University of North Carolina Athletics
GoHeels Exclusive: Monday Notebook
September 23, 2019 | Football, Featured Writers
By Pat James, GoHeels.com
When No. 1 Clemson comes to Chapel Hill on Saturday, it'll mark the first time the consensus reigning national champion has ever visited Kenan Stadium and just the fourth time that North Carolina has ever hosted the AP's top-ranked team.
Mack Brown said his team and the University should be excited about the opportunity of facing off against the Tigers on ABC. But at the same time, he said his players should spend less time worrying about their opponent and instead concentrate on themselves.
"What I do is I focus more on us," said Brown when asked Monday about how he'll approach getting his team up for Saturday's 3:30 p.m. game. "To me, if you focus on Clemson and you focus on (Appalachian State) and you focus on Wake (Forest) every week, you're trying to get a chip-on-the-shoulder deal and this is not a chip-on-the-shoulder school.
"We need to be a great program; we don't need to be a chip-on-the-shoulder program. That's hard to sell here. I didn't come here because we haven't ever been any good, this place should be great."
Here are five more notes from Monday's press conference, which also featured Jay Bateman and Phil Longo:
Second-quarter struggles
Brown has spoken all season about how the Tar Heels need to start games better. But it wasn't until he looked at the numbers that he said he realized how much his team has struggled in second quarters, during which UNC has been outscored 41-13.
"I thought it was even more the first quarter, but it's not," Brown said. "It's the second quarter. We've come out and been pretty even after we make adjustments at halftime and then in the fourth quarter we've scored 45 points to nine. But we seem to always be in a hole and we're digging ourselves out. …
"Our theme is 'be the one.' Well, be the one to make that stop. Be the one to excite them in the second quarter. But we've got so much stuff on us right now, it's hard to pull out the second quarter and say, 'OK, where does this fit in priorities?' Because we've got a big list of stuff we've got to get fixed."
Longo and Bateman were also asked about what's gone wrong in the second quarter.
"Especially offensively, we need a focus for four quarters," Longo said. "We need to play the first quarter the same way we play the second half. This game (against Appalachian State) was different than some of the others in that we're moving the football and we're doing some good things offensively and we turned it over.
"Turning it over blew two of our drives in the first half, particularly in the second quarter. Those are things that we know are important, we can't do and it happened, and it put us behind."
"I think when things have gone bad for us, we haven't responded very well," Bateman said. "I think once we've settled them down and they've got back to playing the way we wanted to play and the way we talk about playing every day, then they've been pretty successful. And I think they've handled some adjustments very well.
"I just think we need to come out and when things go poorly view it as an opportunity instead of a challenge. On defense, we have done a poor job with that, and that's our message. To me, elite defenses, when the ball gets turned over, you go stop them, and we haven't done a great job with that."
Developing the O-line
Entering the Appalachian State game, the Tar Heels' five starting offensive linemen, all underclassmen, had combined for 11 career starts. Jordan Tucker had the most with four. Longo was asked if that's the least experienced line he's ever had for a game.
"Probably," he said. "I didn't go compare it to other years or teams, but we know that, as a staff going in with regards to number of starts and experience and our age and the years our guys are in, it's a process. Just like building the offense or building the team, you're doing that with each unit, too, and I think the key for us is to not lose sight of the process.
"But the good thing in the process is that our guys are working their butts off and we are getting better and we're doing things better that we didn't do well last week or the week before. We've got to keep doing that and eventually those improvements will pay off for us."
Brown agreed that he's seen those improvements.
"We had two sacks we gave up on Saturday, maybe three?," he said. "Still too many, but it was better. We're starting to do a better job and I think the biggest thing is that we are who we are. Every snap that these young guys get, they're going to get better, so hopefully at the end of the year, this offensive line is a whole lot better than it was Saturday."
Looking for fumbles
Through four games, Carolina has forced just one fumble. It didn't recover it, and is currently one of only eight FBS teams that has yet to recover one this season.
"I've never seen that before," Brown said. "That's something we've got to do. It's something we emphasize all the time. We've got to strip the ball loose and get it on the ground. There were two or three on the ground versus Miami and they got them and we didn't get them. So, we've got to strip some balls loose and we've got to get them."
Bateman said one key to forcing fumbles is to be efficient defending the run, which he believes UNC was against App State. By stopping the run, the defense can attack the passing game more, and that can lead to strip sacks. He also emphasized the fundamentals of tackling.
"When you have bad leverage on the football and you lose leverage, the ball doesn't get exposed as much," Bateman said. "We talk to our guys about when the ball's exposed. So, if the ball carrier's got the ball in this hand and I'm coming from this angle, that's where strips and fumbles come from. If you're giving those opportunities up because of poor angles, then yeah, you get less strips of the football."
'Still too many injuries'
Injuries have started to pile up once again for the Tar Heels. With Nick Polino and Patrice Rene, among others, already out, Charlie Heck, Myles Wolfolk and Jace Ruder are currently listed as questionable for the Clemson game.
