University of North Carolina Athletics
Carolina Football Notebook
October 16, 2002 | Football
Oct. 16, 2002
By David Tinson
UNC Athletic Communications
The University of North Carolina football program and the state of Virginia have a long history, with many of Carolina's all-time greats hailing from the Commonwealth.
Look no further than NFL Hall of Fame linebacker Lawrence Taylor (Williamsburg), two-time ACC Player of the Year Mike Voight (Chesapeake), two-time All-America William Fuller (Chesapeake), bruising halfback Ken Willard (Richmond), All-America offensive guard Ron Rusnak (Prince George), record-setting wide receiver Corey Holliday (Richmond), linebacker Dwight Hollier (Hampton), four-time 1,000-yard back Amos Lawrence (Norfolk), three-time first-team All-America cornerback Dre' Bly (Chesapeake) and record-setting quarterback Ronald Curry (Chesapeake).
Tight end Bobby Blizzard and safety Dexter Reid may just be the next Tar Heels added to that list of UNC greats. Blizzard, a former high school teammate of Curry in Hampton who transferred to UNC after two years at Kentucky, and Reid, a native of Norfolk, are both enjoying stellar seasons for Carolina. Reid leads the Atlantic Coast Conference in tackles per game and is on pace to post more than 150 stops this season, while Blizzard has not only emerged as a fine blocker but also a top passing target for quarterback Darian Durant. Blizzard has caught 12 passes for 203 yards and three touchdowns, including a 22-yard TD catch last weekend against NC State.
"He's gotten a lot stronger, better conditioned and a lot faster than he was when he first got here," says head coach John Bunting of his 6-3, 276-pound junior tight end. "(Last year) he worked hard on the scout team to give us a look, even though he wasn't going to play. He worked really hard to get better and he has a chance to become a great player."
lizzard whose father, David, played football at Winston-Salem State, is excited to be heading back to Virginia for the weekend.
"There are about five or six guys from my high school and a couple of other guys from the area that I played against who I can't wait to get my hands on this week," Blizzard says. "It will be an emotional game for me."
Overall, Carolina has eight scholarship players on its roster who hail from the state of Virginia.
TE Bobby Blizzard -- Hampton, Hampton HS
DB Ronald Brewer -- Chesapeake, Indian River
DT Donti Coats -- Chesapeake, Oscar Smith HS
FB James Gibson -- Alexandria, T.C. Williams HS
DE Darryl Grant -- Chesapeake, Deep Creek HS
CB Kevin Knight -- Suffolk, Lakeland HS
FS Dexter Reid -- Norfolk, Granby HS
OG Jupiter Wilson -- Chesapeake, Hickory HS
Carolina-Virginia Coaching Connections:
In addition to many former UNC greats coming to Chapel Hill from Virginia, Carolina also has a number of other connections with the state.
Offensive coordinator Gary Tranquill and running backs coach Andre' Powell both coached at Virginia as members of George Welsh's coaching staff. Tranquill spent two different coaching stints with the Cavaliers. He was Virginia's quarterback coach from 1987-90 and helped develop some of the best passers in conference history, including All-ACC selections Scott Secules, Shawn Moore and Matt Blundin. Tranquill helped coach the Cavaliers to a No. 1 ranking during the 1990 season - Virginia's highest ever ranking. He returned to Charlottesville as the offensive coordinator for the 1999 and 2000 seasons.
efore coming to Chapel Hill, Powell spent five seasons coaching wide receivers and running backs at UVa. He coached running backs during his first season in 1996, then tutored the wide receivers for three years before returning to teach the running backs in 2000.
Virginia head coach Al Groh was the linebackers coach at UNC under Bill Dooley from 1973-77.
At Home Away From Home:
Through six games of the 2002 season, Carolina is 0-4 at home but 2-0 on the road, making this weekend's test at Virginia all the more interesting. The Tar Heels have not won in Charlottesville since a 17-14 victory in 1981, but something will have to give when the Tar Heels and Cavaliers square off at Noon at Scott Stadium.
"I was barely born then," Bunting quipped of UNC's woes at Virginia. "That's a long, long time. Obviously we'd like to take care of that problem this weekend."
unting is actually 4-0 against Virginia in his career, including 3-0 as a player and 1-0 as Carolina's head coach. During his playing days, UNC was 2-0 at Charlottesville, and Bunting says he has always enjoyed the experience of playing on the road.
"It was fun for me to go to a new place, new stadium, see their fans," Bunting said. "I do know certain stadiums where the fans create a lot of noise and create problems for you. I'm sure that Virginia we be no exception to that. It's been a long time since I've been back there so there is no way I can be fully prepared for this at all.
"There are teams that enjoy playing on the road. Our team enjoyed it last year and I think our team is enjoying it this year. I think our team will look forward to this."
Bunting Patient With Durant:
With all the success that Darian Durant has had at quarterback the last year and a half, sometimes it's hard to believe that he is still just a sophomore. He leads the ACC in total offense (293.7) and passing yards per game (272.5). He's ninth in the latest NCAA rankings in total offense and 27th in pass efficiency. He's passed for more than 230 yards in five of six games this season, and on the one day where he three for less than 200 yards -- 158 against Texas -- he had his best day rushing the ball with 74 yards on 12 carries, including a career-best 27-yard run for a touchdown.
ut he's also had to deal with his fair share of adversity in his second season, particularly last weekend when NC State capitalized on his third quarter fumble at the UNC 4-yard-line to score the go-ahead touchdown in a 34-17 win.
"I think he's learning with to deal with the ups and downs of being a quarterback at a major Division I college, like many other first-year starters," Bunting said. "He is the full-time starter right now and he's got to deal with that pressure and he has to deal with the ups and downs of our team from week to week. Sometimes maybe we're not as good offensively as we'd like to be, many times we've not been good defensively and he cannot get out there. It's frustrating for him, and frustrating for me, and anybody else associated with the program and we can't get off the field defensively and get our offense back on the field. So he's got to deal with that frustration and I think he's doing better and better each week."
In just his second year, and after making just eight career starts, Durant is already making a mark on the UNC career record book. He currently ranks first in career completion percentage (.608), sixth in career passing yards (3,478). ninth in career total offense (3,731) and ninth in career completions (254). In 2001, he set freshmen single-season records for touchdown passes (17), completions (142), passing yards (1,843) and total offense (1,971).
ACC vs. SEC:
Curious how the ACC and SEC stack up against one another as football conferences? Just ask Bobby Blizzard, UNC's tight end who played two years at Kentucky before transferring to Carolina last year. Blizzard sat out last year, and welcomed the chance to learn a different style of play.
"It gave me a chance to get a feel for ACC ball because from playing in two different conferences there is a difference," Blizzard says. "I feel like in the SEC everyone is a lot faster, speed is the main thing over there. Here everyone seems to be strong."
It's interesting to note that ACC schools are 8-4 (.667) against BCS conference schools -- the best record among the six BCS conferences.
1. ACC -- 8-4 (.667)
2. Big Ten -- 7-5 (.583)
3. Big 12 -- 9-8 (.529)
4. Pac-10 -- 7-8 (.467)
5. SEC -- 5-8 (.385)
6. Big East -- 5-8 (.385)
Kevin Best contributed to this report.
