anna hickey seems confident (our old friend jp says she's only respected because she's a woman so nice to know he's a misogynistic loser). still probably clemson but i had even forgotten he existed until don posted that
Matthew Flint and Tre Shaw are both hanging it up, had really high hopes for both of them initially Also it appears that Triston Miller is opting out of whatever season may be played, rumor is his brother died from covid
who wants to take a wild guess what jalek was kicked out of school for Spoiler https://247sports.com/Article/UNC-b...n-suspension-Raymond-Felton-nephew-149952641/
Spoiler CHAPEL HILL, N.C. --- It was all business for North Carolina head coach Mack Brown on Thursday afternoon as he hopped on a Zoom press conference call with the media shortly after the first day of training camp concluded. Brown kept his answers relatively short and focused the discussion on football, building depth, and UNC's 2020 schedule. Heading into the second season of his second tenure at UNC, Brown, like all of college football, is preparing for a season and a training camp that is unlike any other in history. With Carolina's schedule now out, outside of an unknown non-conference opponent for Sept. 19 in Chapel Hill, and safety and procedures in place after a 2020 coronavirus summer, the attention now turns more to football. Below are notes and takeaways from the football side of things from Brown's press conference and the first day of UNC's preseason training camp. - UNC only has four days of true preseason camp before classes start on Monday, Aug. 10. Starting Monday the Tar Heels move to 20 hours per week, just like a normal practice week. - Brown likes that UNC starts at home for the first two weeks of the season to 'kind of get settled.' - Offensive lineman "Asim Richards is 320-pounds and looks great and hasn't lost a step of quickness... He's been very impressive over the last couple of weeks with his quickness and his footwork and the things that he can do." - Offensive guard "(Joshua) Ezeudu continues to get better. We are excited about him because he has done everything right for us. He needs to be a super player, not a good player." - Richards is slotted in at left tackle. Ezeudu is a guard -- presumably right guard -- with Marcus McKethan locking down the left guard spot. - Offensive tackle Jordan Tucker is in better shape and is more flexible. - Brown says that senior linebacker Tyrone Hopper really stands out to him over the last few weeks. "He can really run and he is bigger and he is stronger. This is the first time he has been really healthy in a long time. I thought he was very impressive today because of his ability to rush the passer and drop (into coverage), so he gives us a lot of flexibility in the defense." - Linebacker Khadry Jackson is maybe 228 or 230 pounds and moves well and really looks good. - Linebacker Eugene Asante is 219 pounds. "So he is getting on that weight that we wanted him to get. And he looks good with that (weight)." - Brown says that they will have a staff meeting to discuss what they saw from the freshman after the first day of training camp - Desmond Evans, Kaimon Rucker, Chris Collins, Tyrone Hopper, and Tomon Fox are all working with the outside linebackers (Evans is listed at defensive line on UNC's roster). -Early impression on team leaders from Brown: Defensive backs Patrice Rene and Myles Wolfolk on defense and quarterback Sam Howell and running back Michael Carter on offense. Inside linebacker Chazz Surratt will also be more vocal this season and outside linebacker Tomon Fox is a player that lot of teammates look up too. - Brown says they may have to cross-train some players at multiple positions to build depth in case of positive COVID-19 tests. - A lot of mentions of 247Sports Composite four-star Desmond Evans in Thursday's press conference. It appears like Evans will have a good chance to play early in 2020. - Brown says that preparing for Syracuse includes studying tape on its new defensive coordinator Tony White, who brings a complicated blitz scheme. - In preparing for Florida State, UNC's staff will have to look at the Seminoles' personnel but with Mike Norvell's schemes from Memphis. - Boston College also has a new coach and a new quarterback. "We are a little all over the place with our first two ACC games," Brown said. - Brown says that quarterback Jace Ruder doesn't have much real playing experience. He and (true freshman) Jacolby (Criswell) are getting more reps than the others. Brown says they have to get a backup ready to go. "We are trying to figure out how to play two quarterbacks some," Brown said. "I always like for the quarterback to be able to come out and see what is going on and stand for three plays while someone else goes in. And you always have to have a backup." - The defensive line is where UNC "needs the most help with experience." - On Raymond Vohasek: "We thought he did a really great job in the last three or four games (of 2019). He is quick. He is over 300 pounds. So he has been very impressive." - On Jahlil Taylor: "He has done a really good job for us. He is more of a run stopper right now, first and second down -- we started putting in four pass rushers on third down." - "Xach Gill has been around, has some experience now. He is stronger and bigger." - "Kristian Varner is 300 pounds and had a really good practice session for the bowl game. "We were really impressed coming out of the bowl game." - "Tomari (Fox) loves to play. He competes. He has never griped a minute about whether he is an end or a tackle. He doesn't care. He just wants to play." - Brown wants to have good enough athletes on the defensive line where the players are interchangeable and can play multiple positions. Brown wants them to "all rush the passer and all chase down sweeps and screens and all the things that modern-day offenses are doing."
