Wednesday September 20, 2006

North Carolina Game Notes and Keys

UNC Notes
*The Tar Heels are an improved football team from a talent standpoint. They have recruited better and will be a decent looking squad coming into the Valley.

*The Rutgers game did not surprise me. Rutgers is a bowl team that has one of the finest backfields in the country. Ray Rice put up 205 yards and three touchdowns against the Heels in the season opener. UNC out gained Rutgers that day 403 to 362 but lost the turnover battle 3-1.

*The Virginia Tech game saw the Tar Heels again out gained the Hokies 268 to 224 but the Heels turned the ball over five times. Joe Dailey and Cam Sexton each threw two interceptions. The UNC defense played well in limiting the Hokies to 117 yards through the air and 107 on the ground.

*The game that makes no sense as far as their season is concerned was this past weekend against Furman. For the first time all year the Tar Heels won but for their first time all year they were out gained. Furman put up 521 yards of total offense against UNC in Chapel Hill in a 45-42 loss. The Paladins had 211 rushing and 311 passing. Furman was 9 of 13 on third down conversions and ran 73 plays to UNC’s 56.

*This is UNC’s first road game of the season. They also play at Miami, Virginia, Notre Dame and Duke.

*The Heels are now 25-38 under Bunting who is in his sixth year.

*UNC has a talented back in Ronnie McGill. The Clover, SC native runs very tough between the tackles. He is a bruising, North/South runner. The Clemson staff compared him to Reggie Merriweather.

*Cam Sexton appears to solidified himself as the starting quarterback after going 14-21 for 265 yards passing against Furman.

*The Heels have Jesse Holley as their main threat as a receiver. He is a 6-3 wide out that can get behind defenses. The rest of the receiving corps is solid but not spectacular.

*UNC’s offensive line is better than FSU’s but not as big or talented as Boston College. Left tackle Brian Chacos is their leader up front.

*The Tar Heel’s scheme will look a little bit like Boston College in that they would like to run the football between the tackles and set up the play action pass off of the success of the running game. Frank Cignetti is the new offensive coordinator for the Heels. Cignetti had a very successful run as the offensive coordinator for Fresno State in recent years.

*UNC is third in the ACC in total offense, fourth in rushing offense and fourth in passing offense.

*Defensively, the Heels have not been good in two of the three games they have played. Only their effort against Virginia Tech could be considered a success so far mainly because teams have been able to run the football against them this season. Granted, UNC has faced three teams that like to run the football but the Heels are last in the ACC against the run giving up 181 yards per contest.

*The Heels are 11th in the league in terms of total defense. Bunting said Monday that he was disappointed in the effort of his defense last week.

*UNC has some great aspects of their special teams and some weak points. Their kick off and kick off return teams are very good. However, the Heels have struggled with their punt teams.

*North Carolina has had only one winning season under Bunting but he feels recruiting has improved. He said this week that his best class was his last one and the red-shirts will allow his program to grow.

*One of the biggest reasons UNC has not faired better under Bunting is the defense. In the last four seasons, UNC has allowed 35.1, 38.3, 31.8 and 26.3 points per game.

*Another reason they have not faired as well is the schedule. In his five plus seasons, Bunting has faced 22 ranked teams. In the last 18 games versus ranked opponents Bunting is 3-15.

*This will be a homecoming for former Clemson tight end Danny Pearman. After an eight–year stint at Virginia Tech, Pearman has moved on to Chapel Hill. The Charlotte, NC native has also coached at Alabama. It will be good to see Coach Pearman this weekend, too bad he will be wearing Baby Blue. Pearman is the defensive ends coach for the Heels.

*UNC has not won the ACC since 1980. Following Mac Brown’s 10-2 and 11-1 seasons at UNC in 1996 and 1997, North Carolina has gone 41-56. With facilities that rank among the best in college football it is hard to imagine UNC being so mediocre.

Keys To Saturday
Offensive Keys
1. Start Fast-The Tigers need to play on emotion early and hit UNC right in the mouth early.
2. Run the ball effectively. The Heels are last in the league against the run.
3. Don’t help out a bad defense. Limit mistakes and turnovers.

Defensive Keys
1. Stop the run. Down and distance can help the young secondary and help limit the play action passing game.
2. Tackle well. McGill is a tough back that can break tackles.
3. Get the crowd into the game by getting off of the field on third down.

Special Teams Keys
1. Fix the extra points and field goals.
2. Exploit UNC’s weak punting game.
3. Limit UNC’s excellent kick off return team.

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