The Tarheels In The House That Jordan Built

The Tarheels played Ohio State last Saturday in Chicago and came away with a big victory over #12 Ohio State, 82-74. Ohio State employed a zone almost the entire game and North Carolina took it to Ohio State. With Kennedy Meeks on the high post and Brice Johnson manning the baseline, the Tarheels dismantled the zone without having to resort to firing up three pointer after three pointer.

Brice Johnson led the way with 18 points and Marcus Paige added 16. Freshman Justin Jackson was the only other double figure scorer with 11.

The Tarheels played a solid overall game. They outrebounded Ohio State 53-40 and held them to 35% shooting. Ohio State was 3rd in the nation in Field Goal Percentage coming into the game.

The Tarheels did, however, struggle down the stretch at the free throw line as the Tarheels only went 5 for 12 in the last three minutes of the game. Watching them at the free throw line made me pace the floor and my dog Molly hide under the bed but the Tarheel defense did not allow Ohio State to capitalize.

Offseason Work Pays Off

My take so far from the Tarheels basketball season is that Kennedy Meeks and J.P. Tokoto put in some serious work on their games this past offseason. I am sure the rest of their teammates put in the work as well but Tokoto and Meeks' has been the most apparent on the court.

Meeks worked on his physique and fitness and his weight loss of over 50 pounds has been well documented. He looks almost emaciated compared to what he did last year. His quickness and agility has greatly improved. That weight loss has translated to his play on the court as Meeks is a double-double waiting to happen. He has already had six double digit rebound games this season. He easily leads the team in Field Goal Percentage at 63.8%, Rebounding at 10.1 per game, and Blocked Shots with 15. He is second on the team in scoring at 13.8 per game.

J.P. Tokoto has always had the reputation of being more of an athlete than a basketball player. His high flying dunks (and his misses) were ESPN worthy but he has really developed his overall game this season. He has transformed himself into a basketball player. He is averaging 10 points, and almost 5 rebounds and 5 assists per game. He easily leads the Tarheels in Assists and I don't know if a non-Point Guard has ever led the Tarheels basketball team in Assists since the Dean Smith era began in the early 1960's.

East Carolina

As a true Tarheel blue fan, I am glad the Tarheels play East Carolina in basketball as well. After some let down losses to Butler and Iowa, the Tarheels bounced back with a 108-64 win over East Carolina. They raced out to a 48-29 halftime lead and improved to 6-2. Brice Johnson had a double-double in the first half and finished with 19 points and 17 rebounds, J.P. Tokoto had 19 points and 8 assists, and Kennedy Meeks also had a double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds. Nate Britt was the only other double figure scorer with 10 points.

The Tarheels need to quit playing during Carolina Panthers games on Sundays. I was busy watching the Panthers destroy the Saints 41-10 in the Superdome to put themselves back in the NFC playoff picture so I only caught the highlights of the East Carolina game. I also religiously poured over the stats like I normally do and 60% shooting and 17-22 at the free throw line was Light Years ahead of what they shot against Iowa. The focus in the East Carolina game was on getting the ball inside as they only shot 7 three-pointers (only hitting 1) after only going 4-23 against Iowa. According to Roy Williams, the overall play was going to be better and it was. Sometimes a team just needs the proper motivation.

The Victory Bell Comes Home

UNC recaptured the Victory Bell from Duke last night with a 45-20 win and it was a great sight to see. The way ESPN did their pregame show, it was like they expected Duke to win. They interviewed Coach David Cutcliffe before the game, showed some coach or visiting crackhead from Duke giving a "motivational" speech in the Duke locker room before the game (I think the speech had to do with the benefits of smoking crack before the game), and all UNC got was a spot of Ryan Switzer's dance moves (and contrary to ESPN's commentary, I thought the moves were solid).

The end result was I hope the Duke coach is getting treatment, UNC's D played their best game of the year, The Victory Bell belongs to the Tarheels, and I am sure Ryan Switzer danced the night away after having over 100 receiving yards in the game. ESPN is left to ponder what exactly what is unbiased coverage of a sporting event.

