University of North Carolina Athletics
CAR-O-LINES: Nicks Could Be Next Great Carolina Receiver
November 9, 2006 | Football
Nov. 9, 2006
by Rick Brewer, SID Emeritus
The press box at Notre Dame Stadium last Saturday was buzzing all day as scores from across the country were announced.
First there was Northwestern's 21-7 win over Iowa. Then attention was turned to Michigan where 3-6 Ball State, a five-touchdown underdog, was battling Michigan to the wire. The Cardinals trailed by just one possession, 34-16, with less than three minutes left. Ball State had moved inside the Wolverine 10-yard line, but the Michigan defense finally held.
Then a game filled with big plays began at Notre Dame Stadium. A 37-yard pass from Brady Quinn to Jeff Samardzija highlighted an opening Irish touchdown drive.
Two possessions later Joe Dailey drove Carolina 80 yards to tie the game. Jesse Holley had the touchdown reception. But, the big plays on the drive were a 21-yard catch by freshman Hakeem Nicks and Ronnie McGill's 35-yard run.
Meanwhile Minnesota was pounding favored Indiana, 63-26, and Florida survived a late rally at Vanderbilt, 25-19. It was that kind of Saturday, an afternoon which again was proving how more unpredictable and exciting the college game is than the professional one.
Kentucky upset Georgia and a 2-8 Mississippi State team won at Alabama. Maryland defeated Clemson on the final play of the game and top-ranked Ohio State struggled past Illinois, 17-10.
However, the score that interested Carolina the most would not come until late in the evening. That was Georgia Tech's 31-23 win at N.C. State.
It was again the Calvin Johnson show for the Yellow Jackets as the 6-5, 245-pound wide receiver caught nine passes for 168 yards and two touchdowns. He now has 49 catches for 795 yards and 11 touchdowns this fall.
This weekend the Tar Heels face the challenge of dealing with him and the rest of the Jackets in Kenan Stadium. Other than second-ranked Michigan, Notre Dame officials said Tech was the best team they had played this season.
Last Saturday on a national stage at South Bend, another wide receiver had a breakout performance. Nicks, a 6-1, 210-pound freshman from Charlotte had six catches for 171 yards. That included scoring receptions of 72 and 13 yards. He broke the school's freshman record for reception yardage in a game. Both his touchdown catches came in the third quarter and helped Carolina hang in the game.
Although ranked in the Top 10, this doesn't seem to be a really great Notre Dame team. But any time an opponent can keep things close in South Bend, it's an accomplishment. That's especially true when you're facing a quarterback who longtime Irish observers feel is the best in school history.
Making big plays in big games is nothing new for Nicks. Last year he had eight catches for 205 yards and two touchdowns in the state's 4-A high school championship game. He was the game's MVP as Charlotte Independence won its 92nd straight game.
He was the top high school receiver in the state with 93 receptions for 1,819 yards and 20 touchdowns.
This season he has 28 catches in eight games for 507 yards and three touchdowns. An injury kept him out of the South Florida game. He's averaging 18.1 yards a catch. That's the best figure of any ACC player who has at least 25 catches.
Earlier this fall Nicks had three catches for 84 yards against Wake Forest, including one for 44 yards. He had catches of 40 yards at Clemson and 37 yards at Miami. He tied the school single-game record for freshmen with seven receptions against Virginia Tech.
Nicks is the prototype receiver--tremendous speed, great hands, the strength to break tackles and the elusiveness to avoid them. He only figures to get better in the next three years with work in Carolina's strength and conditioning program.
Johnson is regarded by most people as the top wideout in the entire country. No one has been able to shut him down yet. Carolina needs to come up with some way to contain him as much as possible. Last season he had six catches for 116 yards against the Tar Heels in Tech's 27-21 win at Atlanta.
Over the years Carolina has faced some of the best wide receivers in the country. They include players like Antonio Bryant of Pittsburgh, Peter Warrick of Florida State, Florida's Carlos Alvarez, Torry Holt of N. State, Duke's Clarkston Hines, Wendell Davis of LSU, Johnnie Morton of Southern Cal and Anthony Carter of Michigan. That's a quick list of those who come to mind immediately.
Just last week Jeff Samardzija had six catches for 177 yards, including one for 46 yards and a touchdown.. That tied the Irish career record for touchdown receptions.
However, none of those players had the physical skills of Johnson. Teams have to pay so much attention to him that the rest of the Yellow Jacket attack becomes even more dangerous. Tech would be a good offensive team without Johnson. Quarterback Reggie Ball, tailback Tashard Choice and wideout James Johnson are three of the best players in the ACC. But, Tech has Johnson and thus one of the best offenses in the South.
Carolina has had defensive problems much of the year. However, the Tar Heels put a lot of pressure on Notre Dame's Brady Quinn last week. He still threw for 346 yards, but a lot of that was on the run. Carolina must hope to put even more pressure on Ball today. Even that causes a problem--a scrambling quarterback allows a player like Johnson the time to find open holes in the secondary.
That's what often happened with Notre Dame receivers last week.
In order to pull a major upset, Carolina must get the type of offensive performance it did in South Bend. Dailey had his best game of the year. Holley has been a keyreceiver all year. Now Nicks is developing into a star.
Johnson may be the best receiver on the field Saturday. But, it appears the Tar Heels have a standout for the future.