Agonize with me please, misery loves company early young standouts Spoiler CHAPEL HILL, N.C. --- One week into North Carolina's 2020 training camp, there are many positions that don't have question marks. We know that Sam Howell is the starting quarterback and that Michael Carter and Javonte Williams will split reps at running back. Jordan Tucker and Marcus McKethan are at right tackle and right guard, respectively, while by all accounts Asim Richards is running with the ones at left tackle. One defense, Chazz Surratt and Jeremiah Gemmel are the expected starters at the two inside linebacker spots while we know Tomon Fox is slotted at outside linebacker and will be Carolina's premier pass rusher off the edge. But beyond those mentioned, there are a lot of young players showing flashes and pushing for reps. There are true freshmen turning heads while some returnees are poised for increased playing time. After speaking with a few sources close to the UNC football program, here is what we have heard about standout Carolina personnel after five days of preseason camp. Ja’Quirous Conley Ja’Quirous Conley is the true freshman who has stood out the most so far and is expected to have the biggest impact among the defensive rookies in 2020. His size is the first thing that is striking, listed at 6-0.5, and 210 pounds on UNC's roster, head coach Mack Brown said on Tuesday that Conley is already close to 225-pounds, which aligns with the intel we've received. "Nobody has blocked him yet and he can fly," Brown added. While Conley arrived at UNC as a safety, his size combined with his short-burst quickness and athleticism in the box is the reason why the nickelback position is the best fit for the 247Sports Composite four-star prospect early in his career. "He's a tremendous athlete," Brown said on Tuesday. Conley can do a lot of things that others can't, a source told Inside Carolina. Translation: Conley is a freak. Another note about Conley: He is a big safety at that 225-pounds but yet has only had a month or so in a college strength and conditioning and nutrition program. He is going to get stronger and faster. Desmond Evans, Myles Murphy, Clyde Pinder Jr. The staff feels that Desmond Evans has lived up to his billing so far as a highly touted recruit and top 50 prospect in the 2020 class. One source said the 6-foot-5.75, 245-pound outside linebacker "will be as advertised as he learns" the defense and his position. A source added that when Evans has his cleats and pads on he looks "impressive." The staff is also excited for Myles Murphy and Clyde Pinder Jr. Both prospects are displaying the explosiveness and quickness that you have to have from your defensive linemen. Murphy and Pinder both got the "freak" designation from one source. It remains unclear which of the two will be able to help the most in 2020 and it is important to understand that no matter how physically gifted a player is, it is really hard to contribute as a true freshman on the interior of the line. "All these new high ranked guys have high motors," one source added about the freshmen. "They are not feeling things out and scared to go fast like most freshmen in recent years. They may go the wrong way, but they go fast and hard the wrong way." Eugene Asante and Kaimon Rucker One source told Inside Carolina that sophomore linebacker Eugene Asante is going to be "legit." He has "picked up the schemes a lot more and is so fast." That intel aligns with what many have expected from the former 247Sports Composite four-star coming out of Virginia in the 2019 class. Asante and fellow sophomore Khadry Jackson will back up Surratt and Gemmel and are expected to play a lot more in 2020. One freshman that might surprise people is Kaimon Rucker, a source told Inside Carolina. He is a "smart, good kid with a crazy high motor." Rucker, a 6-foot-1, 244-pound outside linebacker out of Hartwell, Ga. was the No. 1271 ranked player in the 2020 class. Offensive Line On the offensive line, it is freshman Jonathan Adorno who has turned the most heads. The 6-foot-4, 300-pound offensive lineman enrolled in January and has an "edge to him" and a "nasty streak." "We're really excited about Jonathan Adorno," Brown said on Tuesday. "He is playing backup left tackle, and he's playing center, along with Ty Murray." Speaking of Ty Murray, the competition continues at center between Murray and incumbent Brian Anderson. Junior right tackle Jordan Tucker said over the weekend that Anderson has the "experience and intelligence, but Ty's got a nice edge to him. I think it is going to be a great battle."
