Asante, McMichael, Tucker Talk Position Groups, Themselves & More

CHAPEL HILL – North Carolina held its seventh practice of fall camp on Thursday morning after being off Wednesday to rest and recover.

Afterward, three Tar Heels were made available to the media to discuss camp so far, who's standing out, position group battles and much more.

Below are videos of the Q&A sessions along with some notes and pulled quotes from what junior safety Kyler McMichael, junior linebacker Eugene Asante and senior offensive lineman Jordan Tucker had to say:

*Defensive coordinator Jay Bateman met with the media on Monday and one of his standout quotes was about McMichael.

Bateman said he expects the former Clemson corner, who transferred to UNC back in July 2019, to be an “elite player” this year, which is high praise for a player that accumulated 515 snaps as a sophomore in 2020.

So, what does being an “elite player” mean to McMichael?

“Taking steps in the right direction, improving from last year of course,” McMichael said. “One of my goals coming into the season was, of course, being more of a ball hawk, making more plays on the ball, keeping a tight technique and just being a playmaker overall.”

In order to become an elite playmaker on defense, McMichael said he’s improved these few elements of his game in the off-season.

“The first thing is probably learning the playbook,” McMichael said. “I think, once you learn the playbook, you're able to just go out there and of course play. It's not much thinking.

“Second, probably confidence, that also ties into learning playbook. After getting a full year of experience, I feel more confident coming out this year, my matchups. Like I said before, the playbook, so it’s just about going out there and making plays.”

*Fellow corner Storm Duck, who missed a majority of last season through injury and was limited in spring practice, has yet to practice during fall camp due to injury.

As the Tar Heels move deeper into fall camp without Duck, how have the other cornerbacks incorporated him into their day-to-day routine on and off the field?

“Storm’s a leader,” McMichael said. “He’s still around us of course and any kind of input that he can give us, we take it. Just basically leading from the sidelines.

“He’s always been very informative about tips here and there and just things to do, so he's definitely very much relevant, even though he's not on the field playing.”

*After playing 156 snaps as a backup linebacker for the Tar Heels for a majority of last season, Asante is expected to start alongside veteran linebacker Jeremiah Gemmel when the season opens up in Blacksburg on Sept. 3.

Asante shined in what was his second start last season in UNC’s 41-27 Orange Bowl loss to Texas A&M, finishing with a game-high 10 tackles against the Aggies, seven of which were solo.

Now with Chazz Surratt gone to the NFL and Asante basically penciled in as a starter, what has been the junior linebacker’s mindset this offseason and so far in fall camp?

“I’ve just been coming in and taking everything with a growth mindset,” Asante said. “And leaning on Jeremiah as a voice of reason in the room and understanding that he’s done this before, understanding that he brings a type of veteran leadership that has a great impact in our room. I lean on him for advice and I did a lot of film study during the offseason, just trying to understand the playbook a lot more and understand the game.

“I’ve also been meeting with one of our coaches, (defensive analyst) Preston Mason, and just been sitting down talking offenses, talking coordinators, understanding what coordinators are doing, why coordinators run things, what different situations coordinators want to run things in. So, just all of those things intertwined has helped me understand the game a little bit more. I’m out there calling things out before they happen and diagnosing plays. Tony Dungy had a quote, ’90% of playing defense is knowing if it’s a run or pass,’ so just little tips and tricks to help me improve my game.”

*With the starting two middle linebacker spots all but solidified, Cedric Gray, Power Echols and Rara Dillworth have been battling it out since spring practice to put themselves higher up in the rotation.

Gray, a sophomore who played primarily on special teams last season, totaling just six snaps at linebacker, is the most experienced of the three, while Echols and Dillworth are true freshmen who enrolled early back in January.

So, how does Asante think all three performed in the first week of fall camp?

“Looking at Cedric, I call him ‘OG,’ he’s an OG now, ‘OG33,’” Asante said. “He plays kind of that ‘Mike’ in the ‘Will’ spot. He plays both positions. He understands both positions in detail. He's diving into his playbook, understanding the game psychologically and coming out here and making plays off his athleticism and reading tendencies.

“And then we’ve got guys like Rara. Rara’s closing speed you can debate on anybody probably on this team. It’s one of the best on this team by far, you can debate that, and he's bringing another aspect of speed to the team and running his blitzes fast and penetrating.

“And then you’ve got guys like Power, who I truly admire. The work ethic that Power brings, his level of physicality, his level of motivation and toughness, it truly inspires me as a big brother to them. It tries to get me to elevate my play and just be who I am. They push me every day.”

*All five starters return across the offensive line for Carolina, including Tucker, who has played a total of 1,707 snaps since his redshirt freshman season in 2018.

Despite returning all five guys, all of which are upperclassmen, Tucker knows there are still aspects of their games they can improve leading up to the season-opener at Virginia Tech.

What exactly are those aspects? Tucker lists a few.

“I don't think you can ever have too much communication, especially at the o-line position,” Tucker said. “A big thing coach (Stacy) Searels says is he needs five guys to do the right thing every time. Sometimes you can notice it at the other positions, but if one guy messes up, it's not really noticed, but if one guy messes up on the o-line, it's definitely noticed and it affects the whole play.

“So, communication is a big key. And then a thing we're really starting to get into, especially in our third year with the coaching staff, is just finishing and being the most cohesive and dominant group on the field.”

And what are a few other things that can help take UNC’s veteran offensive line to the next level?

“I think any o-line wants to cut down on sacks,” Tucker said. “We're trying to keep a goal of 20 or less this season but, in my opinion, Sam shouldn't be touched. We have the best QB in America, in football, Sam should not be touched. And I think that's one thing that we're really trying to harp on and we did in the offseason, in the weight room, everybody got stronger in hopes to protect Sam because he's a special QB.

“He's been here three years in this program now and everyone sees what he can do, so if we take that extra step to get stronger, faster, smarter and talk to each other more, there's no reason why he shouldn't win a Heisman and we can't win a Joe Moore (Award).”

*With the starting offensive line already in place, there is still a battle behind those five guys for who can fit in and contribute to the rotation.

Junior William Barnes was a standout performer in spring ball, garnering praise from numerous coaches and players for his leadership, work ethic and overall improvement.

Tucker, who is roommates with Barnes, says the Apopka, FL, native has been the most impressive performer across the o-line so far during fall camp.

“The biggest standout to me is definitely William Barnes,” he said. “He has brought a different energy, and I know y'all have seen that, too. So, I know if the media is talking about it, we're obviously talking about in the locker room, the coaching staff sees it.

“I think he's really bought in this past year and a half, especially with what we did last year going to the Orange Bowl. He doesn't just want to be a part of the field team, he wants to be a part of the rotation, and I'm 100 percent for that. He's like a little brother to me, he's my roommate. He's definitely stepped it up a notch and I can't wait to see what he does still throughout camp and what he's going to put on the field during the season.”

What exactly, in Tucker’s opinion, has changed in Barnes’ game and approach this offseason?

“I would say he's taken his plays a little bit more seriously,” Tucker said. “I know when we first got here with the old coaching staff, it was a little rough for him. Sometimes you’ve got to teach people football. For some people, it's easy, for some people, it’s different. You kind of had to teach him football and the different positions and he definitely, over this past year, has cracked down in the weight room and in the position meeting rooms.

“When it comes to coaches asking him questions, you can ask them like that. We don't really need to help him with anything. It's more him helping the young guys if anything, which shows a really big improvement.”