College Football Royalty

There is a hierarchy of power in college football and money sits alone at the top. Todd Gurley is alleged to have accepted money for signing his autograph so the University of Georgia suspended him indefinitely until the outcome of the investigation. Jameis Winston at Florida State will keep on playing. The latest ESPN report states that it has not been proven that he accepted any money for signing his autograph to over 2,000 items for a business. Some of these autographs are sequentially numbered. Jameis Winston said he did not get paid and Florida State believes him. He was suspended one time already this season against Clemson because they had him on video doing something wrong.

Florida State should suspend him again. Winston also plays baseball for Florida Stae. He was suspended during the baseball season. How many strikes does he get? I guess the rules are different depending on during which sports season he screws up in. Two sport icon Bo Jackson even tried to take Winston under his wing but Winston was not about to have any part of that leaving Jackson to state "I don't know who is advising him.". Jackson gave up on Winston and threw his hands up in exasperation. A pattern of behavior has developed here. Integrity and college football have not gone hand-in-hand in the past several years and most the top tier college football teams have decided that via con deniro is the only motto that matters.

Florida State will play Notre Dame tonight with Jameis Winston leading them at Quarterback and some professional team will throw an armored car full of money at Winston to lead them and it seems like a similar scenario has played itself out about once or twice a season. The beat goes on.

Roy Williams Is All Things Tarheel Sports

Head North Carolina Basketball Coach Roy Williams called into Head Football Coach Larry Fedora's radio show the other night in a show of support for the Tarheels Football team. "Roy from Chapel Hill" predicted a Tarheel victory over Georgia Tech this coming Saturday night and I am sure that Coach Fedora appreciated it. I hope Coach Williams knows his football as well as he does his basketball.

Roy Williams is a great ambassador for North Carolina Tarheel athletics and for the school itself. He can regularly be seen at football and baseball games as well as women's basketball games. The phone call was not the first time that he has offered a public show of support either.

Touchdown Jesus

#6 Notre Dame needed Touchdown Jesus and some very iffy Fourth Quarter officiating to hold off a game North carolina Tarheels team 50-43. A "Roughing the Snapper" penalty on a 4th and 18 and two pass interference penalties on Notre Dame's final drive sealed North Carolinba's fate. How many times has a "Roughing the Snapper" penalty ever been called in college football?

Notre Dame is a good football team and I am pretty sure they would have won the game, but the officiating in college football is horrible. A non-interference and interference calls helped decide a great TCU-Baylor game eventually won by Baylor 61-58.

If It's Broke....

Head Coach Larry Fedora's offensive and defensive systems have taken their lumps this season. They have athletes on both sides of the ball. They have four running backs that were among the best in the state in their recruiting class. You have to put your players in a position to be successful.

The fan base is growing restless in Chapel Hill. The Tarheels have not even been competitive in the first half of their three straight losses. The deficits in the first half have been 35-14, 22-0, and 21-3. They were behind in their opening two victories as well. At what point and time do the coaches say "We have to do something different."

Every fan has their opinion and here is mine. I know Larry Fedora believes in his system and I also realize that you can't scrap it in the middle of the season. Rather than try to speed the game up, I believe the Tarheels need to slow the game down. The Tarheels are having trouble running out of the shotgun. I believe they should try lining up in a standard I-formation with Tight End Jack Tabb III at blocking back and see if they can't open a few holes. I love "fast break" football but a three and out that only takes 20 seconds off of the play clock is killing the Tarheels defense.

Pick a starting Quarterback and stick with him. If the Quarterback is going to be Marquise Williams, then allow him to develop a rhythm with his passing and his offensive line. Each Quarterback reacts differently to certain situations and the offensive line needs to anticipate what the QB is going to do.

The same thing applies to the running game. Pick your top two and use them. Allow them to develop a rhythym with the offensive line. All four of the Running Backs were highly recruited. You need to make your system fit the players. Right now neither system is working.

Turnovers And Penalties

The first play of the game was a North Carolina turnover and the game got really sloppy after that. I lost track of how many turnovers and penalties they had but it all amounts to a loss in what I believed was a very winnable game.

First of all, I owe an apology to North Carolina's defense in this game. It was their best game of the season. 21 of Virginia Tech's points came off of UNC turnovers and the offense turned the ball over twice inside their own 20 yard line. The defense was on the field for over 41 minutes. The defense has to be put in a situation to be successful.

