University of North Carolina Athletics
UNC-Florida State Football Game Notes
September 19, 2001 | Football
Sept. 19, 2001
UNC-Florida State Game Notes (PDF Format)
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NORTH CAROLINA
Date: Saturday, September 22, 2001
Time: Noon ET
Site: Kenan Memorial Stadium (60,000, grass)
Series Record: Florida State leads, 11-0-1
TV: ABC Sports (Brad Nessler, play-by-play, Bob Griese, analyst, Lynn Swann, sideline)
Radio: Tar Heel Sports Radio Network, a division of Learfield Communications. Woody Durham (play-by-play), Mick Mixon (color) and Stephen Gates (sideline)
provide the call. A live broadcast also is available on the University of North Carolina's official athletic website, TarHeelBlue.com
Websites: North Carolina (TarHeelBlue.com), Florida State (Seminoles.com)
Injuries: TBA
CAROLINA OPENS HOME SEASON WITH FLORIDA STATE AFTER SMU POSTPONED
Due to the postponement of the SMU game last weekend, Carolina (0-3, 0-1 ACC) now opens its home schedule against No. 6 Florida State (2-0, 1-0) on Sept. 22 at Noon.
The game will be televised by ABC Sports. Three of Carolina's first four opponents have been ranked in the Associated Press top six, including No. 3 Oklahoma on Aug. 25
and No. 4 Texas on Sept. 8. No other ACC team has ever faced three Top 10 teams in the first four games of the season.
Carolina will be playing its first home game of the season after starting the year with three consecutive road games for the first time since 1993. It is the latest opening home date for the Tar Heels since a 35-14 win over Maryland on Sept. 25, 1971. Last season, Carolina won its home opener with a 30-9 victory over Tulsa. Carolina has not won back-to-back home openers since the 1996 and 1997 seasons.
The Tar Heels are coming off a 44-14 loss at Texas on Sept. 8 and are 0-3 for the first time since 1998. That year, Carolina rebounded to win seven of the next nine and finish 7-5 overall, including a 20-13 Las Vegas Bowl win over San Diego State in which quarterback Ronald Curry was named the MVP.
Carolina has not started a season 0-4 since 1988 - Mack Brown's first at UNC - when the Tar Heels lost their first six games. In 1967 - Bill Dooley's first year at Carolina - the Tar Heels were 0-5 before winning their first game. Dooley and Brown went on to have very successful coaching careers at Carolina and are tied for second in career wins at UNC.
Florida State defeated Duke, 55-13, in its season opener and followed that victory with a 29-7 win over Alabama-Birmingham on Sept. 8.
CAROLINA VS. SMU POSTPONED UNTIL DEC. 1
On Wednesday, Sept. 12, 2001, the Atlantic Coast Conference suspended all intercollegiate competition through Saturday, Sept. 15, out of respect for the national tragedy in
New York and Washington, D.C. North Carolina's football game with SMU, scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 15, has been rescheduled for Saturday, Dec. 1 in Chapel Hill at
1:30 p.m.
CAROLINA'S SCHEDULE AMONG NATION'S MOST DIFFICULT
North Carolina's schedule is ranked as the nation's fourth-toughest in the latest Sagarin rankings, behind Notre Dame, Penn State and The Citadel. The Sagarin schedule
ratings represent the average schedule difficulty faced by each team in the games that it has played so far. Carolina's 2001 opponents in the Sagarin rankings are No. 10
Oklahoma, No. 57 Maryland and No. 13 Texas. Florida State is No. 3 in the Sagarin rankings. Carolina's schedule is the hardest in the ACC, followed by Duke (No. 17),
Virginia (43), Wake Forest (71), NC State (80), Florida State (86), Georgia Tech (100), Clemson (112) and Maryland (116).
CAROLINA AGAINST THE TOP 10
Carolina is playing its third game of the season against a team ranked in the Associated Press Top 10. It is the first time Carolina has played three teams in the Top 10 since
1955. That year, Carolina lost to No. 3 Oklahoma (13-6), No. 2 Maryland (25-7) and No. 5 Notre Dame (27-7). Carolina also faced three Top 10 teams in 1943, falling to
No. 6 Duke twice and defeating No. 10 Penn.
