Bowl Eligible

North Carolina won their sixth game of the season against Old Dominion by a final score of 80-20 and became bowl eligible in the process. It was also their fifth win in a row. Old Dominion was not a bad team. They were 8-3 coming into the game, they played the same up tempo style that the Tarheels do, and their Quarterback had thrown for almost 4,000 yards. There were too many stars and outstanding plays in this game to mention all of them. QB Marquise Williams passed for over 400 yards and 5 TD's, Freshman RB T.J. Logan ran for 137 yards on only 14 carries and scored 3 TD's as well as returning a kickoff 99 yards for a TD. Freshman Wide Receiver Ryan Switzer had a career day receiving with 5 receptions for 118 yards and 2 TD's and he returned another punt for a TD giving him 4 in three games tying an ACC record, Wide Receiver Quinshad Davis had over 100 yards receiving and a TD, and Freshman Running Back Khris Francis scored his first rushing TD on the season. On defense, Senior Defensive End Kareem Martin continued his stellar play adding two more sacks giving him 11 on the season. The Old Dominion Head Coach asked Coach Larry Fedora to cut the 4th Quarter to 10 minutes and Fedora readily agreed. It was a class move by both coaches and nothing was going to be gained by playing 5 more minutes. The Tarheels were driving for another score towards the end of the game when Larry Fedora called off the dogs and had Caleb Pressley take a knee on 4th down at the 10 yard line after taking a delay of game from the three on the play before. As a UNC fan, it would have been nice to see the 'Heels set the ACC record for points in a game (the record is 82 by Clemson in 1981 against Wake Forest) although the 'Heels did set a school record for points in a game but I applaud the sportmanship shown by both coaches. That is rare to see at any level of football any more.

2013 Football Preview- Quarterback

Bryn Renner is the unquestioned leader of this team and the Quarterback. I cannot wait to see what he can do in his second season in Coach Larry Fedora's high octane offense. He has a full season and a Spring Practice under his belt after finishing very strong in the Tarheels last 5 games last season. I am also looking forward to them really opening up the playbook this season. He threw for a school record 28 Touchdowns last season but he will not have Gio Bernard to hand off or pass to and he was a major weapon out of the backfield. The big question this fall is going to be who is going to be Renner's backup? Marquise Williams got into 9 games as a Redshirt Freshman last season but he was used more for his skill as a runner than he was a passer. He only attempted 17 passes but 29 rushing attempts. Due to academic difficulties, Marquise Williams' loss is True Freshman Mitch Trubisky's gain. Williams was not enrolled in school in the Spring Semester and missed all of Spring Practice. He re-enrolled in school in the first summer session and hopefully will be academically eligible in the Fall. Trubisky threw for over 4,000 yards and accounted for 60 TD's (42 passing, 18 rushing) and was named Ohio's Mr. Football in 2012. He enrolled in the Spring and got a lot of reps in the Tarheels' offense and drew praise from the coaching staff at the end of Spring Practice. He is listed as the backup QB on several preseason depth charts and the co-backup with Marquise Williams according to Inside Carolina. Redshirt Freshman Kanler Coker was in a battle last season with Williams to be Renner's backup but he was redshirted instead. Here is hoping that Renner posts some Heisman winning stats and the question of who the backup is becomes a moot point. How can I mention the Quarterbacks without mentioning local product Caleb Pressley who actually got into a blowout game last year as a walk on and took several snaps but was not allowed to air it out at least once. He did, however, get on the stat sheet.

The Vandals Cannot Rain On The Tarheels Parade

When Larry Fedora was named Head Coach of the North Carolina Tarheels it was predicted by many that the offensive record book at North Carolina would be completely rewritten by seasons end. Not quite halfway through the season, and the 'Heels have topped 60 points twice, both shutouts, and set a record with 66 points yesterday versus Idaho. The coaching staff went so deep into the depth chart by the end of the game, I didn't even know who these guys were. Local product, QB Caleb Pressley from Asheville, NC, even got some TV time his Tarheel jersey with a big #16 on it. All he did was hand it off to 5th string RB Kenny Owens and Pressley did carry it 2 times for 0 yards so he was officially on the stat sheet. The 'Heels really dialed it back in the third and fourth quarters.