GoHeels Exclusive: Pool Day

By Pat James, GoHeels.com

Before North Carolina even took the field Sunday for its second-to-last practice of training camp, Nick Polino was suspicious.

At some point since camp commenced, Polino had heard Mack Brown mention there had been times in his head-coaching career when he'd cut a practice short during camp and let his players head to the pool for some downtime. So, with Monday's practice being open to the public, Polino and some of his teammates thought the Tar Heels could potentially enjoy a similar fate Sunday.

For some, that surely started to seem unlikely when Brown told them to line up for a goal-line drill about 45 minutes into Sunday's session. But after just one play, Brown commanded his players to huddle up, at which point he said it was time to go swimming.

"It's really the end of camp and we've worked them really, really hard, we've utilized every minute of every practice," Brown told reporters moments later. "We kept them out there about 45 minutes this morning and called them up and sent them to the pool. So, they're over at the swimming pool right now.

"It's the happiest group of young people I've ever seen in my entire life, I think."

And perhaps the most surprised.

Brown gave no indication throughout the practice, held at Kenan Stadium, that his players would be granted a reprieve from the sweltering heat. "Cool day in Chapel Hill," he said at one point over the Kenan Stadium sound system. "How many guys would love to be out here sweating?" Shortly after, he started chanting "We love heat." To the players' credit, they joined in.

They remained enthusiastic when Brown said it was time for goal-line work, with many of them sprinting toward the end zone near the Kenan Football Center, where the drill was being held. That didn't compare to the celebration that followed Brown's announcement.

"It's been five years and we've never had anything like that," said Polino, a fifth-year senior. "We had a good scrimmage yesterday, came out today and it was hot and we were in full pads. We got our mindset ready to go short yardage and goal line, so it was about to be physical. And then he drops that one on us. The energy picked up a little bit."

As soon as they realized Brown wasn't joking, a majority of the players jumped to their feet and formed a mosh pit in front of their head coach. But not Myles Dorn.

Before the goal-line drill began, the senior had asked a trainer to fetch him some new cleats because the pair on his feet was hot. He had just changed into them when Brown said practice was over, leaving Dorn almost speechless. He still was as he and his teammates rushed to the locker room to change into their pool attire.

"I'm just in awe, honestly," Dorn said. "We always heard the bus is coming, the bus is coming, that we were going to get rewarded for our work. And we just never saw it."

On Sunday, they finally did. And that, Dorn said, further affirmed what he and his teammates already knew – Brown will take care of them.

"We're buying in for Coach," Dorn said. "It's not just players versus coaches. We all feel like we're one. I honestly feel like he feels for us. I think that's the biggest part. There's no separation in the team. We're all one group."

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University of North Carolina Athletics

Players Mentioned

Myles Dorn

Nick Polino

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