A disappointed year for UNC football, Mack Brown re-evaluates

North Carolina ended the first two football seasons with coach Mack Brown feeling the program had a lot of momentum for next year. Tar Heels ’6-7 final this season has brought a different assessment.

It has brought an audit related to the sub-activity. How did the team that returned 10 offensive starters and 11 on defense from their Orange Bowl performance end up losing and embarrassing to the bowl?

Brown vowed to “look back on everything we do” after their season ended 38-21 in South Carolina at the Duke’s Mayo Bowl.

“This is probably better for our program than if we had won 45-0,” Brown said. “Everyone would have been happy and we wouldn’t have fixed so many things. There are a lot of things we need to fix now. “

Making the right corrections can be tricky because there is a lot of mobility on the list of colleges. On Monday, Carolina lost another student to Stephen Gosnell’s transfer portal and offensive lineman Josh Ezeudu announced he was turning professional.

Replace the stars

What hurt the team this year is the lack of players who shone as they stepped into the bigger roles. Voters in the Associated Press poll made a lot of assumptions when they ranked UNC 9th in the top 25 in the early days. They thought Carolina would be able to fill the gaps left by Javonte Williams, Michael Carter, Dazz Newsome and Chazz Surrat. They thought the line of attack that returned all of its beginners would only get better when the year was together. They thought a defense with so many returnees would be a better unit.

It didn’t go that way. The line of attack allowed the worst 49 sacks in the ACC. The defense finished 11th in the ACC, allowing an average of 418 yards per game. Brown said staff would be an area to look closely at, and that includes how position coaches use players.

“You look at the staff and you see if (coaches) are investing in someone who doesn’t play well and isn’t productive,” Brown said. “And if that’s the case, we have to find something else to do for them. Either you don’t do what they do best (in the system), or they can’t do it, and you have to replace them.

Recipient Josh Downs was one of the few stars who appeared to Carolina in good faith. Downs became the first player in school history with 100 catches. He led the ACC and was second nationally at 101 receptions. His 1,355 reception yards also led the conference and set a new school record.

That’s a little worrying, given Heels will have to replace the best quarterback in school history next season after Sam Howell announced the 2022 NFL draft.

Howell was asked to do more in the attack this season in the absence of experienced skill players. He showed a running skill that many didn’t know he had, and he finished ninth in the ACC series with 828 yards and 11 rushing touches this season.

Howell ended his career and his name was engraved on top of most of the program’s key entry records, including touchdowns, yards and total attack. Carolina’s next starting game builder probably has one advantage that Howell didn’t have – they’ve already played at least one season in the system.

Jacolby Criswell, a rising red-shirted sophomore, is about to start her third year in Carolina. Drake Maye, the son of former UNC quarterback Mark Maye, is about to start his second year. Both quarter-builders gained real game experience when Howell was away from Wofford in a 34-14 win over Heels due to a shoulder injury.

Defenses

There were definitely some great moments in the defense this season. It held Pitt’s goal-scoring attack at just 23 points in the setting – including the second half. Until the Panthers lost to Michigan State in the Peach Bowl, 31-21, it was their smallest match this season. As Miami drew a draw or to win it, mate Cedric Gray invented the fallen ball to ensure victory.

UNC left the field often confused about what had just happened. The last two minutes of its 34-30 loss to NC State was the worst example of this. A communication error between corner defender Tony Grimes and security Cam’Ron Kelly was charged with Wolfpack hitting a 64-yard pass less than 40 seconds after UNC scored what should have been the field’s final goal.

Linebacker Tomon Fox leaves UNC with 29.5 sacks – the third highest in school history. His biggest piece of advice for defense next season is cleaning up communication problems.

“Make sure you play together, that you know you’re there talking on the field, communicating with every little thing, because that’s how defense works,” Fox said. “If someone moves, you have to make a check and everyone needs to know the check. It can’t be just one person, it can’t be just two people. So I think the most important thing for us is communication. Better communication next year. “

Slow starts

Heels beat Virginia Tech 14-0, Pittsburgh 17-0, NC State 14-0 and South Carolina 18-0. They lost all four games, even though they had the opportunity to take the lead or level the game in all but the bowl.

UNC has also not solved its problem of winning night games on the road. During Brown’s three seasons, Carolina is in 1-10 night games. They have dropped the last eight in a row, including five this season.

“What we do is take each of the games where we had a bad start,” Brown said. “We’ll examine every defense (game), every attack game, and see if there’s any structure we should have done differently or done better. See if there are common denominators.”

Help on the go?

Carolina signed the ACC’s Best Recruitment Class and the class that currently ranks 8th nationally in the 247Sports, making it the third consecutive class ranked in the top 15. Offensive Takla Zach Rice and defensive Takla Travis Shaw, both recruited by the five stars, seem best suited to help immediately.

But fate will largely depend on how their returning players take this season’s disappointment and develop it into an achievement next season. Howell isn’t in Chapel Hill watching it, but he believes it can be done.

“Of course, this wasn’t the year we all wanted or expected, but I think this year could be so much growth,” Howell said. “… There’s so much to learn, and I think if they learn the lessons of this season, then as I move on, I think the program is in great shape. Coach Brown knows how to do this. So all they have to do is stay purchased and listen to his message. “

Let’s change the list

Transfer off: DB Trey Morrison, OLB Tyrone Hopper, WR Beau Corrales, DT Kristian Varner, DT Clyde Pinder Jr., WR Stephen Gosnell, WR Khafre Brown, WR Emery Simmons, LB Eugene Asante, RB Josh Henderson

Transfer in: OL Corey Gaynor (Maimi), OLB Noah Taylor (Virginia)

Expired (key players): OLB Tomon Fox, LB Jeremiah Gemmel, RB Ty Chandler, PK Grayson Atkins, NT Ray Vohasek

Early departure to the NFL: OL Josh Ezeudu, OG Marcus McKethan, OT Jordan Tucker, QB Sam Howell, CB Kyler McMichael

This story was originally published January 3, 2022 at 4:08 PM.