Last night against the North Carolina State Wolfpack, the North Carolina Tarheels achieved the different gear that they have been searching for most of the season. It was fun to watch. They ran up and down the court to the tune of 113 points against a Wolfpack team that has made it as high as #17 in the polls. The Tarheels were led by freshman Coby White who seemed to be at full speed after about one step. The Tarheel bigs ran the court almost as well especially senior Luke Maye who slashed his way to 31 points. It is too bad that Luke Maye cannot see red against every team the Tarheels play.
Wednesday, February 6, 2019
Tuesday, January 29, 2019
The Blue Team
Watching Nassir Little, Leaky Black, Brandon Robinson, and Seventh Woods come off the bench and provide valuable minutes and give the North Carolina Tarheels basketball team a boost of energy against Virginia Tech the other night reminded me of Dean Smith's "Blue team" concept from the 1970's. Coach Smith would bring in five players at a time off the bench to rest his starters and play mostly defense. It was a bonus of they provided any offense but this was before the shot clock and the three point shot.
Nassir Little scored a career high 23 points, Leaky Black hit a three during that initial Blue Team run, and Brandon Robinson has become one of the defensive stoppers on the team and made a beautiful bounce pass to Kenny Williams in the second half for an easy lay up. The only player missing was Center Sterling Manley who has been out for several games with a sore knee.
Nassir Little scored a career high 23 points, Leaky Black hit a three during that initial Blue Team run, and Brandon Robinson has become one of the defensive stoppers on the team and made a beautiful bounce pass to Kenny Williams in the second half for an easy lay up. The only player missing was Center Sterling Manley who has been out for several games with a sore knee.
Saturday, September 16, 2017
North Carolina Vs. Old Dominion Preview
The North Carolina Tarheels go into their third game of the season looking for their first win of the year against an undefeated Old Dominion Monarchs team. The Tarheels enter the game as a 10 1/2 point favorite.
Games like this make me nervous because the Tarheels are primed for an upset. This is the Tarheels first road game and some in the media have described this game as Old Dominion's "Super Bowl". It's an ACC opponent and the last time the two teams played in 2013, the Tarheels broke just about every offensive record in the book in an 80-20 victory. That game was played to long ago for revenge to be a factor and this game would not be an upset on the scale of Appalachian State-Michigan, but it would be a huge program win for Old Dominion.
The Tarheels come into the game unsettled on offense with no clear cut starting quarterback so I would expect Brandon Harris and Chaz Surratt to split snaps again, the Tarheels have not really established a running game and all but abandoned the run in the second half last week against Louisville and need to get freshman Michael Carter some more carries. The Tarheels have also been slow to develop a vertical passing game. Some of the young wide receivers-Dazz Newsome, Roscoe Johnson, Anthony Ratliff-Williams, Juval Mollette-for North Carolina. The Tarheels are also banged up on the offensive line and depth has already become an issue three games into the season. The Old Dominion defense leads the nation in sacks and already has 21 tackles for loss in their first two games.
Old Dominion has lost some of their top playmakers on offense so this is an opportunity for the Tarheels defense to get things right. Old Dominion features a balanced offense with a fairly even run/pass ratio but Old Dominion will be without one of their top wide receivers Jonathan Duhart and running back Ray Lawry has been hobbled by a hamstring injury.
The phrase "defensive struggle" and the North Carolina Tarheels have never been associated with each other but this may be a rare game in which the defenses will take over and control the outcome of the game. Turnovers will be a factor and whichever team plays mistake free football will win. The Tarheels need to use offensive tempo to keep the Old Dominion pass rushers at bay and I believe North Carolina will pull it out 24-17 to get their first win of the year.
Games like this make me nervous because the Tarheels are primed for an upset. This is the Tarheels first road game and some in the media have described this game as Old Dominion's "Super Bowl". It's an ACC opponent and the last time the two teams played in 2013, the Tarheels broke just about every offensive record in the book in an 80-20 victory. That game was played to long ago for revenge to be a factor and this game would not be an upset on the scale of Appalachian State-Michigan, but it would be a huge program win for Old Dominion.
The Tarheels come into the game unsettled on offense with no clear cut starting quarterback so I would expect Brandon Harris and Chaz Surratt to split snaps again, the Tarheels have not really established a running game and all but abandoned the run in the second half last week against Louisville and need to get freshman Michael Carter some more carries. The Tarheels have also been slow to develop a vertical passing game. Some of the young wide receivers-Dazz Newsome, Roscoe Johnson, Anthony Ratliff-Williams, Juval Mollette-for North Carolina. The Tarheels are also banged up on the offensive line and depth has already become an issue three games into the season. The Old Dominion defense leads the nation in sacks and already has 21 tackles for loss in their first two games.