"There are still too many injuries," Brown said. "We continue to look at why. I think it's because we don't have enough depth and guys are playing too long and these four teams have been very physical. All four games they've all spent a lot of energy and they've all come down to the end.
"We'll keep looking at that. It hurts us short term, and I hate it for the players who can't play. Long term it helps you because you're forcing young guys to go out there and play. They're probably not ready, but it doesn't matter. That's why recruiting is so important to us."
The secondary is one of UNC's thinnest position groups, so if Wolfolk is unable to play Saturday, the team will have to turn to some true freshmen.
"We'll see what the doctors say," said Bateman about Wolfolk. "We put D.J. (Ford) back there against App State and I thought he did well. I think Don Chapman and (Cam'Ron) Kelly are both really talented young guys who we're excited to play and they're going to have to play some. I thought when Cam Kelly went in, he flew around pretty good.
"I love Wolf (Wolfolk). My son's 8 and if you told me my son was going to be Myles Wolfolk when he's 21, I'd sign off on it right now. So, I'm hopeful we'll have him soon."
Scouting Clemson
Each week, Longo said the offense identifies three opposing defenders "schematically or personnel-wise who we want to attack." But that's proved to be a challenge as Carolina has prepared for Clemson.
"There aren't three guys this week," Longo said. "I mean, they're solid. The corners are really good. The safeties are good. The defensive line is different than the D-line that they had. They had those four freaks last year, but they're extremely well-coached.
"They're physical, they pursue well, they have good lateral movement. They squeeze grass. They're going to give you a little bit and squeeze it because they're so athletic. They can be out of position a little bit and change direction and maybe recover a little better than some other teams. That's the benefit of having 11 good athletes out there."
The Tigers possess just as many on the offensive side of the ball.
"I think they're really talented," Bateman said. "I think they're really well-coached. I was at the Broyles Award last year with Tony (Elliott) and Jeff (Scott). I think they're really good football coaches and they've got really talented guys. I think you have to play fundamentally very sound. I think they block you very well, and I think the quarterback (Trevor Lawrence) is, I mean, I haven't seen one better.
"So, I just think you've got to minimize the damage when they get you in a bad play. We talked to our kids about that yesterday. Some teams, when I have a bad call on defense against a certain play, we've got to minimize that. Against them, if you do not minimize it, it's major problems. And I think the teams that have done a good job against them have minimized the damage when they've had a bad (play); a route against a certain coverage or a run against a certain front.
"So, I think that's it. And then I think you've got to do a really, really good job on the edge in coverage, at corner in coverage. They're going to make you play man-to-man. So, we've got to do a really good job when we're playing press man."
When No. 1 Clemson comes to Chapel Hill on Saturday, it'll mark the first time the consensus reigning national champion has ever visited Kenan Stadium and just the fourth time that North Carolina has ever hosted the AP's top-ranked team.
Mack Brown said his team and the University should be excited about the opportunity of facing off against the Tigers on ABC. But at the same time, he said his players should spend less time worrying about their opponent and instead concentrate on themselves.
"What I do is I focus more on us," said Brown when asked Monday about how he'll approach getting his team up for Saturday's 3:30 p.m. game. "To me, if you focus on Clemson and you focus on (Appalachian State) and you focus on Wake (Forest) every week, you're trying to get a chip-on-the-shoulder deal and this is not a chip-on-the-shoulder school.
"We need to be a great program; we don't need to be a chip-on-the-shoulder program. That's hard to sell here. I didn't come here because we haven't ever been any good, this place should be great."
Here are five more notes from Monday's press conference, which also featured Jay Bateman and Phil Longo:
Second-quarter struggles
Brown has spoken all season about how the Tar Heels need to start games better. But it wasn't until he looked at the numbers that he said he realized how much his team has struggled in second quarters, during which UNC has been outscored 41-13.
"I thought it was even more the first quarter, but it's not," Brown said. "It's the second quarter. We've come out and been pretty even after we make adjustments at halftime and then in the fourth quarter we've scored 45 points to nine. But we seem to always be in a hole and we're digging ourselves out. …
"Our theme is 'be the one.' Well, be the one to make that stop. Be the one to excite them in the second quarter. But we've got so much stuff on us right now, it's hard to pull out the second quarter and say, 'OK, where does this fit in priorities?' Because we've got a big list of stuff we've got to get fixed."
Longo and Bateman were also asked about what's gone wrong in the second quarter.
"Especially offensively, we need a focus for four quarters," Longo said. "We need to play the first quarter the same way we play the second half. This game (against Appalachian State) was different than some of the others in that we're moving the football and we're doing some good things offensively and we turned it over.
"Turning it over blew two of our drives in the first half, particularly in the second quarter. Those are things that we know are important, we can't do and it happened, and it put us behind."
"I think when things have gone bad for us, we haven't responded very well," Bateman said. "I think once we've settled them down and they've got back to playing the way we wanted to play and the way we talk about playing every day, then they've been pretty successful. And I think they've handled some adjustments very well.
"I just think we need to come out and when things go poorly view it as an opportunity instead of a challenge. On defense, we have done a poor job with that, and that's our message. To me, elite defenses, when the ball gets turned over, you go stop them, and we haven't done a great job with that."
