UNC football will ‘re-look at everything’ after 6-7 season, Mack Brown says
North Carolina concluded the first two football seasons in coach Mack Brown’s second tenure feeling like the program had a lot of momentum heading into the next year. The close of the Tar Heels’ 6-7 finish this season has brought a different kind of evaluation.
It’s brought the scrutiny that comes with under-performing. How did a team that returned 10 offensive starters and 11 on defense from its Orange Bowl appearance manage to finish with a losing record and an embarrassing bowl defeat?
Brown vowed to “re-look at everything we’re doing” after their season-ending 38-21 loss to South Carolina in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl.
“This will be this will be better for our program probably than if we had won 45-0,” Brown said. “Everybody would have been happy and we wouldn’t have fixed as many things. Now, there’s a whole lot of things we’ve got to fix.”
Making the right repairs can be tricky due to the amount of movement on college rosters. On Monday, Carolina lost sophomore receiver Stephen Gosnell to the transfer portal and offensive lineman Josh Ezeudu announced he was turning pro.
Replacing stars
What hurt the team this year is the lack of players who shined while stepping into bigger roles. Associated Press poll voters made a lot of assumptions when they ranked UNC No. 9 in the preseason top 25. They thought Carolina would be able to fill the voids left by Javonte Williams, Michael Carter, Dazz Newsome and Chazz Surratt. They thought the offensive line that returned all of its starters would only get better with another year together. They thought a defense with so many returning would be an improved unit.
It didn’t play out that way. The offensive line allowed an ACC-worst 49 sacks. The defense finished 11th in the ACC allowing an average of 418 yards per game. Brown said personnel would be an area that gets close examination and that includes how position coaches are using players.
“You look at personnel and see if (coaches are) putting somebody out there that’s not playing well and not being productive,” Brown said. “And if that’s the case, then we’ve got to find something else for them to do. Either you’re not doing what they do best (in the scheme), or they’re not capable of doing it, and you should replace them.”
Receiver Josh Downs was one of the few bona fide stars that emerged for Carolina. Downs became the first player in school history with 100 catches. He led the ACC and was second nationally with 101 receptions. His 1,355 receiving yards also led the conference and set a new school record.
That’s somewhat concerning considering the Heels have to replace arguably the best quarterback in school history next season after Sam Howell declared for the 2022 NFL draft.
Howell was asked to do more within the offense this season in the absence of experienced skill players. He displayed an ability to run that many didn’t know he had, finishing ninth in the ACC with 828 yards and 11 rushing touchdowns this season.
Howell finished his career with his name etched atop most of the program’s major passing records including touchdowns, yards and total offense. Carolina’s next starting quarterback will likely have one advantage that Howell didn’t — they’ve already played at least one season in the system.
Jacolby Criswell, a rising redshirt sophomore, will be entering his third year at Carolina. Drake Maye, the son of former UNC quarterback Mark Maye, will be entering his second year. Both quarterbacks got real game experience when Howell was out with a shoulder injury in the Heels’ 34-14 win over Wofford.
Defensive lapses
The defense certainly had its shining moments this season. It held Pitt’s high-scoring offense to just 23 points in regulation — including a second half shut out. Until the Panthers lost to Michigan State in the Peach Bowl, 31-21, it was their lowest outing in regulation this season. With Miami driving to tie the game or win it, linebacker Cedric Gray came up with a tipped ball interception to secure the victory.
UNC often left the field perplexed by what just happened. The final two minutes of its 34-30 loss to N.C. State was the worst example of this. A miscommunication between cornerback Tony Grimes and safety Cam’Ron Kelly was blamed for allowing the Wolfpack to strike for a 64-yard touchdown pass less than 40 seconds after UNC took what should have amounted to the game-clinching field goal.
Linebacker Tomon Fox will leave UNC with 29.5 sacks — the third most in school history. His biggest advice to the defense for next season is to clean up its communication issues.
“Make sure you playing together you know, being out there talking on the field, communicating with every little thing, because that’s how the defense works,” Fox said. “If somebody moves you have to make a check and everyone has to know the check. It can’t just be one person, it can’t just be two people. So I think the biggest thing for us is communication. Having better communication next year.”
Slow Starts
The Heels trailed Virginia Tech 14-0, Pittsburgh 17-0, N.C. State 14-0 and South Carolina 18-0. They went on to lose all four games even though they had the ball with a chance to take the lead or tie the game in all but the bowl game.
UNC also hasn’t solved its problem winning night games on the road. In Brown’s three seasons back, Carolina is 1-10 in night road games. They have dropped the last eight consecutively including five this season.
“What we’ll do is we’ll take every one of those games where we had a poor start,” Brown said. “We’ll dissect every defensive (play), we’ll dissect every offensive play, and see if there’s there’s some structure there that we should have done differently or done better. See if there’s any common denominators.”
Help on the way?
Carolina did sign the ACC’s top recruiting class and one that is currently ranked No. 8 nationally by 247Sports. That marks its third straight class ranked in the top 15. Offensive tackle Zach Rice and defensive tackle Travis Shaw, both five-star recruits, seem the best suited to help immediately.
But the fate will largely rest on how their returning players take the disappointment from this season and develop it into achievement next season. Howell won’t be in Chapel Hill to see it, but he believes it can be done.
“Obviously, this wasn’t the year we all wanted to have or expected to have, but I think there can be so much growth from this year,” Howell said. “...There’s so much to learn from and I think if they learn the lessons that you can learn from this season, then moving forward I think the program’s in great shape. Coach Brown in he knows how to do this thing. So all they got to do is just stay bought in keep buying into his message.”
Changing roster
Transferring out: DB Trey Morrison, OLB Tyrone Hopper, WR Beau Corrales, DT Kristian Varner, DT Clyde Pinder Jr., WR Stephen Gosnell, WR Khafre Brown, WR Emery Simmons, LB Eugene Asante, RB Josh Henderson
Transferring in: OL Corey Gaynor (Maimi), OLB Noah Taylor (Virginia)
Exhausted eligibility (key players): OLB Tomon Fox, LB Jeremiah Gemmel, RB Ty Chandler, PK Grayson Atkins, NT Ray Vohasek
Leaving early for NFL: OL Josh Ezeudu, OG Marcus McKethan, OT Jordan Tucker, QB Sam Howell, CB Kyler McMichael
This story was originally published January 3, 2022 at 4:08 PM.