Old Dominion has lost some of their top playmakers on offense so this is an opportunity for the Tarheels defense to get things right. Old Dominion features a balanced offense with a fairly even run/pass ratio but Old Dominion will be without one of their top wide receivers Jonathan Duhart and running back Ray Lawry has been hobbled by a hamstring injury.
The phrase "defensive struggle" and the North Carolina Tarheels have never been associated with each other but this may be a rare game in which the defenses will take over and control the outcome of the game. Turnovers will be a factor and whichever team plays mistake free football will win. The Tarheels need to use offensive tempo to keep the Old Dominion pass rushers at bay and I believe North Carolina will pull it out 24-17 to get their first win of the year.
Thursday, September 14, 2017
No Defense Of or For Larry Fedora
Before the North Carolina Tarheels started their 2017 college football season, most experts agreed that the North Carolina Tarheels defense would have to carry the team until the offense got some game time under their belts, depth charts were decided, and a few playmakers were found.
Two games into the season, the offense has played well enough to win both games but the defense has regressed to its pre-Gene Chizik days and is giving up 41 points a game. Granted, the last game was against Louisville and reigning Heisman Trophy winner Lamar Jackson, but he torched the Tarheels for 525 total yards by himself and 706 total yards to Louisville. In the first game against California, redshirt freshman quarterback Ross Bowers lit the Tarheels defense up for 363 yards through the air and four touchdowns.
The defensive talent is there for the Tarheels. They have a good mixture of veterans and youth in the defensive backfield with M.J. Stewart, Donnie Miles, Myles Dorn, Patrice Rene, and K.J. Sails. The linebackers are also a veteran group led by junior Andre Smith. A lot of veterans on the defensive front as well with Dajuan Drennon, Malik Carney, Jalen Dalton, and Jeremiah Clarke among the notables.
When defensive coordinator Gene Chizik left the North Carolina Tarheels after last season, John Papuchis was promoted from within so the defensive changes should not have been many. A more aggressive defensive was promised and that "aggressiveness" has resulted in three sacks and two interceptions. The two interceptions already doubles the Tarheels interception total from last season.
The Tarheels have blitzed more in the first two games and one example of this is a cornerback blitz by Patrice Rene on Lamar Jackson during the Louisville game. The blitz was perfectly timed and Patrice Rene should have had the sack. Jackson sidestepped Rene and threw a 75 yard touchdown pass. The Tarheels defense has been unable to get off the field on third down. The opposing teams are converting over 50% over their third down opportunities in the two games.
The reasons behind the Tarheels struggles on defense could be classified as "the usual." "Missed assignments" and "lack of communication" are popular reasons given but as a Tarheel fan, there is nothing more frustrating than watching the Tarheels take a 28-27 lead over nbationally ranked Louisville going into the fourth and watching it disappear within minutes.
Two games into the season, the offense has played well enough to win both games but the defense has regressed to its pre-Gene Chizik days and is giving up 41 points a game. Granted, the last game was against Louisville and reigning Heisman Trophy winner Lamar Jackson, but he torched the Tarheels for 525 total yards by himself and 706 total yards to Louisville. In the first game against California, redshirt freshman quarterback Ross Bowers lit the Tarheels defense up for 363 yards through the air and four touchdowns.
The defensive talent is there for the Tarheels. They have a good mixture of veterans and youth in the defensive backfield with M.J. Stewart, Donnie Miles, Myles Dorn, Patrice Rene, and K.J. Sails. The linebackers are also a veteran group led by junior Andre Smith. A lot of veterans on the defensive front as well with Dajuan Drennon, Malik Carney, Jalen Dalton, and Jeremiah Clarke among the notables.
When defensive coordinator Gene Chizik left the North Carolina Tarheels after last season, John Papuchis was promoted from within so the defensive changes should not have been many. A more aggressive defensive was promised and that "aggressiveness" has resulted in three sacks and two interceptions. The two interceptions already doubles the Tarheels interception total from last season.
The Tarheels have blitzed more in the first two games and one example of this is a cornerback blitz by Patrice Rene on Lamar Jackson during the Louisville game. The blitz was perfectly timed and Patrice Rene should have had the sack. Jackson sidestepped Rene and threw a 75 yard touchdown pass. The Tarheels defense has been unable to get off the field on third down. The opposing teams are converting over 50% over their third down opportunities in the two games.
