North Carolina will play a football game Saturday night before a packed house at Kenan Stadium for the first time in nearly two years when the Tar Heels host Georgia State at 7:30.
UNC is coming off a 17-10 loss at Virginia Tech while the Panthers fell 43-10 at home to Army.
The game will air on the regional sports network.
Here are 5 Keys for Carolina to defeat Georgia State:
Protect Sam
Virginia Tech teed off on UNC quarterback Sam Howell last Friday night sacking him six times and nearly getting a seventh, but instead forced Howell to make an unwise throw that ended up in the Hokies’ hands sealing the game.
Howell was under duress all night. In addition to the sacks and that final, errant play, he was forced to scramble six times and had to get rid of the ball quickly several others.
Georgia State should not pose that kind of an issue for the Tar Heels, but that doesn’t mean keeping Panthers’ hands off Howell isn’t priority number one. The mission is to show improvement in that area (see communication), and the offensive line and running backs can improve in pass pro even against an inferior team.
This is important and can reveal something, especially of the Heels have problems keeping GSU from disrupting and hitting Howell. If that happens, UNC has a major concern on its hands.
Show Aggression
The Tar Heels were punched in the mouth right out of the gate in Blacksburg and it partly cost them the game. Whether or not they were ready to play, the appearance was they weren’t, as Tech whipped the Heels on both lines of scrimmage from the outset. Carolina’s o-line struggled all night, as noted above, though the defensive front, and defense as a whole, turned it around and was much more physical after the first quarter, and especially in the second half.
It doesn’t matter who the opponent is this weekend. UNC must be what UNC thinks it is and can be, which means if the Tar Heels’ mandate is the fly around as the aggressor on defense and pop off helmets, then that must be how they approach this game.
And this shouldn’t be about anger over what happened Friday, games like this are where habits and who you are can be revealed. Disregard what GSU did this past weekend, Carolina must show out in spirit and physicality in all three phases – offense, defense, and special teams – though that mentality is often established on the defensive side of the ball.
Get Off The Field
Virginia Tech ran 32 offensive plays over its first three possessions – 8, 12, and 12. The Hokies scored 14 points and were on their way to another when Trey Morrison popped a ball loose that Ja’Quious Conley recovered at the 9-yard-line. The rest of the night, however, Tech managed just two possessions in which it ran more than four plays.
That is what must be UNC’s mission Saturday night. Get off the field. The Hokies converted their first six third-down opportunities, and that cannot happen this weekend. The Heels need to win first down, force tough situations, and get off the field.
Dot The I's & Cross The T's
Regardless of the opponent, and the thinking here is GSU is better than most think, the Tar Heels must have a really good game with the intangibles. They need to dot all their I’s and cross their T’s. This means being smart in pre-snap, communicate at a high level, and everyone on both sides of the ball be on the same page at all times.
It also means executing once the ball is snapped. Eliminate missed assignments, minimize silly penalties, and if they jump out to an early lead, not letting up. Keep their feet on the pedal.
Execute, Score, And Look Like Before
Carolina should win this game, though it could take some time before the Tar Heels pull away, and yes, they should pull away. To do so they need to score a lot. This needs to look like the Duke game last season, like the comeback versus Wake, like the win over Virginia Tech, and the rout at Miami.
This offense needs to get its mojo back, and the newbies playing key roles on that side of the ball need to be a part of a long eruption so they know what it feels like, too. That is the expectation for this team and program. As Mack Brown said Monday and Wednesday, they need to run “up and down the field,” and Saturday night is a great opportunity to do this and get that vibe back.