turned on the tv to catch OT in the '98 game against State, was funny seeing an unknown at the time Peppers jumping around in the pile after the winning TD
Mack basically gives a rundown of the entire team following yesterday's scrimmage: Spoiler CHAPEL HILL, N.C. --- After four days off from Thursday to Sunday due to a pause in all school athletic activity, North Carolina football held a practice on Monday and then its first scrimmage of the 2020 preseason on Tuesday. "It was fun and a lot of our guys are young and haven't even been in the stadium before for a practice like this, so we felt like we got a lot out of it," UNC head coach Mack Brown said on Wednesday afternoon. "It was new and different because you had to think about what COVID is going to do for a ballgame." During the scrimmage, coaches and officials were wearing masks, players sat in chairs and not benches while social distancing when they were off the field. Every player had their own bottle for fluids and were required to wear a mask when they were on the sideline. Brown told his team to expect few fans in the stadium for real games. The Tar Heels were off on Wednesday and will practice again on Thursday. The next scrimmage will be Saturday, which will be the final full scrimmage before UNC begins game preparations for the opener against Syracuse on Sept. 12. In regards to the overall scrimmage, it wasn't rave reviews from Brown, but rather tepid praise and acknowledging a lack of consistency. "Special teams were inconsistent, which is usually expected for a first scrimmage. So we've got to get better in that area. The offense was also inconsistent, there were some big plays, but there were not a lot of long drives. And as you would expect in a first scrimmage, the defense was better and more consistent than the offense," Brown said. Following film review of the scrimmage, Brown was able to highlight a few big plays, which position groups and players stood out, and which ones need more work. Below are UNC scrimmage notes from Brown ... BIG PLAYS FROM TUESDAY'S SCRIMMAGE In UNC’s scrimmage on Tuesday, Brown noted the offense was not as consistent as he would have liked. But that doesn’t mean big plays weren’t made. “We had a long run by Javonte (Williams),” he said. “He looks so good right now. He’s in great shape and he’s always big and tough. They do not like tackling him on those flares and draws. But he bounced the ball outside and showed great speed and went for a long way.” Williams, coming off of a breakout season with 933 yards on the ground and five touchdowns, was put on the All-ACC Preseason Fourth-Team Offense by Athlon Sports. Wide receiver Toe Groves came down with a touchdown catch off a designed fake screen play. Brown said Howell did a good job of finding the junior wide receiver in the end zone. “So there were a lot of great plays like that, that came up,” the Hall of Fame coach said. “I don’t want to act like we didn’t make a first down. It wasn’t that way at all. The offense was just more inconsistent than I would like.” JOSH DOWNS CONTINUES TO IMPRESS By all accounts UNC freshman wide receiver Josh Downs is living up to the hype bestowed upon him as a four-star and top 100-ranked prospect. "Josh Downs is really good," Brown said. "He is going to play and he is going to play a lot. Stephen (Gosnell) has had a sore knee but he caught two or three balls yesterday and did a good job. He is going to be a really good player. And Tylee Craft will end up being a real good player for us, too. But Josh will play in the opening game and he'll probably play a lot. He is a really good player." DEFENSIVE LINE When asked about the defensive line in Tuesday’s scrimmage, Brown immediately brought up Ray Vohasek. The junior has received a lot of praise throughout the preseason and he backed that up in UNC’s first scrimmage. The remaining standouts were Tyrone Hopper, as well as Tomari and Tomon Fox.“Those guys are doing the best job because they’ve all played, they’re experienced now,” Brown said. “Tyrone got hurt so he had not played as much as you’d like for a while, but he’s playing at a high level. The two Fox brothers, they have such a good motor.” The question that remains is depth. Tomon Fox, Aaron Crawford and Jason Strowbridge garnered a large majority of the snaps last season. Brown doesn’t want that to be the case this year. So, the defensive front was constantly rotating in and out in order for all of them to get snaps with the blue team. “Our job now is to see how many plays a Chris Collins, a Kaimon Rucker, a Des Evans can play,” the Tar Heel head coach explained. “We’re getting back to where Jahlil Taylor, who had the shoulder operation in the spring, is starting to play