I did not understand the offensive game plan at all. The "Four Horseman" backfield of North Carolina's only had 9 carries for 15 yards. Quarterback Marquise Williams had 19 carries for 94 yards. He was their offense whether it was by choice or by design I do not know.

Previewing Virginia Tech

The Virginia Tech-North Carolina game may go a long way in deciding which team goes to a bowl game. Both teams come into the game at 2-2 and this is probably the weakest Virginia Tech team that Head Coach Frank Beamer has had in quite a while. They have one common opponent in East Carolina and they both lost to East Carolina but in very different fashions. Virginia Tech got way behind before taking the lead in the 4th quarter only to lose in the last couple of minutes. All Tarheel fans remember how the 'Heels fared against East Carolina.

The Virginia Tech Hokies have been hit hard by the injury bug. They are down to three Defensive Tackles and against the 'Heels fast paced offense, that could be problematic especially late in the game. The Hokies also lost one of their feature Running Backs to an ACL injury in their last game.

Virginia Tech has also been chucking the ball up in record numbers for a Frank Beamer team. Quarterback Michael Brewer has an ACC high 10 interceptions and when the Tarheel defense is not giving up yards by the mile, they are adept at creating turnovers. It is feast or famine with the 'Heels defensive backs and it should be interesting to see if Beamer is willing to go deep. It may all hinge on the Tarheels ability to put pressure on Brewer. The 'Heels rank last in defense and Virginia Tech is in the bottom third of the league in offense. Who wins the battle of the worst?

The Tarheels offense needs to go to work. East Carolina was very successful throwing deep early against Virginia Tech and North Carolina should utilize its size at Wide Receiver in Bug Howard and Quinshad Davis to their advantage and see what happens. The success of their season may rest on it.

The Positives

Going into the Clemson game I had serious doubts about the Tarheels ability to stay competitive with Clemson in Death Valley. The Tarheels not only stayed competitive but were an end zone interception and an onside kick away from making it a very interesting last two minutes at Clemson.

On offense, the Tarheels put up 35 points against what most consider a very good Clemson defense and a young and injury riddled offensive line only gave up 3 sacks and gained almost 500 yards of total offense. Quarterback Marquise Williams throw for 345 yards and 4 touchdowns and Tarheel Quarterbacks completed passes to 13 different receivers. Freshman Elijah Hood may have emerged from the logjam at Running Back as the go to guy with 13 carries for 71 yards and a touchdown.

On defense, the 'Heels defensive backs got beat deep repeatedly and gave up 6 touchdown passes. The 'Heels defensive line did get 3 sacks and record 7 tackles for loss and intercept a pass. The Tarheel defense did hold Clemson to 92 yards rushing and 2.1 yards per attempt.

Previewing Clemson

The Clemson game is going to be tough. The Tarheels offense will be facing a Clemson defensive front that can put pressure on the QB, has plenty of experience, and knows how to blitz. A young and inexperienced offensive line got thinner and younger when two Tarheel starting offensive linemen went down last week and are unavailable for this game. This is a game for Wide Receivers Quinshad Davis and Bug Howard to use their size to their advantage and make plays. The Tarheels defense also face a daunting task. I think Clemson has finally settled on a QB than can beat you with his legs and his arm and I look for Clemson to put up a few points. Death Valley has never really been kind to the Tarheels anyway and if the 'Heels can keep it close into the 4th Quarter, anything can happen.

The Positives Against East Carolina

There were several positives that the Tarheels can take away from the loss to East Carolina. They did score 41 points and their offense was creative and the coaching staff dug into their bag of tricks. The 'Heels scored two touchdowns off a wide receiver pass from Ryan Switzer to T.J. Thorpe and a fake field goal from holder/punter Tommy Hibbard to backup Tight End Ethan Albright. Backup QB Mitch Trubisky made some good throws down the field and former walk on Wide Receiver Mack Hollins made some good catches and has had the best season to date of any of the Wide Receivers. The running game is still looking for one of the backs to take control and emerge as the lead back. That seems to be a three horse race between Romar Morris, T.J. Logan, and Elijah Hood.

