(23) North Carolina (2-2) at Florida State (2-1)

Wyatt Sexton will have at least two more opportunities to give everyone at Florida State a glimpse of the future.

With starter Chris Rix sidelined because of an ankle sprain, Sexton will make his first start at quarterback for the No. 9 Seminoles (2-1, 1-1 ACC) when they take on visiting North Carolina (2-2, 1-1) on Saturday.

Rix sprained his right ankle in last weekend’s 41-22 victory over Clemson, and coach Bobby Bowden said Monday he will be out at least two weeks.

Sexton, a sophomore whose father Billy was a Florida State quarterback three decades ago, entered the game late in the first quarter with the Seminoles trailing 7-3 and turned in a strong performance.

“He could have gone in and struck out,” Bowden said. “It’s not like he went in with a 30-point lead. He went in when we were behind.”

Sexton finished 17-of-26 for 162 yards and a touchdown, and benefited from the solid work of running backs Lorenzo Booker and Leon Washington, who combined for 168 yards on 34 carries.

“There’s plenty for me to get better at. I missed a couple reads and my mechanics were off because I was a little nervous,” Sexton said.

“I’m really excited about this weekend. I feel like I’m going to be mentally and physically prepared. I can’t wait to get out there.”

Bowden was pleased because Sexton didn’t try to do too much. He simply followed the game plan and made plays when the Seminoles needed them.

“He ran the football team without any sense of panic,” Bowden said. “He made some throws that kept drives going. … The good thing is he’s got smarts. Whatever you teach him, he’ll learn quickly.”

Sexton is also expected to start Florida State’s game at Syracuse on Oct. 9.

“We recruited him with the idea that he’d be the quarterback one day, and so, here we are,” Bowden said. “Sometimes this is the way a player is discovered, out of necessity.”

Freshman Drew Weatherford will move up to the No. 2 spot for the Seminoles and lose his redshirt season. Bowden said he will redshirt freshman quarterback Xavier Lee.

North Carolina is coming off a 34-0 loss to No. 22 Louisville last week. The Tar Heels came into the game averaging 36 points and 478 yards, but finished with just 222 yards. They also committed two turnovers inside Louisville’s 20.

“That was a very disappointing loss to a team that is a very fine football team … but a team we hoped to play a heck of a lot better than we did,” North Carolina coach John Bunting said.

Darian Durant, who owns North Carolina’s career passing and total offense records, went 10-for-19 for just 80 yards and an interception.

Florida State leads the series with North Carolina 13-1-1, including a 37-0 victory last year at Chapel Hill.