CAROLINA-FLORIDA STATE SERIES NOTES
TIES TO FLORIDA
KENAN STADIUM NOW IN ITS 75TH SEASON
Carolina plays the first of six home games this season at Kenan Stadium on Sept. 22. The 60,000-seat stadium, which opened in 1927, is in its 75th season as the home of the
Tar Heels. Carolina's all-time record at Kenan Stadium is 235-141-16 (.620). From 1990-1997, Kenan Stadium was one of the top home field advantages in the ACC as the
Tar Heels compiled a 40-9-1 record at Kenan, but in the last three seasons, UNC is a combined 7-10 at home. Carolina was 3-2 in 1998, 1-5 in 1999 and 3-3 in 2000.
CAROLINA'S DEFENSE CONTINUES TO PLAY WELL
Despite losing its first three games, two of which came to teams ranked in the nation's top five, Carolina's defense has played well, surrendering just four scoring drives 46
yards or longer. The Tar Heels are ranked 33rd nationally in total defense and 28th nationally against the pass.
"You've got to give North Carolina's defense credit," said Texas coach Mack Brown after beating UNC 44-14. "They way they play, you really have to be satisfied when you get points on them. They're struggling some on offense but, like I told John (Bunting), he's done a great job. I think John Bunting is the perfect guy for that job. He's emotional. His kids played really hard. I was really impressed."
Carolina's defense has held opponents to drives of less than 20 yards 30 of 46 times this season.
TURNOVER TROUBLE
Carolina ranks 112th in the country in turnover margin, giving away the ball 11 times while forcing just three turnovers. Last year, Carolina was 104th in turnover margin
(-1.09), causing just 14 turnovers in 11 games (seven fumbles, seven interceptions).
Nine of Carolina's 11 turnovers this year have resulted in scores, including seven touchdowns and two field goals. Oklahoma scored three touchdowns and two field goals on UNC's five turnovers in the season opener. Maryland converted two of three UNC turnovers into touchdowns and Texas scored two touchdowns on three UNC turnovers. Carolina has forced three turnovers and converted two of those into touchdowns. Defensive end Julius Peppers returned an interception 29 yards for a touchdown against Oklahoma and UNC scored after a fumbled punt at Texas.
THORNTON REACHES DOUBLE DIGITS AGAIN
David Thornton, a former walk-on who was awarded a scholarship prior to the start of the 2001 season, has suddenly become one of the Tar Heels top playmakers on defense.
Through the first three games of the season, Thornton leads the team with 42 total tackles and has had double digits in tackles in all three games. He entered the 2001 season
with just 24 career tackles, including 16 tackles last season as a special teams player.
In his first career start at Oklahoma, Thornton had 15 tackles (12 solo, 3 assists), including four tackles for loss and one sack for five yards. The following week at Maryland, he made 13 tackles (9 solo, 4 assists). At Texas, Thornton was credited with 14 tackles (10 solo, 4 assists).
In addition to his play on the football field, Thornton is one of the Tar Heels' most active players off the gridiron. Among the community service projects he is involved with are: minority student recruitment volunteer at UNC, tutor and mentor for Upward Bound, volunteer reader for local elementary schools, volunteer coach for local intramural girls basketball team, motivational speaker for Hargrave Community Center. He is also a member of UNC's Student Recreational Center Board of Directors and a Senior Marshall. He is majoring in exercise and sports science.
REID COMFORTABLE IN STARTING ROLE
Sophomore free safety Dexter Reid, another first-time starter on defense, is a hard-hitting safety who has been all around the ball this season. Reid had nine tackles, including a
10-yard sack against Oklahoma and followed that performance with 11 tackles (9 solo, 2 assist) at Maryland. Reid had five tackles at Texas. Reid was Carolina's top backup at
safety a year ago and finished the 2000 season fifth in tackles.
BOZ LOOKING TO BREAK OUT
One of the most exciting players in the ACC is Bosley Allen, a junior from Bradenton, Fla., who is fortunate just to be playing football after suffering a near career-ending knee
injury in 1998. Allen, who redshirted in 1999 to recover from the injury, finished the 2000 season with a school-record 421 punt return yards and had two punt returns for
touchdowns. He scored on a 78-yard punt return at Wake Forest and on a 63-yard punt return at Duke. The 78-yarder against the Demon Deacons was selected as one of the
"College Plays of the Year." Allen finished the season ranked second in the ACC and 14th in the country, averaging 15.0 yards per return.
Allen also led the Tar Heels in receiving with 40 receptions for 634 yards and three touchdowns. This season, Allen has been limited because of nagging injuries. He sprained his ankle in the last week of fall practice and injured his quad muscle at Maryland.
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