James Madison Game Guide

August 30, 2007 | Football

By: UNC Athletic Communications

Aug. 30, 2007

By Lauren Brownlow

Every Thursday, check TarHeelBlue.com for the latest edition of the Game Guide, which provides all the information you need to get ready for gameday.

The Basics

Carolina will open both the Butch Davis era and the 2007 season in front of a sellout crowd at Kenan Stadium Saturday night against one of the stronger Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) programs, James Madison. Carolina is 76-36-4 all-time in season-openers, but since 1998 it has won just two, most recently a 49-38 win over another FCS school, William and Mary. On Saturday, Carolina will have faced three FCS schools in the last four years, the third being Furman who the Tar Heels edged last season, 45-42.

Game Time: James Madison at North Carolina, 6:05, ESPN 360

Carolina's game notes can be found here and James Madison's official football site is here.

Last Time: This will be the first meeting between Carolina and James Madison.

Gameday Weather: Check the local weather forecast before heading for the game.

Injury Report: Junior offensive lineman Ben Lemming's career was ended by a nagging right shoulder injury that he has had two surgeries on. Junior offensive tackle Wyatt Hicks has been plagued by persistent knee problems and his career at Carolina is also over. Senior defensive lineman Kyndraus Guy is still working his way back from a knee injury suffered last season but is expected to play.

Radio Coverage: Tar Heel Sports Network coverage begins at 5:00. The radio broadcast is also available on XM Channel 192 at 6:00. Since it's a home game, the Tar Heel Sports Network broadcast can be heard on XM.

TV/Internet Coverage: The game will be shown on ESPN 360.

Game week TV/radio coverage: The Butch Davis Radio Show will be broadcast live from the Top of the Hill restaurant on Franklin Street every Thursday at 7:00. Inside the Huddle with Butch Davis airs Saturday morning at 9 a.m. on FOX Sports, 10 a.m. on MASN and 11 a.m. on WTVD in the Triangle. The Tar Heel Rewind show featuring highlights of the previous week's games will air Tuesday's at 7 p.m. and Thursday's at 8 p.m. in the Triangle and Fayetteville.

Storylines

A new-look offense: The starting offense includes some familiar faces like wide receivers Hakeem Nicks and Brandon Tate, fullback Bobby Rome, and much of the offensive line. However, this is an offense led by a new quarterback in redshirt freshman T.J. Yates, a new running back in sophomore Richie Rich and a new offensive coordinator in John Shoop. The offense has just five starters returning and one of those is former quarterback turned wide receiver Joe Dailey. Three of the other starters (junior right guard Calvin Darity, senior center Scott Lenahan and junior right tackle Garrett Reynolds) will anchor one of the most experienced and talented units on the team.

However, sophomore offensive lineman Kyle Jolly (left tackle), who played largely on special teams last season, will face the precarious task of protecting the blind side of quarterback T.J. Yates. Sophomore left guard Aaron Stahl fills out the rest of the offensive line.

The offensive line returns to block for a running game that had both good and bad moments last season as the now-departed Ronnie McGill took on most of the work load and the Carolina rushing attack finished ninth in the league with just 113.3 yards per game. Starting fullback Bobby Rome does have some rushing experience with five runs for 11 yards and starting tailback Richie Rich fumbled his only carry last season, but this is a talented group that has worked hard to improve. With freshmen like Johnny White and Anthony Elzy behind Rich at running back, much is still unknown about who will eventually emerge as the starter.

"I would like to not have to play running back by committee. I'd like to have guys that are in the game and we fully have total confidence that they can go in and execute everything - that they can do well in the running game and in the protections and run routes and do all the things that we need them to do as a running back. So from that standpoint it's just more of an untested group of guys that I think that we'll find an awful lot will reveal itself this Saturday," Davis said.

Davis does not intend to simply alternate a new running back for each possession because he wants to give each one a chance to get used to the flow of the game, but he says at least two and probably three running backs will get significant time to show what they can do on Saturday.