more, so he’d be in that regular rotation. And Kevin Hester has done some good things. “All of those guys right now are playing at a pretty high level, and we just rotated them Tuesday. We didn’t worry about who was out there first. We just said, ‘Go play!’” LINEBACKERS "I think the linebackers and secondary right now might be the strength of our team, which is different than it was this time last year," Brown said. "So we've got great competition from those defensive backs and our wide receivers, so it is really good for us. We are being challenged at a very high level offensively." Veterans Chazz Surratt and Jeremiah Gemmel are expected to start, but based on what Brown has said as well as additional intel from Inside Carolina sources, Khadry Jackson is one young player who has made big strides this preseason. "I'd look up and Eugene Asante is playing really well," Brown said on Wednesday. "So he and Khadry Jackson would be out there with the older blue team and they would be right in the middle of it just playing. So our coaches are doing a good job of looking at a lot of different combinations and not playing just one group." Brown added that he wouldn't be surprised to see Asante and Jackson to be out there with the first-team or "more experienced" defensive line during games this season. CORNERBACKS & SAFETIES Mack Brown said he is very "proud" of what the cornerbacks have done this preseason. "It helps that Trey Morrison can play everywhere... we can put him at corner, nickel, or either safety and he is fine. He's got it and he is very confident," Brown said. "Storm Duck is playing very well. He had a great scrimmage the other day. Kyler McMichael, in his first scrimmage, stepped up. Patrice Rene had his best day because, we forget, that Patrice is not only coming off a knee operation, but he missed last spring, and then he had to miss a lot of rehab time." The depth is there too. "DeAndre Hollins is much improved from last year," Brown added. "You really have six corners that we think can play... we are at a much better spot than where we were." Brown continued on the safeties. "Don Chapman is grown up and looks good. Cam Kelly looks good. Myles Wolfolk, and the only thing that has been wrong with Myles is that it has been tough for him to stay healthy. So we are trying to keep him healthy and let him work some, but not overwork him in practice. And the Gio Biggers is playing better. (Cameron) Roseman-Sinclair, (Bryson) Richardson, we just have more depth. And then you have Ja'Quirous Conley, who is playing nickel on top of that as a freshman, so we're in such a different place right now in the secondary and at linebacker than we were this time last year. And I do think those two places right now have suddenly become a strength of our team." THE SIGNAL CALLERS Last season, Brown and offensive coordinator Phil Longo had to keep their star quarterback between the tackles as much as possible. They couldn’t let him show off his legs for fear of him getting hurt. UNC was without a scholarship quarterback behind Howell, once Jace Ruder broke his leg early in the season. Now, in UNC’s first scrimmage, the 2019 ACC Rookie of the Year is already showing off his scrambling ability. Brown noted Howell has lost some weight, as well, which contributed to his agility in the open. The competition behind Howell is what gives Brown the confidence to allow his starting QB the freedom to run. “Both are doing really well,” he said. “Jace (Ruder) and Jacolby (Criswell) are both competing hard right now. Jefferson Boaz will be redshirted, and that’s what we talked to him about when he came in, unless there are some injuries. But we feel like that competition is really, really good at backup quarterback.” “(Ruder) gets better every day, but we also are very excited about what we see out of Jacolby Criswell," Brown said. During the scrimmage, Howell took all the snaps with the Blue Team, as expected, while Ruder and Criswell alternated with the White and Grey Teams. UNC’S LARGEST OFFENSIVE QUESTION MARK On Wednesday Mack Brown expressed a clear concern about the depth on the offensive line. "Depth is a key, and right now, we’ve got six offensive linemen that we think are ready to go and that’s just not enough,” he explained. “We’d love to have eight; we want 10, but you’d love to have eight. That’s what we’re working on right now is trying to get a couple of more offensive linemen.” The six offensive linemen are Asim Richards, Joshua Ezeudu, Brian Anderson, Marcus McKethan, Jordan Tucker, and Ed Montilus. Brown said UNC played its linemen too much last year and it took a toll. “We’re still looking at backups across the board,” he explained. “We’ve got some guys banged up, some guys