Insanity

Albert Einstein defined insanity as "doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result." The North Carolina Tarheels defensive game plan against East Carolina was the definition of insanity. They gave up an even more insane 70 points and it could have been worse. I have said it before but it is time to scrap the 4-2-5 defense and go back to the drawing board. I don't know if the coaching staff does not have the athletes to make this system work but I have always been of the opinion that your system has to fit the players on hand. Their blitzes Saturday were all slow and telegraphed, their zone coverages were very loose and wide open, but they did play some solid man-to-man defense down the field. M.J. Stewart, Donnie Miles, and Brian Walker all made plays on the ball when they had the chance. The Tarheels travel to pass happy and athlete-rich Clemson this coming Saturday and they may need to line their players up one-on-one and see what happens.

Doing The Math

70 points. 789 total yards. 12 of 17 third down conversions. 10 plays of over 20 yards. A 55 yard TD pass. An 85 yard run. One more blowout loss to East Carolina.

Redemption Versus East Carolina

First of all, I think redemption is a lousy motivating factor going into a football game. If you have to use what happened last year to get up for a football game, then you may be in trouble. I watched the East Carolina-Virginia Tech game and in the First Quarter, all ECU QB Shane Carden did was throw jump balls to his Wide Receivers 50 yards down the field. This is the same QB that lit up the North Carolina defense last year. This year's UNC DB's do not have the experience that last year's DB's did. This year's UNC Defensive Line only has one returning veteran and that is Ethan Farmer. LB Norkeithus Otis making his return will aid the Tarheel defense. The 'Heels defense has had two weeks to prepare for this as well as having the benefit of being able to watch the game last week. UNC's offense has not exactly set the College Football world on fire either. The Tarheel offense was shutout against San Diego State in the first half of their game. They have a young offensive line going up against the Swamp Monster and a blitzing ECU defense. I think UNC also needs to settle on one or two Running Backs to carry the load. This three or four Running Back system is not allowing the Backs to develop any kind of rhythm with their Offensive Line. My top two are T.J. Logan and Elijah Hood. I think the Tarheels need to roll QB Marquise Williams out and get him out of the pocket and on the edge and let him make some plays.

Two And Oh

I was talking about the San Diego State-North Carolina game with my roommate this morning and he made the comment "At least they won..." When is a win a loss? If the first two games has taught this Tarheel fan anything it's that the Tarheels defense has some major weaknesses. San Diego State kept running up the middle last night to the tune of 168 yards rushing for the game. San Diego State had 509 yards total offense although the 'Heels came away with three interceptions. The 'Heels did not mount much pressure on the QB and only have one sack in two games but have came away with 9 turnovers. I have never been a big fan of the 4-2-5 defense. It might be time for Coach Fedora to try some thing more conventional like a 4-3, especially against running teams. The 'Heels are are not getting any pressure up the middle and the 4-2-5 is not creating the mayhem it is designed to. The 'Heels defense has given up 56 points in two games and they have East carolina, Clemson, Notre Dame, and Virginia Tech as their next 4 opponents. As a lifelong Tarheel fan, I am celebrating the fact that the 'Heels are 2-0. I also realize the team has a lot of work cut out for them.

Versus San Diego State

San Diego State's Defensive game plan of sending six or seven men on every play with "exotic" blitz packages could be a recipe for disaster for the North Carolina Tarheels young offensive line. Marquise Williams, Starting Quarterback at North Carolina, promises a different result if San Diego State blitzes. SDSU gave up over 31 points a game last year so I don't know if they have a different Defensive Coordinator or a different defensive system but that is why they play the game. The chess match has already begun. The Tarheels use many running backs and they need to be well versed in blitz pick up. The 'Heels threw short last week- and then some. Ryan Switzer had 8 catches but only 43 yards receiving. The 'Heels only had 235 yards receiving on 29 receptions. They need to try to get the ball down the field. It was probably a tough week in practice. The 'Heels have a game under their belt, a lot of players saw their first collegiate action, and they have the #21 ranking in the country. The San Diego State game is what I like to call a "trap" game. The 'Heels should win but it is a game they will lose if they do not play better than last week.

