he’s ever had.

“To be honest with you,” he said, “if it was 8 o’clock instead of midnight, I’d be stopping tonight in Rowan County on the way home for some barbecue and Cheerwine.”

Torbush insists things are looking up for Carolina football. The defense will be back nearly intact next season and Curry and Spoon will be healthy.

“The kids have never stopped working hard in practice,” he said as he tried to figure out where Trey had slipped off to. “I believe the future of North Carolina football is extremely bright.”

Hopefully, that bright future will include Carl Torbush.

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