In a Butch Davis offense the h-back and tight end take on a new importance. H-back Zack Pianalto and tight end Richard Quinn should both figure in to the offense; Pianalto had three catches for 16 yards in the spring game while Quinn had one catch for nine yards.

The wide receivers are a talented, mostly experienced unit that will start last year's standout Hakeem Nicks on one side and the speedy junior Brandon Tate on the other. Brooks Foster, Kenton Thornton and former quarterback Dailey fill out the rest of the depth chart. But receivers like Tate and Foster need to take the next step to provide effective complements to Nicks. Davis believes they have taken a step towards that.

"I'd heard so much about Hakeem Nicks: talented freshman, great stats last year, but we struggled so poorly in the passing game in the first couple of weeks of spring practice (that) we were starting to wonder, will we have anybody emerge to be a great complement to him? Now we don't consider it as somebody that's a complement. Now we're looking at guys that have great chances and opportunities to make plays," Davis said. "Brooks Foster has had an excellent training camp, as has Brandon Tate and Kenton Thornton. So we feel real comfortable. I would not be surprised if we don't play as many as five wide receivers in the ball game and maybe even six."

An inexperienced defense: While the defensive line has improved significantly in terms of both talent and experience, just four defensive starters return, two on the defensive line. Of the 18 other defensive lettermen returning, 14 are listed on the two-deep depth chart and just five are listed as starters.

The standouts to the new starting group returning from last season are E.J. Wilson, who managed 3.0 tackles for loss and 2.0 sacks; and Chase Rice, who ranked eighth on the team in total tackles with 31 and added two tackles for loss, one sack and one pass defended. Defensive tackle Tavares Brown had just four tackles last season and linebacker Wesley Flagg had just nine, largely in special teams play. Kendric Williams did not play a defensive snap last season at cornerback but excelled on special teams. Of Carolina's ten forced fumbles, one was by wide receiver Brooks Foster after a turnover and of the other nine, five were by returning players. Graduated safety Kareen Taylor had five of Carolina's seven interceptions last season. Of 28 passes defended, 13 were by returning players and just eight were by players likely to start.

Perhaps the most inexperienced position group on defense is the secondary. Junior Trimane Goddard leads the group in experience, but sat out last year on a medical redshirt after breaking his foot for the second time. His backups are redshirt freshman Shaun Draughn and true freshman Matt Merletti. Redshirt freshman Deunta Williams will be the starter at free safety and true freshman Da'Norris Searcy will be his backup. Redshirt freshman Kendric Burney and Kendric Williams will get some of their first action at cornerback. Williams is backed up by sophomore Jermaine Strong and true freshman Charles Brown while Burney is backed up by sophomore Jordan Hemby.

According to Davis, the buzz word for such a young defensive group has been "discipline." The young players have to avoid abandoning assignments and trying to make the big play, putting their teammates in a precarious position.

"Every single guy has got a responsibility and you've got to do your job. You cannot try to be above and beyond the call of duty. It's like a mad dog in a meat house. You have guys frothing at the bit to run and try to go make a play, and all of a sudden they forget that they're the guy that's responsible for contain or they're responsible for a reverse. But it will come. I have confidence in our coaching staff and I have confidence in our players that they understand how important it is to be disciplined, how important it is to take care of your responsibilities," Davis said. "Fortunately, there is some leadership on that defense. There is somebody in each one particular area that hopefully can keep reminding his position group: `Do your job. Be disciplined about it, and then certainly run and fly to the football after you've done your job.'"

As the leader of the secondary, Trimane Goddard remembers what it was like when he started his first game and says that it took him about a possession to get the adrenaline out of his system.

"In my first start, I was nervous the first couple of plays just from not being out there and not ever starting a college game, but once the game started going I just let the game come to me and played my game. The more you feel comfortable in what you doing, the better you are. If you aren't prepared, of course you're going to be a lot more nervous and make a lot more mistakes," Goddard said. "We want to stay loose but not too loose and keep them focused, but at the same time, when they're on the field we don't want them always trying to get the big play or those types of things where they leave their other teammates out to dry. So we just want them to play their technique and just let the game come to them, do what they're supposed to and once that happens, good things start happening."

