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CHAPEL HILL -- Football, fate and fractures can all work in mysterious ways. Trimane Goddard is still around to prove it.

The fifth-year senior safety for North Carolina is piling up the individual awards in the aftermath of last week's game-winning interception at Miami, a play he wasn't supposed to make. Well, once he was in the game, it was certainly a nice idea. But when his career started, 2008 wasn't part of the plan at all.

"I love that guy," linebacker Mark Paschal said. "He works so hard at what he does. It's exciting to see him succeed."

Goddard came to Carolina under the coaching administration of John Bunting, who wasn't in position to redshirt true freshmen as a matter of immutable policy. In 2004, the Tar Heels needed bodies, and Goddard contributed by returning kickoffs.

He was good enough at safety to start during the second half of the 2005 season, and that meant he was on track to conclude his career in 2007. Then came a break, a multifaceted one.

Goddard suffered a broken foot during a normally routine agility drill in preseason practice and was ruled out for the 2006 season. He hadn't used his redshirt year, so he'd just take it by injury and in a different timetable than most.

The decision would extend his college career into 2008, and that certainly looks like a fortunate circumstance.

Last year's Heels went 4-8, a season Goddard finished by logging an undetermined amount of time with a broken wrist. He was playing through pain when he intercepted a pass against Maryland on Nov. 3.

Surgery followed and spring practice was ruled out, but Goddard was back for the second season of coach Butch Davis' tenure. The Heels are 3-1 entering Saturday's home game against No. 24 Connecticut (5-0).

"It is a blessing to come back from those injuries and to be playing how I am playing," Goddard said. "It is rewarding to be part of this team with how the season is going. We just have to continue to improve."

At least for now, one play has been the difference between a winning record and a good vibe on one hand and a two-game losing streak on the other.

Were the Miami Hurricanes really going to pull this off? Were they going to invalidate Carolina's fourth-quarter comeback?

Robert Marve's pass was on target. But lurking just behind Kayne Farquharson was Goddard, ready to slap down on the ball and -- he hoped -- break up the play. Goddard had made one critical decision: He had picked the right Cane to cover under the circumstances. Nothing else was certain.

"First, I was thinking about knocking it out of his hands, but then it popped up and fell right into my hands," he said.

It probably wasn't that easy. If Goddard hadn't reacted quickly enough, Farquharson might have gotten a second bite at the apple. More likely, nobody would have caught it. The ball would have fallen to the ground with about four seconds left and the Canes, down 28-24, would have gotten one last snap from the UNC 20-yard line.

The clock operator was so stunned by the turn of events that he failed to stop play even though Goddard clearly made the catch in bounds and then stepped over the end line with four ticks left.

Both teams touched victory in less than a second. The visitors got to keep it.

The play is one of four nominees for the Pontiac Game-Changing Performance of the Week on ESPN (watch it at www.pontiac.com/ncaa). The Football Writers Association of America named Goddard its Defensive Player of the Week.

"He played a phenomenal game," said Deunta Williams, a fellow defensive back. "To be in position to make that play is amazing. When you see people who love this game like that, you have nothing but respect for them."

Contact Rob Daniels at 373-7028 or rob.daniels@news-record.com