Developing the O-line
Entering the Appalachian State game, the Tar Heels' five starting offensive linemen, all underclassmen, had combined for 11 career starts. Jordan Tucker had the most with four. Longo was asked if that's the least experienced line he's ever had for a game.
"Probably," he said. "I didn't go compare it to other years or teams, but we know that, as a staff going in with regards to number of starts and experience and our age and the years our guys are in, it's a process. Just like building the offense or building the team, you're doing that with each unit, too, and I think the key for us is to not lose sight of the process.
"But the good thing in the process is that our guys are working their butts off and we are getting better and we're doing things better that we didn't do well last week or the week before. We've got to keep doing that and eventually those improvements will pay off for us."
Brown agreed that he's seen those improvements.
"We had two sacks we gave up on Saturday, maybe three?," he said. "Still too many, but it was better. We're starting to do a better job and I think the biggest thing is that we are who we are. Every snap that these young guys get, they're going to get better, so hopefully at the end of the year, this offensive line is a whole lot better than it was Saturday."
Looking for fumbles
Through four games, Carolina has forced just one fumble. It didn't recover it, and is currently one of only eight FBS teams that has yet to recover one this season.
"I've never seen that before," Brown said. "That's something we've got to do. It's something we emphasize all the time. We've got to strip the ball loose and get it on the ground. There were two or three on the ground versus Miami and they got them and we didn't get them. So, we've got to strip some balls loose and we've got to get them."
Bateman said one key to forcing fumbles is to be efficient defending the run, which he believes UNC was against App State. By stopping the run, the defense can attack the passing game more, and that can lead to strip sacks. He also emphasized the fundamentals of tackling.
"When you have bad leverage on the football and you lose leverage, the ball doesn't get exposed as much," Bateman said. "We talk to our guys about when the ball's exposed. So, if the ball carrier's got the ball in this hand and I'm coming from this angle, that's where strips and fumbles come from. If you're giving those opportunities up because of poor angles, then yeah, you get less strips of the football."
'Still too many injuries'
Injuries have started to pile up once again for the Tar Heels. With Nick Polino and Patrice Rene, among others, already out, Charlie Heck, Myles Wolfolk and Jace Ruder are currently listed as questionable for the Clemson game.
"There are still too many injuries," Brown said. "We continue to look at why. I think it's because we don't have enough depth and guys are playing too long and these four teams have been very physical. All four games they've all spent a lot of energy and they've all come down to the end.
"We'll keep looking at that. It hurts us short term, and I hate it for the players who can't play. Long term it helps you because you're forcing young guys to go out there and play. They're probably not ready, but it doesn't matter. That's why recruiting is so important to us."
The secondary is one of UNC's thinnest position groups, so if Wolfolk is unable to play Saturday, the team will have to turn to some true freshmen.
"We'll see what the doctors say," said Bateman about Wolfolk. "We put D.J. (Ford) back there against App State and I thought he did well. I think Don Chapman and (Cam'Ron) Kelly are both really talented young guys who we're excited to play and they're going to have to play some. I thought when Cam Kelly went in, he flew around pretty good.
"I love Wolf (Wolfolk). My son's 8 and if you told me my son was going to be Myles Wolfolk when he's 21, I'd sign off on it right now. So, I'm hopeful we'll have him soon."
Scouting Clemson
Each week, Longo said the offense identifies three opposing defenders "schematically or personnel-wise who we want to attack." But that's proved to be a challenge as Carolina has prepared for Clemson.
"There aren't three guys this week," Longo said. "I mean, they're solid. The corners are really good. The safeties are good. The defensive line is different than the D-line that they had. They had those four freaks last year, but they're extremely well-coached.
"They're physical, they pursue well, they have good lateral movement. They squeeze grass. They're going to give you a little bit and squeeze it because they're so athletic. They can be out of position a little bit and change direction and maybe recover a little better than some other teams. That's the benefit of having 11 good athletes out there."
The Tigers possess just as many on the offensive side of the ball.
"I think they're really talented," Bateman said. "I think they're really well-coached. I was at the Broyles Award last year with Tony (Elliott) and Jeff (Scott). I think they're really good football coaches and they've got really talented guys. I think you have to play fundamentally very sound. I think they block you very well, and I think the quarterback (Trevor Lawrence) is, I mean, I haven't seen one better.
"So, I just think you've got to minimize the damage when they get you in a bad play. We talked to our kids about that yesterday. Some teams, when I have a bad call on defense against a certain play, we've got to minimize that. Against them, if you do not minimize it, it's major problems. And I think the teams that have done a good job against them have minimized the damage when they've had a bad (play); a route against a certain coverage or a run against a certain front.
"So, I think that's it. And then I think you've got to do a really, really good job on the edge in coverage, at corner in coverage. They're going to make you play man-to-man. So, we've got to do a really good job when we're playing press man."
Players Mentioned
Offensive Line
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Offensive Line
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Defensive Back
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Quarterback
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Offensive Line
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Defensive Back
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