Posted by ESPN.com's Heather Dinich
The Tar Heels have had to deal with an inordinate amount of injuries at key positions this year, but the lack of offense in Butch Davis’ third season is inexcusable. UNC’s defense is one of the best in the country, but it hasn’t been enough to win the games that count. The Tar Heels finished the first half of the season ranked 117th in the nation in total offense, 103rd in passing offense, and 102nd in rushing offense. Running backs Shaun Draughn and Ryan Houston haven’t been able to get anything going behind a patchwork offensive line, and offensive coordinator John Shoop’s hands have been tied by the personnel he has to work with. UNC’s road win over Connecticut and win over East Carolina were deceiving, as is their 4-2 overall record, which includes wins over The Citadel and Georgia Southern. The Tar Heels’ back-to-back losses to Georgia Tech and Virginia put UNC in a serious Coastal Division hole early.
Offensive MVP: Greg Little. He entered the season as the Tar Heel’s most experienced wide receiver with just 24 career catches. He ranks sixth in the league with 4.5 receptions per game and leads the team with 27 catches for 230 yards and one touchdown. He’s been a leader on an offense that has struggled this year, and has helped the younger receivers around him learn quickly.
Defensive MVP: Robert Quinn. Not only is Quinn in the midst of an outstanding season, he has a remarkable story. Quinn underwent emergency brain surgery for a tumor early in his senior season at Fort Dorchester High School. After gaining clearance from his doctors to play again, Quinn came back from surgery to win the state high school heavyweight wrestling championship. Now he leads the ACC and is seventh in the country in tackles for losses (1.83 per game/11.0 total), and is second in the league and seventh in the nation in sacks (1.17 per game/7.0 total). Only Texas A&M’s Von Miller (9) and Connecticut’s Lindsey Witten (8 -- four of which came against North Carolina), have more total sacks than Quinn.
The Tar Heels have had to deal with an inordinate amount of injuries at key positions this year, but the lack of offense in Butch Davis’ third season is inexcusable. UNC’s defense is one of the best in the country, but it hasn’t been enough to win the games that count. The Tar Heels finished the first half of the season ranked 117th in the nation in total offense, 103rd in passing offense, and 102nd in rushing offense. Running backs Shaun Draughn and Ryan Houston haven’t been able to get anything going behind a patchwork offensive line, and offensive coordinator John Shoop’s hands have been tied by the personnel he has to work with. UNC’s road win over Connecticut and win over East Carolina were deceiving, as is their 4-2 overall record, which includes wins over The Citadel and Georgia Southern. The Tar Heels’ back-to-back losses to Georgia Tech and Virginia put UNC in a serious Coastal Division hole early.
Offensive MVP: Greg Little. He entered the season as the Tar Heel’s most experienced wide receiver with just 24 career catches. He ranks sixth in the league with 4.5 receptions per game and leads the team with 27 catches for 230 yards and one touchdown. He’s been a leader on an offense that has struggled this year, and has helped the younger receivers around him learn quickly.
Defensive MVP: Robert Quinn. Not only is Quinn in the midst of an outstanding season, he has a remarkable story. Quinn underwent emergency brain surgery for a tumor early in his senior season at Fort Dorchester High School. After gaining clearance from his doctors to play again, Quinn came back from surgery to win the state high school heavyweight wrestling championship. Now he leads the ACC and is seventh in the country in tackles for losses (1.83 per game/11.0 total), and is second in the league and seventh in the nation in sacks (1.17 per game/7.0 total). Only Texas A&M’s Von Miller (9) and Connecticut’s Lindsey Witten (8 -- four of which came against North Carolina), have more total sacks than Quinn.
Heather Dinich | email
College Football- ESPN.com ACC blogger
- Joined ESPN.com in 2007
- Wrote for The Baltimore Sun
ABOUT THIS BLOG
Heather Dinich
Dinich covered ACC and Big Ten football for five seasons before joining ESPN.com in November 2007. She's an Indiana grad but somehow her favorite day of the week is Saturday.
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