Ga Tech vs UNC
(All pictures thanks to the WCHL who allowed me to use them)
So, even if way late, let me talk about another 30 to 24 loss that North Carolina (0-2, 0-1 in the ACC) encurred, this time at the hands of Georgia Tech (2-1, 1-0 in the ACC). Sadly to say, what should have been UNC’s strength this season, their defense, was really their major weakness in this game as they gave up way too much yards on the ground (372 yards ~ 5.9 YPC), with two Yellow Jackets players going for over 100 yards each. Again, youth, experience, missing players all play a part in this, but on the other hand they did have two weeks to prepare for the triple option, which seems just as complicated as the two pronged investigation. Ok, let me not get off topic here, more on the investigation in a post later on this morning, let’s get back to the game.
On Monday night I had both Michael Felder, ex UNC football player and owner of In The Bleacher web site & podcast (his twitter is @InTheBleachers) and Elizabeth Flake, a senior at Chapel Hill who goes to most every game (home and away), who also writes for a web site and can be found at this twitter account, on my podcast and had a lot to say about the game. Michael spoke about how the team just needs to keep “chopping wood” and sooner or later that win will fall for them, while Elizabeth talked about how she felt offensive coordinator John Shoop did, and it was not a raving review to say the least. Both were convinced that the team’s luck can change this weekend against Rutgers. (To hear the whole interview for both you can go here).
T.J. Yates
In the game against Georgia Tech we really saw what it means having so many starters out on the defensive side. The back four could not make good tackles when the GT’s back found holes in the line and the DL just could not hold their space on the field, making it easy for anyone carrying the ball for the opposition to get good yards each and every time they touched the ball. While it was not as bad as two years ago, giving the Yellow Jackets ten more minutes of possession time is just another way for the Heels to lose this game. In the end when we talk about the D there is two sides of the coin, yes they are without many players, but you have to play with who you have, and that is the bottom line. Only fortunate thing is that I doubt head coach Butch Davis’ team will encounter another team that player the triple option.
I can’t say much about the offense, with the exception of two things: the fumble by T.J. Yates (18 for 24 ~ 209 YDS ~ 1 TD) when the score was 24 to 17 for the Heels and the second one the fact that the big man in the first game, Jheranie Boyd, was irrelevant in this game. In the first it would have been interesting to see what the Jackets would have done if they went down by double digit points and a long field. In the second I really would love to know why Boyd was kept out of the mix with just one catch for -2 yards. OC Shoop has to lengthen the field and find a way to use him more in my opinion. I could also say that Yates is looking a bit too much at his tight end Zach Pianalto, but on the other hand, with the young core on hand I would expect a lot of quarter backs to look for their senior leader in the game. Bright point to be mention is that the returning running back Johnny White (after being cleared) had 113 yards and a touchdown on 17 touches (6.6 YPC).
The Fan Base
How many would have thought I been praising the offense for their work and be a bit upset with how the defense has played? That is what happens when twelve players are missing that would have been starters and that is also what happens when a lot of outside the football field things are happening on a daily basis. A lot of fans on UNC web boards are believing this could be the end of the season already, I do not agree with that, but I believe this team needs to win the next two games in order to turn the season around. From what you can see with the picture here, the fans are coming to the game right now, but will they if this continues? I hope so, but with basketball coming and this investigation still ongoing I am not sure everyone is a committed as I am. Hopefully with the next game this Saturday at 3:30 pm EST, as North Carolina faces Rutgers (2-0) in New Jersey, this team can begin to turn their fortunes around.
