Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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www.BLUEANDGOLD.com OCT. 30, 2021 35 GAME PREVIEW: NORTH CAROLINA Three Things To Know About North Carolina 1. Problems Up Front Finding a reason to be optimistic about North Carolina's offensive line heading into this year required no squinting. All five starters and two reserves with starting experience returned. Five are academic seniors. The Tar Heels' offensive line had a bumpy 2020, as a young front five is wont to do. But expecting some improve - ment was reasonable, just as Notre Dame saw last season when it brought back all five starters from a good but not great 2019 line. Seven games into 2021, it looks like more of the same. Only two Football Bowl Subdivision teams had al - lowed more sacks than North Carolina's 27 through mid-October. The Tar Heels were also 120th in tackles for loss allowed, with 51. They're lower in the national rankings than Notre Dame's own leaky line in both categories. Somehow, despite all the protection and blocking issues, North Carolina ranked 29th in yards per carry (5.08). Graduate student running back Ty Chandler has rushed 106 times for 588 yards (5.55 yards per carry). The offense ranked 18th overall in yards per play (6.76) and 19th in scoring (36.9 points per game). It remains an explosive attack, but with an exploitable weakness that has been a hindrance in multiple losses. 2. A Newfound Rushing Threat Sam Howell's arm is usually enough to thwart a defense on its own. The Tar Heels' junior quarterback is on pace for a third straight season with at least 3,000 yards, 30 touchdown passes, 8.5 yards per attempt and a completion rate of 61 percent or better. Previously, he had not caused much stress with his legs. From 2019-20, Howell ran for 181 yards on 186 carries (0.97 yards per rush) — many of which were sacks. He could extend plays, but rarely scrambled. North Carolina almost never called designed runs for him. Until now. Howell has rushed for 494 yards and is averaging 5.1 yards per carry with five touchdowns this season. He has 18 carries for 222 yards and two touchdowns on read-option runs, per Sports Info Solutions. His 13 carries on quarterback draws have produced 140 yards and two more scores. He has scrambled 30 times for 266 yards. Howell has 96 carries through seven games this year, more than he had in each of the prior two seasons. His legs have given North Carolina's offense another dimension. 3. A New Recruiting Power? The return of the Mack has led to a return toward the top of the recruiting rankings. Mack Brown's second tour of duty as North Carolina's head coach began in November 2018. His first two full classes have finished 12th and 16th in Rivals' rankings, with 21 combined four- or five-star recruits. He landed commitments from three four-star recruits in the 2019 class on National Signing Day, three weeks after he was hired. One of them was Howell, who flipped from Florida State. The Tar Heels' 2022 class was ranked No. 14 as of Oct. 20, but its 3.71 average star rank - ing is tied for eighth-highest nationally. It also includes the nation's No. 3 player, five-star de- fensive tackle Travis Shaw. He's the second five- s tar commitment under Brown, joining current sophomore starting cornerback Tony Grimes. Brown's predecessor, Larry Fedora, did not sign a top-20 haul in his six full cycles. North Carolina's average class ranking from 2013-18 was No. 28. It had never signed back-to-back top-20 classes in the Rivals era (2002-present). The Tar Heels have made their biggest impact in their home state. Of the 33 the four- and five- star recruits to commit or sign since Brown took over, 23 are in-state players. Four others are from neighboring Virginia. — Patrick Engel ground. The Irish offense averaged less than 4.0 yards per carry in every game until that one, when that figure increased to a still-modest mark of 4.2. Inside linebackers Jeremiah Gemmel, a senior, and Cedric Gray, a sophomore, have been effective. They rank second and third, respectively, on the team in total tackles behind sophomore defen- sive back Ja'Quirious Conley. You have to go all the way down to eighth on the total tackles list to find a defensive line- man, though. Stopping the run simply hasn't been North Carolina's strong suit, and that's because of a dip in per- sonnel up front. Gray, Conley and junior defensive back Cam'Ron Kelly have all recorded two interceptions, and sophomore cor- nerback Tony Grimes has six passes de- fended. There are players Notre Dame's quarterbacks need to be wary of when throwing the ball. Both of Gray's interceptions came against Miami. The Tar Heels, despite allowing 42 points and getting out- gained by the Hurricanes 421-382, took some steps as a team on both sides of the ball in a narrow win. Gray's second interception ended the game with six seconds left. "I was just at the right place at the right time and was able to get that ball and end the game," Gray said. "But it could have just as easily been an incom- plete pass, and maybe they kick a field goal and make it and we play overtime. You never really know what happens." Like riding a roller coaster with a blindfold on. Don't forget to sign your waiver. ✦ Sophomore cornerback Tony Grimes is one of two five-star recruits North Carolina has landed in the last 18 months. The Tar Heels have signed back-to- back top-20 recruiting classes for the first time in the Rivals era (since 2002). PHOTO COURTESY NORTH CAROLINA ATHLETICS Sophomore linebacker Cedric Gray has notched 35 tackles and two interceptions this season. PHOTO COURTESY NORTH CAROLINA ATHLETICS