The North Carolina Tar Heels were a bad offsides call on an onside kick away from an outside chance at the College Football Playoff. Despite ending the season with a 49-38 loss to Baylor in the Russell Athletic Bowl, the Heels were much better than expected and look to do the same this season.
2015 Season
After a season-opening loss to the South Carolina Gamecocks, North Carolina began to explode offensively. The defensive side of the football has always been the downfall of the Heels. However, having the 9th best offense (40.7 points per game) in the NCAA FBS makes a bad defense fly under-the-radar. The Tar Heels went on to win 11 straight games before giving the Clemson Tigers a scare in the ACC Championship. The disappointment of how that game ended weighed heavy on the players, even into their bowl game. But they know that it is time to wake up the "Sleeping Giant."
Meet the "Sleeping Giant"
Chapel Hill and College Football can expect the same explosive offensive from the Tar Heels. Marquise Williams led this offense last year and broke many records doing so, but with Mitch Trubisky at the helm, the offense could be even more dangerous. Though it's a small sample size, Mitch looked terrific during his play last year. The quarterback completed 40-of-47 passes (85.1% completion percentage) for 555 yards and 6 touchdowns. Trubisky threw no interceptions and even rushed for 101 yards on 16 attempts (6.3 yards per rush) while scoring on the ground 3 times. If Trubisky's athleticism was ever in question, that needs to be put to rest.
Ask the players, they'll tell you that Mitch might even beat Williams in a foot race. A signature Mitch moment from last season was when he stepped in for Williams during the opening drive of the NC State game. Williams had lost his helmet and had to sit out a play, all the momentum had been lost in the drive. Or had it? Mitch came in and on his first play, he fired a five-yard touchdown pass to Quinshad Davis.
While the quarterback spot is in good hands, so is the running back position. Elijah Hood established himself as an elite halfback. Hood looks to be a "Dark Horse" for the Heisman Trophy. Elijah rushed for 1,463 yards (3rd in ACC) on 218 attempts. Meanwhile, he got into the end-zone 17 times for 2nd best in the ACC. Hood's backup, TJ Logan, shares the same explosive talent as Elijah.
They call themselves the "FREAKS" and that is about the only way to describe the receiving core of North Carolina. With the amazing all-purpose talent of Ryan Switzer and twin-towers, Mack Hollins and Bug Howard, there may not be a better receiving core in the country. The 6'5" Howard caught 29 balls for 488 yards and 4 touchdowns. Meanwhile, 6'4" Hollins caught 30 passes for 745 yards and 8 touchdowns.
Hollins could very well be the best wideout in the NCAA, especially with Trubisky as the starting quarterback. Now onto the dual-threat that is Ryan Switzer. Switzer caught 54 passes for 693 yards and 6 touchdowns. He is a swiss-army knife though. Switzer is well on his way to breaking the record for return touchdowns. Last season, he returned 22 punts for 302 yards and 2 touchdowns. Ryan turns heads when he touches the ball.
Despite the obvious weakness of the defense, the Heels are on the rise on that particular side of the ball. Defensive coordinator, Gene Chizik, turned the defense around vastly in one year. It is only up from here. Big defensive returns include Donnie Miles, who led the team in tackles with 128 tackles, and MJ Stewart, who had 4 interceptions. Stewart is a frontrunner for the Ronnie Lott Award that goes to the best defensive back in the country. The Heels had the 43rd best defense in terms of scoring (24.5 points allowed per game) and that is expected to improve.
While many don't consider it important, Nick Weiler has become the best kicker in Chapel Hill in a long time. Weiler never missed an extra point attempt last season. He also went 20-for-23 on field goals for 87% (best in the ACC and 8th in NCAA). Nick's longest field goal made was a 48-yarder.
2016 Schedule
The Tar Heels open up the season by traveling to the Georgia Dome to take on the Georgia Bulldogs on September 3rd. Like many season openers, this game will be a season defining contest. Other tough road games include going to Florida State, Miami, and in-state rival, Duke. Despite having two FCS opponents on the schedule, winning out the regular season could give the Heels another outside shot at the College Football Playoff. Of course they would need to shock Clemson in the ACC Championship game, but anything is possible. The "Sleeping Giant" could be awoken this year with an improved defense. Watch for the Tar Heels to exceed expectations again this season.