The First Win Of The Season

The North Carolina Tarheels defeated Liberty University 56-29 last night but it was much closer than the score indicated. The Tarheels were down 22-21 in the third quarter when the Tarheels put up 28 points in about a three minute time frame to put the game away. The Tarheels Defense forced six turnovers (2 interceptions and 4 fumble recoveries) but the offense gave the ball up four times (3 intwerceptions and 1 fumble) so the Tarheels have their work cut out for them. After watching Division I newcomer Georgia Southern give ACC rival NC State all they could handle in a 24-23 loss, I will take the win no matter how it happens.

Versus Liberty

The North Carolina Tarheels open their 2014 Football season against the Liberty Flames tonight at Kenan Stadium. There is a little bit of a dark cloud hanging over the team as four defensive players, two of those players are starting defensive backs, and the two deep depth chart has already taken a hit going into the game. The biggest question marks going into the game is along the Offensive and Defensive lines where any game experience is almost non-existent. Center Lucas Crowley and Defensive Tackle Ethan Farmer have the most experience on those fronts. I am excited to see some of the highly heralded Redshirt and True Freshmen get their first game experience. Running Back Elijah Hood is listed as third or fourth on the Depth Chart but should see some snaps today and on the Defensive side of the ball, Redshirt Freshman Dajuan Drennon gets the start at Defensive End and Defensive Tackle Nazair Jones made the two deep and should see plenty of snaps as well. The Offensive backfield and Wide Receivers are in good shape as Quarterback Marquise Williams should get the start but Redshirt Freshman Mitch Trubisky should get some snaps in. I am really excited to see what he brings to the table because he was Larry Fedora's first real QB recruit. Fedora stole him out from under Ohio State's nose. The Running Backs go four deep with Romar Morris, T.J. Logan, Khris Francis, and Elijah Hood all being in the mix. The Receiving corps is solid if not spectacular and they will not wow you with track star speed but the combination of Quinshad Davis, Bug Howard, and Ryan Switzer and Tight End Jack Tabb are all capable of putting up big numbers in games. Most predictions I have seen have UNC putting up huge offensive numbers against Liberty with one being as hight as 70-20 in favor of UNC but I am going to scale it back some and my prediction is UNC 42 Liberty 21.

Disappointment

Just when the black cloud that has been hovering over the North Carolina Tarheels Football team started to dissapate, four young men made a bad decision and the black cloud darkened again. Sophomore Defensive Backs Des Lawrence and Brian Walker and Freshman Linebackers Donnie Miles and M.J. Stewart were suspended for the Tarheels home opener against Liberty. Lawrence and Walker are listed as starters. It is believed by the media that the players were involved in a hazing incident with Freshman Wide Receiver Jackson Boyer earlier in Training Camp. This news comes after the Tarheels are ranked #23 in one preseason poll. I am one disappointed Tarheel fan.

Big Game James

I saw the book Showtime by Jeff Pearlman at Barnes & Noble while I was kicking around trying to find some new reading material the other day. It was about the 1980's Los Angeles Lakers of which former UNC great James Worthy was an integral part during his entire 12 year career. I came home and looked up James Worthy's stats and I was surprised to discover he had only won two major awards during his professional career. He was named to the 1983 NBA All-Rookie team and he won the 1988 NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Award. At some point and time in his career he was tagged with the nickname "Big Game James" for his ability to play his best in the most important games. This really started while he was at North Carolina. I will never forget his 28 point performance against Georgetown in the 1982 NCAA Championship game. He took it to Patrick Ewing. Ewing blocked several shots early in the game (all goal tending call) in an effort to intimidate Worthy and the Tarheels but it wasn't about to happen. Worthy was named the Most Outstanding Player of the 1982 NCAA Tournament and was the #1 Draft Pick by the Los Angeles Lakers after he decided to turn pro. He was elected to the NBA Hall Of Fame in 2003 and was later named as one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA history. His #52 hangs in the rafters at the Dean Dome and his #42 has been retired by the Los Angeles Lakers.