The reasons behind the Tarheels struggles on defense could be classified as "the usual." "Missed assignments" and "lack of communication" are popular reasons given but as a Tarheel fan, there is nothing more frustrating than watching the Tarheels take a 28-27 lead over nbationally ranked Louisville going into the fourth and watching it disappear within minutes.
Saturday, November 12, 2016
High Expectations
The North Carolina Tarheels football team came into the 2016 season with high expectations. The Tarheels were coming off an 11-3 season in which they made the ACC Championship game and had most of their starters coming back along the offensive line, highly touted quarterback Mitch Trubisky finally taking over the reigns of the high powered Tarheel offense, and almost all of the wide receivers and running backs were returning.
Thursday night's 28-27 loss to Duke virtually took them out of the running to return to the ACC Championship game. Losing to Duke stinks anyway but to lose this game really hurt. The Tarheels will go to a bowl game this season but it will not be the one they wanted. The bottom line is that I would rather suffer from the disappointment of not meeting high expectations than to not have those expectations at all. Larry Fedora has the Tarheels headed in the right direction, they are poised to be a factor on the national stage, so I will take the Toilet Bowl with the trophy being the Golden Plunger or something, and I will look forward to the high expectations for next season.
Thursday night's 28-27 loss to Duke virtually took them out of the running to return to the ACC Championship game. Losing to Duke stinks anyway but to lose this game really hurt. The Tarheels will go to a bowl game this season but it will not be the one they wanted. The bottom line is that I would rather suffer from the disappointment of not meeting high expectations than to not have those expectations at all. Larry Fedora has the Tarheels headed in the right direction, they are poised to be a factor on the national stage, so I will take the Toilet Bowl with the trophy being the Golden Plunger or something, and I will look forward to the high expectations for next season.
Surfing The Green Wave
The North Carolina Tarheels beat the Tulane Green Wave last night in their first basketball game of the season last night 95-75 and it was your typical first game. Justin Jackson and Joel Berry II had career highs in points, 27 and 23 points respectively, and Kennedy Meeks had a career high in rebounds with 15.
Ten Players for the North Carolina Tarheels got at least ten minutes of playing time. Three of those players were freshmen- Tony Bradley, Brandon Robinson, and Seventh Woods. Tony Bradley got the most playing time of the with 17 minutes and he scored in double figures with 10 points but he also picked up four fouls in those minutes.
Head Coach Roy Williams place an emphasis on assists to made field goals and North Carolina was much better in the first half (14-17) than they were the second half (9-17) and 23-34 for the game. I do not know what Roy Williams considers an acceptable percentage but I don not think it is 67.7%. The Tarheels were also -1 in turnovers.
Ten Players for the North Carolina Tarheels got at least ten minutes of playing time. Three of those players were freshmen- Tony Bradley, Brandon Robinson, and Seventh Woods. Tony Bradley got the most playing time of the with 17 minutes and he scored in double figures with 10 points but he also picked up four fouls in those minutes.
Head Coach Roy Williams place an emphasis on assists to made field goals and North Carolina was much better in the first half (14-17) than they were the second half (9-17) and 23-34 for the game. I do not know what Roy Williams considers an acceptable percentage but I don not think it is 67.7%. The Tarheels were also -1 in turnovers.
Monday, November 7, 2016
Ready To Lead
The North Carolina Tarheels got the 2016-17 basketball season started the other night with an exhibition game against UNC-Pembroke. I think I liked it better when they were Pembroke State. Joel Berry II looks like he is primed and ready to lead this team. A case could be made for Berry II as the team MVP down the stretch last season as he was the team's most consistent outside threat and stepped up in the big games.
With Theo Pinson out injured again until late December, someone needs to step up and take his 15-20 minutes a game. Sophomore Luke Maye brings a different skill set to the table but he made his case for more minutes with his play against UNC-Pembroke. Maye reminds me of a Pete Chilcutt type of player. He is not a great athlete but he is fundamentally sound in all areas of the game.
With Theo Pinson out injured again until late December, someone needs to step up and take his 15-20 minutes a game. Sophomore Luke Maye brings a different skill set to the table but he made his case for more minutes with his play against UNC-Pembroke. Maye reminds me of a Pete Chilcutt type of player. He is not a great athlete but he is fundamentally sound in all areas of the game.
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