University of North Carolina Athletics
Extra Points Mailbag
November 10, 2006 | Football
Nov. 10, 2006
by Lee Pace, Extra Points
Receiver Hakeem Nicks had an outstanding game on the offensive side of the ball last week at Notre Dame - and he's only a freshman. Another freshman turning in a solid performance on the opposite side was cornerback Jermaine Strong.
Strong is a 5-10, 185-pound red-shirt freshman from Crest High in Shelby. He has started two games now at right cornerback, moving ahead of Quinton Person on the depth chart. He was beaten once at Notre Dame when he fell down and another time when he didn't get the defensive call on time when the Irish were running a hurry-up, no-huddle attack early in the game.
He had a good performance nonetheless. Two of Notre Dame's big pass plays came when Irish QB Brady Quinn attempted to find a receiver down the offense's left side who was being covered by Strong. But Strong had him bottled up, so Quinn looked elsewhere and found another receiver open down the middle of the field.
"Jermaine is a confident young man," secondary coach and defensive coordinator Marvin Sanders says. "He's physical, he'll hit you and he's got good cover skills. He's got a bright future."
The most impressive thing about Strong is his ability when the Tar Heels go to their press-man coverage scheme and his fondness for playing in a receiver's face. Not every cornerback has the swagger and deportment to play tight. But Strong uses his hands well on a receiver, has good hip movement and can run.
"I love to play press," Strong says. "I feel like I can run with anyone. That's what I'm known for - my speed. I love pressing and playing physical. I love to go one-on-one. Press coverage is what defensive football is all about."
What is the Tar Heels' situation at the "Sam" linebacker? There were reports this week that Larry Edwards might be able to play. If so, will he start in front of Martel Thatch?
Brett Mitchell, Concord
Edwards has made a miraculous recovery from the broken collarbone he suffered in pre-game warm-ups of the South Florida game four weeks ago. Thought by the medical staff to be out for the rest of the year, Edwards was back on the practice field this week. He was in a green shirt Monday and Tuesday (meaning no contact) and in full pads on Wednesday.
The coaching staff expects Edwards to play Saturday against Georgia Tech. How long and how hard he can go remains to be seen. Meanwhile, Thatch is out of action on Saturday because of a high ankle sprain, and sophomore Garrett White is next in line at the strong-side linebacker position.
"There was no way I was going to settle for not being able to come back," Edwards said this week. "I always knew that I was going to do everything I can to try and get back. Hopefully, I can get a couple of games in before I have to leave this place."
"It's exciting to have Larry back," Sanders says. "He increases the tempo of practice. The guys have more fun with him in there."
Carolina has given up a lot of big plays in the passing game this year, and this week we will see one of the best receivers in the country in Calvin Johnson. How will the Tar Heels attempt to defense him?
Herbert Ricks, Myrtle Beach S.C.
Well, the Tar Heel coaches aren't saying publicly exactly what their game plan is against Johnson, the 6-4 receiver who has 49 catches for 795 yards and 11 scores in his junior season. But head coach John Bunting did say you can expect a variety of approaches in trying to keep Johnson's output to a reasonable level.
"We've got to mix coverages," Bunting says. "We'll get a couple of people on him at times. I was asked about doubling-up [Jeff Samardzija] last week at Notre Dame. He's good but this guy [Johnson] is in another class with his speed and size."
Sanders notes that last week the Tar Heels faced the best quarterback in the country in Brady Quinn and this week will get the top receiver in Johnson.
"He's 6-4 and our tallest corner is 5-9 ½, maybe 5-10," Sanders says. "That's a pretty big advantage."
I watched a program several years ago about the Georgia Tech team and the Christian leadership they had. There is something about having faith in God and putting into practice the principles of the Bible that unifies people. When you look to God for guidance and direction and ask Him to help you do your best, it makes a difference. I don't believe other teams have better athletes, better coaching, and are stronger and faster. The Lord loves and rewards humility and when players put the team above their own personal ambitions, good things happen.
Christopher Imke, Rocky Mount
Senior safety D.J. Walker is one of the leaders of the Tar Heels' spiritual and religious activities. Every Monday, Tar Heel football players join athletes from other sports in a meeting of the UNC chapter of Champions for Christ, an organization formed in 1985 to reach college and professional athletes with "the life-changing message of Jesus Christ," as the organization says. The football team has a chapel service every Friday night at the team hotel, and one player leads a team prayer and The Lord's Prayer before every game.
"Faith is a very important part of our team," Walker says. "We are playing for a higher cause. Most of us believe there is a God, there is a higher power. It's important to keep a focus on that throughout the football season and throughout the year."
***
The Mailbag was inundated with Tar Heel fans sharing their thoughts and experiences from last weekend's trip to Notre Dame. One fan's note stood out from all the others. Ken Marsh of High Point had this to say:
I was in attendance with my 70-year-old father. The day was one of the best sporting days we've ever experienced. You touched on everything we did as we sat down in dad's den back home reflecting back to Saturday. What amazed us was the simplicity of the environs. No distracting video board. No blaring pop or hip-hop music. No commercialization. Just the purity of the game of football. I'll never forget this: Sometime in the third quarter, during a television time-out, my father turned to me and said, "You've now experienced what I did so many times in the late Forties in Kenan Stadium. This is what keeps my love for the game alive."
Send your questions about Tar Heel football to Lee Pace at leepace@nc.rr.com. Please include your first and last names and hometown. Individual replies are not possible because of volume of mail received, and names of recruiting prospects and commitments cannot be published on a school-sponsored site until the national signing day in February . The Q&A column will appear each Friday during the season.