that haven’t done as well, yet. Our total key right now would be trying to find depth in the offensive line.” Brown added that redshirt freshman center Ty Murray is among those banged up and announced that junior Billy Ross is transferring. ASIM RICHARDS AND JOSHUA EZEUDU Two of the offensive linemen that stood out in Tuesday's scrimmage were sophomores Asim Richards and Joshua Ezeudu. Richards has taken over as the starting left tackle. After weighing in under 300 pounds at the end of last season, he now is up to 320 pounds by taking advantage of the offseason and changing his body. “Asim’s doing a good job,” Brown said. “He’s very smart. He has no experience at left tackle, so it’s going to be new for him. He’s really working hard on his splits and making sure he steps properly.” Ezeudu, a.k.a. E-Z, is the guy Brown said is doing the best among all of the offensive linemen. He is the starting left guard and playing in a backup role at left tackle, right guard and right tackle. Ed Montilus playing well as the backup left guard allows for offensive line coach Stacey Searels to move Ezeudu around where he is needed the most. THIRD RUNNING BACK? No one player has jumped out and seized the third running back role in UNC's offense behind Michael Carter and Javonte Williams. According to Mack Brown, freshmen Elijah Green and D.J. Jones just aren't ready from a pass protection standpoint. "The young backs are talented and you've got Josh Henderson and you've got British Brooks, who have experience and they know how to block and they know how to pick up blitzes... the biggest adjustment for young backs is learning how to pick up the blitz. So we've still got to work on their pass protection some before we can put them in the games. Both both young backs are talented and we like what we see." SPECIAL TEAMS UNC's punt returner candidates are Dazz Newsome, Josh Downs, and Rontavius Groves. "Josh Downs has great speed and quickness, so I feel like that is a position he might very well jump into this year," Brown said on Wednesday. 13COMMENTS The kick return options are Michael Carter, Rontavius Groves, Josh Downs, and Dazz Newsome. The competition is ongoing at kicker between Noah Ruggles and grad transfer Grayson Atkins. "We have shown great ability, but we haven't shown great consistency across the board in that area as I want us to be," Brown said.
So takeaways from the second scrimmage in a nutshell seem to be that our defense has upgraded considerably in the speed department from last year, has quality depth, but still lagging behind in the pass rush without bringing extra guys. There's talk of Chazz moving to OLB in passing situations to help out there with Asante looking like a more than capable backup in the middle. Offense was sharper, tight ends are improved, Sam's a bit quicker on his feet, still only comfortable with 6 OL at the moment though, Barnes and Murray continue to be hampered by little injuries hurting their development. Also Josh Downs is really good and will be used outside as well as in his natural slot position.
I'll be pretty happy when we get to the point where people have better things to say about UNC than almost beating Clemson
from the pregame notes: * Starting left guard Joshua Ezeudu and backup cornerback DeAndre Hollins are not dressed out. Ezeudu has a heavy wrap on his right knee, but it doesn't appear to be a brace. Awaiting word from UNC on their status. * Ed Montilus is working with the ones at left guard. * First observation is that Furman transfer Grayson Atkins has a big leg. His first attempt from 52 yards out was a towering kick that landed 10 rows deep in the stands. Atkins, a FCS All-American as a junior at Furman, was 7-of-9 on kicks on 40+ yards last year, including a 55-yarder. Both Atkins and Noah Ruggles had enough leg from 55 yards out in warmups, although the difference in trajectory was noticeable as Ruggles has a lower, boring ball flight.
man all of the Mack/UNC love was cheeky and fun last year but now I just feel uncomfortable hearing it, too used to shitting the bed with expectations I guess
3rd and long pass rush doesn't hit, QB scrambles up the gut for the 1st a story as old as time for our defense
well I certainly thought we'd have more than 7 points at the half, but an ugly game where we pulled away late was pretty much what I expected here not bad
marlin popped by on ic with a thread about potential good news coming soon with Skyy Clark could use some recruiting fire on the basketball side
and now Wolfolk is academically ineligible think I'll just log off of ic before something else happens
I am watching our 1999 game against GT. Ronald curry just got injured. I think this Peppers kid might end up being good