Little hype, big questions for UNC football as kickoff for 2022 season nears
North Carolina’s football season begins in earnest with its appearance at the ACC Kickoff media event Thursday in Charlotte. The Tar Heels are in a much different position than they were at this time a year ago.
Last season, quarterback Sam Howell was billed as a potential Heisman Trophy candidate, and the Heels were a preseason top 10 team. After a disappointing 6-7 record in 2021, Carolina enters this year without any hype and with far more questions lingering.
The public is invited to start to form their own answers when UNC holds its open practice on July 30. Until then, here are a few areas coach Mack Brown will have to address entering the fourth season of his second tenure in Chapel Hill:
What will the Gene Chizik effect be?
Defensive coordinator Gene Chizik begins his second tenure at UNC as he reunites with Brown after a successful stint on his staff at Texas. Chizik served the same position under former Heels coach Larry Fedora from 2015-16.
Chizik is revitalizing a talented, yet underachieving unit that finished 11th in total defense and 12th in scoring defense in the ACC last season.
The good news for Chizik: He’ll have a lot of experience back. Carolina returns nine players who started in its Duke’s Mayo Bowl loss to South Carolina.
The Heels are poised to be particularly effective upfront, where junior defensive tackle Myles Murphy and highly touted freshman Travis Shaw lead a group that could be the strength of the defense.
Last season, the Heels were defined by their tendency to allow opponents to have explosive second quarters. (Virginia, Florida State and Wake Forest all scored 21 points against UNC in the second period.) There was also an inability to get end drives — the Heels ranked 12th in the ACC in opponents’ third-down conversions, allowing a 41.7 percent success rate.
Chizik hopes that by simplifying their scheme, the Heels will be in position to make plays more than they did last season. Carolina also included more live tackling drills this spring than it did last year in an effort to improve.
Who will emerge at QB?
Ever since Sam Howell passed on his remaining eligibility, the question of who would replace him has loomed over the program. Neither third-year sophomore Jacolby Criswell nor second-year freshman Drake Maye staked their claim to the job during spring practice, so the battle will continue when fall camp begins next week.
Brown has used two quarterbacks in the past — if a clear-cut starter doesn’t emerge, the Heels could begin the season that way. He’s also indicated he wants someone separate from the competition.
Regardless of who is under center for Carolina, they’ll have a big void to fill. Howell obliterated the program’s passing records in his three years as a starter. Criswell or Maye will not have many established skill players around them aside from receiver Josh Downs.
Downs set program records last season for catches and yards. Fifth-year senior Antoine Green finished the season strong. Aside from that duo, Carolina will be largely inexperienced on offense.
Could offensive line improve despite losing four veterans?
The New York Giants selected UNC guards Joshua Ezeudu and Marcus McKethan in April’s NFL Draft. McKethan started 37 of his last 38 college games. Jordan Tucker, who started at right tackle, signed as a free agent with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Former walk-on center Quiron Johnson, who was thrust into a starting role for part of last season, announced this week that he’d forgo playing a sixth season. That’s four players who logged a lot of snaps last season for the Heels who have to be replaced.
In addition, Carolina lost offensive line coach Stacey Searels to Georgia just as spring practice began.
It sounds like a complete overhaul upfront, but new offensive line coach Jack Bicknell believes the Heels will have the depth they need to be an effective unit.
Carolina welcomes a pair of experienced transfers in Corey Gaynor, a center from Miami; and Spencer Rolland, who started 20 games at Harvard. And freshman Zach Rice was ranked the No. 1 offensive tackle in the nation by 247Sports.
They’ll join returnees in center Brian Anderson, who is finally healthy after an injury-plagued 2021 season; Ed Montilus, a versatile guard; and tackle Asim Richards, who’s started 24 games the past two seasons, including all 13 games last year.
The Tar Heels offensive line took a lot of the blame for allowing 49 sacks — which ranked last in the ACC last season — when the reality is it wasn’t always their fault. Whatever the case, the Heels know they have to improve in that category, and it begins upfront on a line that will have plenty of new faces.
This story was originally published July 21, 2022 at 5:10 AM with the headline "Little hype, big questions for UNC football as kickoff for 2022 season nears."