Special teams: This will be the first season in college football in which the kickoffs are moved back from the 35-yard line to the 30-yard line. Carolina's dynamic return man Brandon Tate and the rest of Carolina's special teams see it as an opportunity for Tate to do more this season, but the game against James Madison will also feature another dynamic return man. The Dukes' L.C. Baker led James Madison's kickoff return unit to a No. 1 ranking in the country in Division I-AA with 27.1 yards per return. According to Davis, this game will be one that fans of special teams will enjoy quite a bit as the new rule will make two already dangerous return men even more dangerous.

"It doesn't sound like a significant thing until you think that, okay, now you're starting at the 34 or 35-yard line. One first down and now all of a sudden the opponent is potentially in four-down territory out or near midfield," Davis said. "It will put a premium on guys like Connor (Barth), the kickers and their ability to be able to kick the ball and hang the ball deep and drive it as deep as they possibly can. Teams that have returners and spend a lot of time on it, they're going to have some advantages. We would suspect during the course of the season that Brandon Tate's opportunities to put his hands on the ball should significantly go up."

Last season, Carolina's kickoff coverage unit was one of its bright spots, finishing the season ranked 14th in the country and second in the league behind Virginia Tech with a net average of 43.3 yards per kickoff. This season's kickoff coverage unit looks to pick up where the last one left off, but with the five-yard change in kickoffs and a rash of freshmen on the team, inexperience figures to play a role. The team has yet to actually tackle a ball carrier or run a kickoff at full speed to avoid injuries, and the kickoff coverage unit will need to be on its toes.

"We've emphasized a great deal about coverage, about lane responsibilities, about making sure you put the net over the guy that's got the ball, but when the adrenaline starts pumping and there are 60,000 people in the stands, I just hope that nobody short-circuits," Davis said.

Brandon Tate figures to pick up where he left off last season as a dynamic kickoff returner, leading a Carolina kickoff return unit that averaged 22.1 yards per return (sixth in the ACC, 29th in the country) and led the league in kickoffs returned for touchdowns with two (both by Tate), one of just five ACC teams to have at least one and the only ACC team to have more than one. Carolina also ranked third in punt return yardage with 10.1 per return, one of only three ACC teams to average over 10 yards. Carolina also returned a punt for a touchdown, the only ACC team to return both a kickoff and a punt for a touchdown last season.

Despite those bright spots, Carolina ranked 11th in the league in punting with 34.3 net yards per punt. David Wooldridge averaged 41.1 yards per punt last season, good for eighth in the ACC, but the return unit allowed an average of 3.7 yards per return, 10th in the league. Carolina was one of only five ACC teams to allow more than three yards per punt return and one of only three teams that failed to net over 35 yards a punt.

Terrence Brown, the junior transfer from Fresno City College, could remedy some of Carolina's punt problems. He averaged 39 yards a punt in both seasons at Fresno City College and so far, he has impressed the coaching staff. "We were so fortunate to find Terrence Brown. Not only does it help you field position-wise, set the table and certainly potentially take big play opportunities away from another team, and him playing in college last year and having the experience of actually being in games, to be able to go out there and kick under pressure was a big part of someone coming in," Davis said. "He's got a great sense of clock in his mind as to how quick to speed the tempo up and get the ball kicked, so that part of it has been very good." Connor Barth is riding a streak of 11 straight made field goals dating back to the 2005 season, including making 10 of 10 and leading the league in field-goal accuracy last season. Barth was the only kicker in the country with a 1.000 field goal percentage. He made eight of his last ten field goals of the 2005 season and since the middle of that season, he has made 18 of 20.

However, Barth had just five touchbacks in 22 kickoff attempts in the first seven games of the season and appeared to find his stride towards the end, netting 12 touchbacks out of 24 kickoffs. Barth has been working in the off-season and preparing to kick off from the new distance, but the reason the kickoff unit did so well last season was at least partly due to Barth's hang time and directional kicking abilities.

