UNC QB Marquise Williams “excited for another opportunity” against Georgia Tech

If Marquise Williams was surprised on Saturday to have been taken out of North Carolina’s eventual victory against Delaware, if he was stunned to watch the rest of that game from the sideline, he didn’t say so on Tuesday.

No, Williams, the Tar Heels’ fifth-year senior quarterback, instead said all the right things when he met with reporters for the first time since coach Larry Fedora on Saturday replaced him in favor of Mitch Trubisky, who has been Williams’ backup.

“No, no, no,” Williams said on Tuesday when asked if he’d been caught off guard by Fedora’s decision to bench him for the final 2½ quarters against Delaware. “No surprises. Whatever helps this team out, that’s what I’m about. I’ve been about that the last five years, I’m not going to change.

“And I was happy for my boy (Trubisky) – he came in and (did) a tremendous job. He did what he needed to do.”

Now Williams will try to do what he needs to do to solidify his role as UNC’s starting quarterback. He said on Tuesday that he’s “ready to go” for the Tar Heels’ ACC opener Saturday at Georgia Tech, and he shook off a question about whether he felt like a slow start or early mistakes might get him pulled again.

“I’m just excited to get another opportunity,” Williams said.

Williams against Delaware completed six of his 12 passes for 65 yards and played his last snap midway through the second quarter. He left after being sacked and didn’t return.

Trubisky, meanwhile, entered the game on UNC’s fourth series and played most of the second half. He completed 17 of his 20 attempts for 312 yards and threw four touchdown passes. Trubisky played so well, in fact, that it prompted questions that Fedora immediately tried to squash at the start of his weekly press conference on Monday.

Fedora entered a room full of media members and said he expected to receive “78 questions” about the quarterback situation.

“Marquise Williams is our starter,” Fedora said. “Yes, I’ve talked to him. He knows why I did what I did on Saturday. And that’s where we’re at.”

That didn’t exactly halt the queries. The first 15 questions Fedora answered were about either Williams or Trubisky, or both, and how their roles might change, if at all, entering UNC’s first conference game.

Unlike last year, when Williams and Trubisky rotated possessions during the first half of the season, this year was supposed to be one without quarterback controversy at UNC. Williams entered the season the clear starter, and he spoke with confidence about his expectations – both personal and for the team.

The season-opener, though, couldn’t have gone much worse for Williams. He threw three interceptions – all of them in the red zone and two of them in the end zone – in UNC’s 17-13 defeat against South Carolina. He rebounded with strong performances in victories against N.C. A&T and Illinois but then got off to a slow start, at least in the passing game, on Saturday against Delaware.

Afterward, Fedora spoke with a sense of frustration about Williams’ decision-making. The two met after the game, with Fedora outlining his expectations and explaining why he had decided to make a quarterback change on Saturday.

Last season, Williams was second in the ACC, behind Florida State’s Jameis Winston, in total offense. He entered his final college season amid hype and high expectations and some unavoidable thoughts about his future and the NFL draft, in particular.

For now, what’s next is UNC’s conference opener at Georgia Tech, where the Tar Heels haven’t won since 1997. It’s an important game for UNC and its goal of winning the ACC’s Coastal Division. It’s an important game for Williams, too – and another opportunity to prove he’s the right man to start at quarterback.

This story was originally published September 29, 2015 at 8:52 PM with the headline "UNC QB Marquise Williams “excited for another opportunity” against Georgia Tech."