James Michael McAdoo

James Michael McAdoo left the UNC basketball program a year early and who is to say if it cost him or not? He did not great drafted but it is reported that he is going to be on the Golden State Warriors Summer League team. All I can say with absolute certainty is that he will be playing professional basketball somewhere next season whether it be in the NBA, refining his game in the Developmental League, or playing in Europe. Several ex-Tar Heel players have made their mark playing pro ball in foreign countries. Joseph Forte and Dante Calabria come to mind. It was highly believed that McAdoo would have been a Top Ten pick if he would have gone pro after his Freshman season. At the absolute worst he would have gone in the Top Twenty. He came back twice to work on his game but the results never really showed on the court. He rarely showed the ability to take a game, sometimes his presence was non-existent in big games. His post game never really developed and his perimeter game never really extended past 15 feet. McAdoo was always long and athletic and could guard the perimeter but he never really could defend the post. At 6'8" he was always a 'tweener. I wish him the best no matter where he ends up.

P.J. Hairston

P.J. Hairston went in the First Round of last night's NBA Draft going #26 to the Miami Heat. He was then traded to the Charlotte Hornets for their #24 pick, Connecticutt Point Guard Shabazz Napier, and the Hornets also received the Heat's pick at #55 and a future second round pick. It was believed by most of the draft experts that Hairston would go in the first round based largely on his individual workouts for teams before the draft and how he performed in last season's NBA Developmental League. He averaged 21.8 points a game for the Texas Legends after he was decalred ineligible by the NCAA. He is expected to challenge current Hornets Shooting Guard and ex-Duke Blue Devil Gerald Henderson for playing time this season. Hairston has more size, he is listed at 6'5" and 228 pounds, and is a more physical player than Henderson. He can finish at the basket and can withstand the contact. I am excited to see what Hairston can do at the NBA level.

Tarheels In The Draft

Eric Ebron led the Tarheels parade to the NFL by being the #10 overall pick in the First Round by the Detroit Lions. Ebron and Calvin Johnson on the field at the same time should give defenses in the NFC Central something to think about. Kareem Martin lasted until the Third Round when he was selected by the Arizona Cardinals. The next Tarheels were drafted in the 4th Round. Center Russell Bodine went to the Cincinnati Bengals and Tre Boston stayed local, going to the Carolina Panthers. Jabari Price lasted until the 7th round when he was selected by the Minnesota Vikings. The big surprise was that James Hurst was not drafted at all so the Baltimore Ravens got a steal when they signed him as an Undrafted Free Agent. Bryn Renner gets to try to take the next step in his career with the Denver Broncos. He signed with them as an Undrafted Free Agent and stands an excellent chance of making the team. Who better to learn the Quarterback position from than Peyton Manning?

The 2014 NFL Draft

The UNC Tarheels will be represented in the 2014 NFL Draft. Tarheel Tight End Eric Ebron is expected to go in the First Round, possibly being a Top Ten pick. Defensive End Kareem Martin is expected to go in the 2nd/3rd Round as is Offensive Lineman James Hurst. Quarterback Bryn Brenner has impressed in his pre-draft workouts and is being seriously looked at by the Minnesota Vikings who neeed help at that position. Center Russell Bodine is predicted to go in the last couple of rounds after declaring for the draft a year early. Defensive Backs Tre Boston and Jabari Price and Defensive Lineman Tim Jackson and Running Back A.J. Blue will at least get Free Agent looks after the draft is over. Good luck to all the 'Heels in this years draft.

Roy Williams Asheville Roots

Roy Williams, Head Coach, of the UNC Men's Basketball has Asheville roots and I remember several players from the area playing at UNC. The earliest I can remember is Mike Pepper, a left-handed guard that wore #11 that I believe had gone to Asheville High School, and then there was Eric Kenny, #32 a Forward from T.C. Roberson High School, and then there was Buzz Peterson, who actually beat out some guy named Michael Jordan his senior year of high school for state player of the year. I don't know if Roy Williams is one of the original UNC players from Asheville but he has to be close. Here is a school picture of Roy dated 1962. He is the second one from the left on the top row.

