University of North Carolina Athletics
Spring Football Practice Report: Offense
March 21, 2003 | Football
March 21, 2003
By Adam Lucas
Tar Heel Monthly
The words "spring practice" conjure up certain images. Bright, sunny skies. The sound of pads popping. Warm temperatures.
The first two days of Carolina's 2003 spring practice have contained exactly none of those things. Unseasonably cold temperatures threw a chill over practice on Wednesday, with the Heels looking more like they were practicing for a bowl game in December than going through drills in March. Yesterday was an off day, and when the Heels return to Navy Field today to put on pads for the first time this spring, it's likely that Chapel Hill skies will remain overcast.
That doesn't change the task at hand, however. John Bunting has just 15 practices to tinker with his team. His task is made slightly more difficult because other than two early enrollees-tailback Ronnie McGill and linebacker Melik Brown-Carolina's large (in both numbers and expectations) freshman class won't arrive until August. Even without them, there are still a few priorities for the spring. What follows are three key offensive points the Heels can focus on with the personnel at hand, and tomorrow we'll go over the defensive priorities. We'll check back after the spring game to evaluate the progress on these fronts.
The tailback situation: It's plain in Bunting's expression when he talks about the running game that he wants a reliable tailback. There are six players-Willie Parker, Andre Williams, Jacque Lewis, Chad Scott, Rikki Cook, and McGill-in camp this spring with a chance of winning the job and the Tar Heel head coach now hopes one of them emerges as the clear-cut starter.
"That position is wide, wide open," he said after Wednesday's practice. "We've gone by committee the last two years...I'd love for one guy to jump out and have the kind of durability and consistency, the kind of guy who can turn a four yard gain into an eight yard gain or a 12 yard gain into a 25 yard gain. That's a great back. To be a great back you have to run for 1,000 yards. Do we have one of those guys? Time will tell."
The Heels definitely have a wide variety of styles in their backfield. Parker, Scott and Lewis are more lightning than thunder, while Williams, Cook, and McGill add a little more thunder to their style. Cook, a transfer from Rutgers, is a powerful bowling ball of a runner who impressed the coaching staff during his mandatory year of sitting out. He's listed at fullback on the spring depth chart but has the versatility to move around in the backfield.
"Rikki is going to play both positions," Bunting said. "He's going to be in that one back set and he's also going to play fullback. We're going to try to get a couple more plays for the fullback so that he's not just a blocker. I can imagine [Madison] Hedgecock and Rikki in the backfield together when we want to pound the ball."
McGill flew under the recruiting radar in Clover, SC but made Bunting take notice in early practices.
"I went over to [offensive coordinator Gary] Tranquill and said that McGill looks like he has it," Bunting said. "He has an extra gear and he has vision. To be a great running back you have to have vision, and it looks like he has some of that."
The offensive line: The Heels can assemble all the talented tailbacks in the world, but if they don't have holes to run through, the running game won't be very effective. For the first time in seemingly decades, Carolina will go into the season with a set lineup and no question marks on the o-line.
Senior Jeb Terry anchors a line that played together extensively last year, with even the youngest member-rising sophomore Kyle Ralph-seeing substantial snaps in 2002.
"This is the second year for those guys with [OL coach] Hal Hunter," Bunting said. "They're more football-savvy. I think we have a chance to be very good on the offensive line."
The only spring concern on the line is the lack of depth. Carolina had to dip into the walk-on ranks just to fill out a spring two-deep chart, and Arthur Smith is out for the entire spring with a foot problem.
The young wide receivers: The competition at running back is matched only by the battle for slots at wide receiver, where any player who puts together a solid spring could go from unknown to starter in the matter of a couple of weeks. A talented crop of freshmen will arrive in August, but the veterans have a chance to stake a claim to their position this spring.
"I'm very excited about seeing what kind of situation we can get into with our current receivers," Bunting said. "Losing Chesley Borders and Sam Aiken is a tall order for those guys. The [Danny] Rumleys and the [Jarwarski] Pollocks and the [Brandon] Russells who have experience with this offense have to step up."
Russell, a rising senior, has the most experience, while Pollock probably generates the most electricity. One player not mentioned by Bunting, rising sophomore Derrele Mitchell, saw action as a true freshman in 2002 and appears to have the physical characteristics necessary to make him a solid receiver.
Adam Lucas is the publisher of Tar Heel Monthly and can be reached at alucas@tarheelmonthly.com. To subscribe to Tar Heel Monthly, click here.