At The Game

Listening to the Tar Heel Sports Network at the game: WCHL 1360 is the local affiliate.

Parking/construction update: For the latest information, click here.

Pregame activities: Tar Heel Town will open at 3:00 on Saturday. Besides the usual activities, this year Chapel Hill Sportswear will be stationed in Tar Heel Town for the first time to sell all kinds of Carolina merchandise. The Old Well Walk will be at 3:45 and the Marching Tar Heels will perform on the steps of Wilson Library at 5:00 before heading to the stadium. Then at 5:15, start making your way to Kenan Stadium and make sure you're in your seats early. For more information, see the new Fan Guide on TarHeelBlue.com.

Postgame activities: See the Fan Guide on TarHeelBlue.com for the latest information on postgame parking and activities.

Watching At Home

Turn down the sound: If you're watching at home while listening to the radio or over the computer via Carolina All-Access, there will inevitably be some delay. For the reason - and a possible solution - click here.

A full list of THSN affiliates can be found here.

ESPN 360 coverage: The game will be available on ESPN 360, which is an Internet multimedia player that is free to those who get high-speed broadband Internet access from an ESPN-affiliated provider. For more information and to see if your ISP provider carries ESPN 360, click here.

Names To Know

T.J. Yates: All eyes will be on T.J. Yates, the redshirt freshman who will be the starting quarterback for the season-opener, on Saturday. He was named the starter on August 16th, and Coach Davis says that it hasn't made the even-keeled Yates complacent. In fact, if anything, it has motivated him even more.

"T.J.'s handled it very well. It was well-received by the team, but him personally it lit a little bit more of a spark under him. `Now I am the guy.' There is a certain added responsibility that goes along with being named the starter - studying film, staying after practice, watching, working individual routes with certain guys. I think that he's handled it extremely well," Davis said.

Last year's passing game averaged just 179.7 yards per game, good for ninth in the ACC. But Carolina ranked 11th in pass efficiency, completing just 50.8% of all passes and throwing 18 interceptions, worst in the ACC. Joe Dailey and Cam Sexton combined to throw just 11 touchdown passes.

Yates has the fortune of playing behind a largely-intact offensive line that allowed just 22 sacks last season, fourth in the ACC. However, Yates has the ability to scramble when necessary and has shown the ability to make good decisions in practice under pressure. The popular perception Yates was chosen for making the fewest mistakes. However, Brandon Tate says that Yates is not as conservative as people might think.

"T.J. Yates, he's the quarterback that likes to take chances because he trusts his receivers. Some quarterbacks are scared of throwing the deep ball, but T.J. doesn't care. He'll throw the deep ball and take a chance because he knows that the receivers are pretty much going to come down with the catch," Tate said.

Yates will be the fourth new quarterback to start on opening day for Carolina in the last four years. With freshman standpoint Mike Paulus and last year's part-time starter Cam Sexton waiting in the wings, it is not yet known if this move will provide stability at a position that has had anything but in recent years.

Kendric Williams: Williams, better known as "T-37" because of his special teams work last season, is one of the few seniors on the team. However, he will likely be making his first career start and playing his first career snap on defense. The former walk-on recently did enough to earn a scholarship this fall and has impressed the coaching staff so much that he has basically held his spot atop the depth chart at one of the cornerback spots throughout all of camp.

He's a great success story but he's also a very good player. In fact, some players say he is the fastest player on the field with pads on. However, he is not only learning a completely new defensive system but will also be playing his first football game.

Brandon Tate: Tate finished last season ranked sixth in the league in kick return average with 23.7 yards per return and was the only returner to have two touchdowns. He ranked third in punt return average, netting 9.7 yards per return and was one of only three returners ranked in the top 10 to have a punt return for a touchdown. Tate is one of only nine players in NCAA history to return a kickoff and a punt for a touchdown in the same game and it came against Duke last season.