Pulling Out The Brooms

The Diamond Heels have not had a great season like they have in the past several years and might just be on the bubble for making the NCAA tournament. A weekend sweep of the Virginia Tech Hokies and a strong finish I believe will carry them through. All three were very close games, 3-2, 6-4, 5-4, as were the previous weeks games against #1 Virginia where they lost 2 of 3. The Diamond 'Heels have a much different team this year. They have to manufacture more runs and keep the pressure on the other teams defense. The pitching has been solid with a team ERA of 2.83 with Trent Thornton being the ace of the staff with a 7-2 record and a 1.85 ERA in 11 starts. On offense, there has been a power shortage on the 'Heels as Michael Russell and Tom Zengel lead the team with 4 Homeruns a piece. Russell also leads the team with a .352 Batting Average and is tied for the team lead in RBI's with 28 with Zengel so he is shooting for the Tarheel Triple Crown.

HBO Real Sports

HBO Real Sports just did an "expose" on the academic scandal that has been on going for about 4 years now at UNC. They interviewed two disgruntled ex-football players, Byron Bishop and Michael McAdoo, as well as academic advisor Mary Willingham (who is also trying to make money off a book she is writing about the scandal. I would have to say she got some free press out of the HBO interview). The Raleigh News & Observer has also jumped on the anti-UNC bandwagon and I would have to ask if they remember a program ran by Jim Valvano and and a book Personal Fouls written by Peter Golenbock? Michael McAdoo got expelled for cheating and ended up on the roster of the Baltimore Ravens for a short while while Bishop is reportedly in a "low-skill job". The business landscape is littered with college graduates with great GPA's that are in low-skill jobs. That is today's economic climate. Sometimes you have to take what you can get. I know a lady who double majored in Chemistry and Biology at NC State who ended being an exotic dancer just to make ends meet. You are given a scholarship as an athlete and an opportunity to get a college degree. There is such a small percentage of the college student population that is afforded that opportunity. What you do with that opportunity is up to the individual. The individual has to assume some responsibility in the outcome.

The College Basketball System Is Broke

The College Basketball System is broke and needs to be fixed. The era of "the one-and-done" college player needs to come to an abrupt halt. The number of college basketball players running to the bank via the NBA after their Freshman year is growing by leaps and bounds. Julius Randle from Kentucky, Jabarai Parker from SDuke, and James Michael McAdoo from North Carolina are just a few of the big name underclassmen that are bolting to the pro's this year. At least McAdoo made it to his Junior year.The most common argument is that college players need to be paid. They are being paid with a college education. At Universities like Duke that is probably worth $300-400,000 over the course of four years. A few years ago, high school phenom Brandon Jennings decided to even circumvent the one year rule by playing in Europe for a year before he turned pro. Kentucky brings in 5 to 6 Freshmen a year that all go pro after one year. These players are supposed to be "student-athletes", representative of the universities student population. If they know they are only going to be there for one year, I can only imagine what their class schedule looks like. I wonder if they even bother going to class after Spring Break is over with.

James Michael McAdoo

The decision finally came down right after the season was over that has been three years in the making. North Carolina Tarheel big man James Michael McAdoo decided to turn pro after his Junior year and he may have picked the worst possible time for him to come out. He had an inconsistent Junior year in which he was second on the team in scoring with 14.2 points per game and led the team with 6.8 rebounds per game. My belief is that he will be a Second Round Draft pick if he is drafted at all. After his Freshman Year he was projected to be a Top Ten Pick and I admire him for rolling the dice. It was all based on potential and as college basketball has evolved, McAdoo's game took a step backwards. He is rangy and athletic but he does not have a solid inside game or a mid-range game. McAdoo works best in the open court in a fast paced offense and I am hoping he is one of those players that will be more successful in the pros than he was in college.

