GoHeels Exclusive: Press Conference Notes

by Pat James

Sitting at 1-5, the North Carolina football team is seeking change, anything that can possibly ease the frustrations of a disappointing start.

Monday morning, Larry Fedora made one, albeit it something that won't pay dividends on the football field. In what he called "a changeup," he shaved the beard he's sported since the summer of 2016. But it wasn't because he's superstitious.

"I really am not," Fedora said. "I don't believe the beard will have anything to do with our play. I really don't. If that was the case, I would have done it a long time ago."

Here are five other notes from the press conference, leading up to Saturday's 3:30 p.m. home game against Virginia.

Larger play-calling role for Fedora

With the offense averaging 11.3 points and 296.3 yards over the past three games, Fedora said he'll assume a greater role in the team's play-calling going forward.

"I have been and will be even more so," he said. "Not necessarily in the words coming out of my mouth going to the signal guy. But I'll be much more involved when we are in between series and those kinds of things and what I would like to try to do.

"I don't know if that will be the answer, but it's something I feel like where I can help the most."

Fedora added he's not "taking over the offense." He'll just be more involved.

Helping Surratt

Through his first four games, Chazz Surratt completed 63-of-98 pass attempts for 847 yards and five touchdowns. He threw just one interception, giving him a passer efficiency rating of 151.7.

But over his past two games, those numbers have dipped. Surratt has completed 37-of-72 passes for 320 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions – making his passer efficiency rating 87.7 during that stretch.

"A lot of people give a quarterback a lot of credit, and then they give him too much blame because it's going to take the other 10 guys for him to be successful …" Fedora said. "I would say part of it is personnel. Part of it is what we're doing with him in some situations, and that goes back to personnel and how we've limited what we can do in the playbook."

Harris embraces backup role

With Brandon Harris having attempted just three passes since coming off the bench in the loss against Louisville on Sept. 9, Fedora said Harris has adapted to his role on the team.

"He's been a great teammate," Fedora said. "He's been positive. He's got a smile on his face. He comes out there and practices hard every day … He's been very supportive of Chazz and the other quarterbacks, and they're all supportive of each other. He's doing a great job of leading from that position."

Collins keeps improving

After setting a career high with 12 tackles in the loss against Georgia Tech on Sept. 30, Cayson Collins finished with 15 on Saturday, including 10 solo.

He leads the ACC with 34 solo tackles, the most by a UNC player through the first six games of a season since Quan Sturdivant and Mark Paschal each had 35 in 2008. Collins has 49 total tackles, just 11 shy of the career-high 60 he totaled last season.

"Just a lot of confidence," said Fedora of what he's seen from Collins. "He knows what to do, so now he's just turning loose and playing. You see his natural athleticism. He's a big guy who can run, and he's really athletic and he's physical – he likes to hit. He's a good player."

Virginia's defense presents challenges

The Cavaliers rank 24th nationally in total defense, surrendering 324 yards per game. The unit specifically excels in defending the pass, entering this week at No. 16 in the country in team passing efficiency defense.

Fedora said part of Virginia's defensive success comes from the multiple fronts it uses.

"Some of it is a little bit different, so your guys have to be able to recognize those things," Fedora said. "They do the same thing on the back end. Their safeties are going to be heavily involved. They're not afraid to play man coverage or Cover-1 or Cover-0.

"So it's a little bit different in the way you have to approach it and the way you see it. They've given everybody they play problems with it."

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