Heels D is as good as it gets
In my very brief preview of UNC vs BC I said that when there is a lot at stakes there can be plenty of mistakes (aka turnovers). However there is no way I thought that the turnovers would be in double digit, ten between the two teams. And as I wrote in the preview, who took advantage of those would probably win. North Carolina (8-3, 4-3 in the ACC) scored two touchdowns off of them (and one returned to the one foot line), which gave the Heels the win over Boston College (7-4, 4-3 in the ACC) by the final of 31 to 13. Once again UNC plays the part of the spoiler and in doing so has equaled the amount of games they won last season. All of this is great, but it does leave you thinking about something that can not be overlooked for one second.
How good would this team be if they had an offense that was half as efficient as the defense? A defense that got more passing yards (151) from the Boston College quarterbacks than the Eagles’ receivers did (101 yards). A defense that has scored four touchdowns in the last two games, that has had two players get three interceptions in the past two games (Kendric Burney vs Miami ~ Deunta Williams vs BC), that is just overpowering its opponents in the last four/five games. A defense that allowed just 12 first downs and kept BC to 0 for 13 on third down conversions. We all have to wonder, where is the offense, who should be playing a lot more calmer/relaxed knowing the D can hold the opposition. The answer is that I just don’t know and it has to make you wonder why this is.
Is it the play calling that is hindering the production? Could be, but I do not believe it’s the main reason. Is it the fact that the wide receivers aren’t seasoned veterans and make mistakes? Again, a possibility, but I can not say that is the main cause. So, what then? I have to say that in this game it was the three interceptions that were killers, mostly because it just felt “oh no, not this again“, especially when the score went from 21-0 with 5 minutes left in the first quarter (2 of the scores by the D) to 21 to 13 when the teams headed into the locker rooms at the half. The question now becomes if this team can keep winning the rest of the season (two games) with the defense being so good and the offense being so mediocre (if not worst). The answer to that is that I truly do not know, but we are going to find out soon enough.
I guess this quote by T.J. Yates could sum up the day for his counterparts and himself:
“It was an ugly day for quarterbacks out there,” Yates said.
The big question is can UNC keep the pressure on N.C. State’s qb next week to avenge the beat down from a year ago, when the Wolfpack won 41 to 10 at Chapel Hill. If they can head coach Butch Davis will have surpassed the wins from the `08-`09 season with the bowl game left, and it could also mean that Carolina could have a double digit win season. Something that no one was thinking about a month or so ago. And all of this because of a very good defense that can easily be classified as one of the best in the nation. So the best that we can hope is that UNC keeps playing very well on defense and that the offense, be it Yates, the young wide outs, or anyone else, can play well enough to be a positive and not a negative on the game. By that I mean do not drop the first down catch, or fumble/throw an interception when in scoring distance, or give it away where the opposition is in striking distance to score.
There were a lot of scouts for the bowls at this game, and probably there will be more at the UNC/N.C. State game. While they probably all loved to see what the defensive unit can do, you have to believe that bowl games want to get offensive minded teams into the fold (the neutral fans want to see offense more than defense).It’s going to be interesting to see where Carolina ends up in the bowl game picture, but one thing is for sure, it’s going to be because of the defense! I guess when you look at the last games we can truly say “they are who they were” when it comes to this version of the Carolina football team, a great D and an offense that has problems.