Project Players

Dean Smith used to always have on his teams at least one "project player". These players were not that highly heralded coming out of high school but had some potential to turn into a valuable starter or a key reserve off the bench by the end of their four years. Warren Martin, Kevin Salvadori, and Hubert Davis come to mind. Warren Martin couldn't catch a pass without traveling when he was a Freshman but by the time he was a Senior, he was averaging about 10 points and a couple of blocked shots a game. This years team has several project players with tons of potential but probably shouldn't be starting and/or logging 20 to 30 minutes a game. J.P. Tokoto probably has the most upside of these projects. He is probably the most athletic player the Tarheels have had since Vince Carter. He glides up and down the court and he is definitely the highest flyer they have had since Vince Carter. He is working hard on expanding his basketball skill set and may already be the best passer on the team. Joel James is probably the biggest project. He is listed at 6'10" and 280 pounds but he only played 2 years of high school basketball before coming to UNC. He takes up a lot of space in the middle and also needs to work on his basketball skill set. The Point Guard position has always been the toughest to play at UNC and since Roy Williams started his tenure at UNC, the position has been amped up a little bit to run the Supersonic engine that is the Tarheel offense. Nate Britt was brought to UNC as an under study to Marcus Paige but got thrust into the starting role when Paige had to slide over and assume P.J. Hairston's position. Britt needs to develop an offensive game to go with running the show. All of these projects will probably all be good players by the time they finish their four years. The climate of college basketball has changed as the McDonald's All-Americans are only staying one year now. Teams need these project players to perform a lot sooner than usually expected and their learning curve gets very steep as a result.

Death, Taxes, And a Tarheel Victory Over Clemson

There are three sure things in life if you are a Tarheel basketball fan: Death, Taxes, and a victory against Clemson in Chapel Hill. The latest victory, an 80-61 victory last night, was the 57th in a row over Clemson in Chapel Hill, and was a very solid offensive showing against a Clemson team that was ranked 10th in the nation in total defense. James Michael McAdoo led the way with 22 points and played a great overall game and Marcus Paige chipped in with 15. Leslie McDonald had 12 points and Kennedy Meeks had 11 points and 3 blocked shots in his third start on the season. The 'Heels played with a "sense of urgency" is the phrase that Roy Williams kept using. The 'Heels played like their basketball season depended on it and at 12-7, every game might from this point on out. The 'Heels are 2-4 in the ACC and probably need to finish at 10-6 in the ACC and have a strong showing in the ACC Tournament to stand a chance at making the NCAA Tournament. They do have solid wins against Louisville and Michigan State in their resume and they will have several more opportunities against Top 25 teams.

Lineup Changes

Lineup changes made by Roy Williams last year helped to spring board UNC to a strong finish and he decided to make some changes to the 'Heels starting lineup before yesterday's win over Boston College. He went to a "small ball" lineup again. He inserted Jackson Simmons and Leslie McDonald into the starting lineup in place of Joel James and Nate Britt and the Tarheels emerged with their first ACC win of the year over Boston College 82-71. The Jackson Simmons experiment didn't lasdt long as he caught an errant elbow in the face from J.P. Tokoto and had to leave the game for an extended period. Simmons wasn't inserted into the lineup for his offense anyway, he was put there hoping to energize the Tarheels rebounding. Leslie McDonald was put into the lineup for his ability to score and shoot the ball and Marcus Paige was slid over into his more natural Point Guard position. The 'Heels placed 5 players in double figures led by Marcus Paige's 21 points and James Michael McAdoo with 17.

The Belk Bowl

The UNC Tarheels played one of their best overall games of the year in the season finale against Cincinnati in the Belk Bowl rolling to a 39-17 win. The 'Heels were outgained in total yards by Cincinnati but they were able to take advantage of the opportunities presented to them. Special Teams were extra special in this game. Punt Returner Ryan Switzer tied an NCAA record with his 5th punt return for a TD and this one went for 86 yards. This punt return may have been his best of the season. He fielded the punt as Cincinnati Bearcats were all around on him and one of the Bearcats appeared to touch Switzer on the back as he went by. Switzer calmly fielded the punt and went up the middle of the field to the End Zone for his history making return. The return also made ESPN's Top Ten plays for the night. Kick Returner T.J. Logan had a 76 yard kickoff return for a TD that showed off his speed and elusiveness. This kick return came after a Brandon Ellerbe sack in the end zone thqat resulted in a Safety. The Defense had 5 sacks in the game and the 'Heels came from everywhere on the blitz. Cincinnati had only allowed 12 sacks on the season. Tre Boston picked off his 5th pass of the season to finish off the game. The Cincinnati Bearcats 9-3 record was a little misleading. They did not beat a team with a winning record. The 'Heels still had a dominant performance against a team they should have beat. That is something they did not do early in the season. The win gave the 'Heels a 7-6 record on the season after a 1-5 start and because of the 'Heels reliance on Freshmen and Sophomores, the future looks much brighter in Chapel Hill.