Tate spent quite a bit of time in the off-season working on everything from his route-running to his synchronization with the quarterbacks and even his conditioning. Tate said he often found himself exhausted combining his return duties with wide receiver duties in the same game, so he would run hard for 20-25 minutes at a time on the treadmill to help pick up his endurance. After dropping a few passes last season, he and his teammates now feel comfortable in his ability to get the ball and make things happen with his speed.

"That was one of his problems in the past, but you hardly ever see him drop a pass in practice. He's making circus catches and everything, so I think he's starting to bring all his skills together. In the summer and in the off-season, he stayed out there with the quarterbacks to work on route running, catching balls and those types of things," Goddard said.

Trimane Goddard: The junior free safety has just six career starts though it seems like he's more experienced than that. In his sophomore season in 2005, he played in all 11 games, starting in six and had a team-best three interceptions and added 53 tackles, five passes defended and one fumble recovery.

Last season Carolina's defense forced 17 turnovers and just seven interceptions, both of which were the lowest ACC totals. Goddard will need to do his part to force turnovers and judging by his nose for the ball, he might be the catalyst to do just that.

"He's got great instincts. I know he's got a nose for the football. One of the things that our coaching staff defensively is doing is that every single practice, they're making our defensive players aware of good plays, either big-play opportunities or those that they actually were able to pull off - whether it's sacks, fumbles, strips, interceptions. We just call it participation, which is basically what it is. Trimane is always one of those guys that at the end of practice, he's got 6-10 really classic participations. He's got a nose for the ball so he's around it," Davis said.

Goddard's presence was sorely missed last season and he will play an invaluable role in leading a particularly young secondary this season.

Eugene Holloman: Holloman is a 5-11, 170-pound senior tailback who is the returning starter at tailback for the Dukes. He played two years at Highland (Kan.) Community College before enrolling at James Madison as a junior, and after just one season starting at tailback he ranks 22nd on James Madison's career rushing yards list with 1,085. He managed that rushing total despite playing in only 10 out of 12 games and starting just eight. He led the team in rushing yards, carries and rushing touchdowns (eight) and added a receiving touchdown. He was 21st nationally in rushing yards per game, made first team All A-10 and had six 100-yard games, including a 171-yard game, last season. He had seven runs of 25 yards or longer and five of 50 or more, including a long of 80 yards. He led the team in all-purpose yards with 1,207.

Carolina's run defense ranked dead last in the league last season, and an improved defensive line will gets its first early test in stopping Holloman.

Rodney Landers: In limited action as a quarterback in his first two seasons, Landers completed nine of just 13 passes and one touchdown, but has rushed 49 times for 434 yards and three touchdowns. He's the ultimate triple threat - against Northeastern last season, Landers ran six times for a season-best 59 yards, caught a 10-yard pass and completed his only two passes for 12 yards.

Landers adds another rushing threat to Holloman. Whether or not the defense can effectively stop Landers and the rest of the Dukes' offense will be a good way to measure how much this defense has improved from last season.

L.C. Baker: A senior wide receiver who stands just 5 feet, 7 inches tall and weighs just 155 pounds, he presents a formidable threat as a wide receiver and a kickoff and punt returner. He is a two-year returning starter and led the team last season in catches, receiving yards (631), touchdown catches (eight). He ranked No. 2 in all-purpose yards with 1,014 and averaged 84.5 a game. He was a first-team All-Atlantic 10 punt returner and second-team wide receiver last season. In 2005, he started the first eight games and missed the last three with injuries, but still managed to return two punts for touchdowns, tying a James Madison single-season record. At Villanova last year, he had five catches for 37 yards and returned four punts for 100 yards, including a 56-yard return.

Containing an explosive return man would keep momentum going for a solid Carolina kickoff coverage unit and containing Baker as a wide receiver is a task that could give one of the new cornerbacks quite a bit of confidence headed into the rest of the schedule.

Lauren Brownlow is the managing editor of Tar Heel Monthly.