GoHeels Exclusive: Tuesday Practice Notebook
August 15, 2018 | Football, Featured Writers
By Pat James, GoHeels.com
For the first time since Saturday's intrasquad scrimmage, North Carolina's first of the fall, Larry Fedora and a few players met with reporters after Tuesday's practice.
Here are four notes from the availability:
Scrimmage takeaways
Fedora said he saw "a lot of really good things" during Saturday's scrimmage. He didn't go too in depth on what impressed him. But he listed the names of a few players who stood out.
"J.K. Britt had an exceptional scrimmage," Fedora said. "You had guys like Anthony Ratliff (-Williams), who is going to make plays in every scrimmage that we have. You had Antonio Williams and Javonte Williams, who really had big scrimmages.Â
"Defensively, I thought you saw things from Cole (Holcomb) that you would expect to see from him. And then John Smith really did some nice things."
Fedora said the freshmen also showed some flashes of their talent. Still, it will take more time for  Fedora and the coaching staff to gain a greater understanding of what the freshmen's roles might be this season.
"You can start getting a feel, especially with your older guys," Fedora said. "Your younger guys, not in one scrimmage. You've still got young guys who don't realize they're moving slow because they're thinking on the play. They're trying to think about what they've got to do, and when they look at it on film, they go, 'Oh, wow, I was moving slow.'Â
"But that's why we're doing it. The more reps we can get for them, the better they'll be."
'Really good competition'
After losing 114 career starts, UNC's offensive line appears to be rounding into shape, with Charlie Heck, Jay-Jay McCargo, Nick Polino and William Sweet manning four of the five starting spots. But the battle at right guard is still ongoing.
"Both those guys, Billy Ross and William Barnes, are fighting it out right now," Fedora said. "So it's been really good competition between those two guys."
Fedora was asked multiple questions about Barnes, the No. 5 offensive tackle and No. 45 overall player in the country according to 247Sports composite. He said Barnes is still making some mistakes. But he's pleased that those blunders are occurring with Barnes practicing at full speed.
"It's hard for a true freshman to play on the offensive line at this level," Fedora said. "I mean, it's really hard. So I've got to give William a lot of credit for his preparation."
Elliott's mindset
After Fedora announced Nathan Elliott as the starting quarterback for the Tar Heels' season opener at California on Sept. 1, Elliott said last Monday that he'd still approach practices the same as he would if he wasn't the starter.
Eight days later, Elliott reiterated that same message.
"Not much has changed," Elliott said. "I'm coming out to practice to be the best I can be, to be the best version of Nathan Elliott that I can be, and also to come out here to push my teammates to be the best they can be, because that's ultimately what matters. We want to win games, and we've got to do that as a team."
'The safety blanket'
Perhaps no player has been asked about more since the start of camp than Anthony Ratliff-Williams. But Monday was the first time through 10 practices that Elliott spoke about the player who figures to be his go-to receiver.
"That's kind of like the safety blanket," Elliott said. "If I'm in trouble, I've got pressure, that's where I've got to go. He's doing a great job, not just when he's getting the ball but when he's not getting the ball. He's going to attract people regardless.Â
"He's a great player, a great teammate, and he's been doing a great job. I'm really happy for him."
