CHAPEL HILL – While spring break was a time for college football players to get away from the grind of academics and football, it was an opportunity for Mack Brown and his staff to roll up their sleeves, break down the minutiae of the first three practices and get a pretty good idea of what they’re dealing with.

The unknown for a team coming off a 2-9 season that followed a 3-9 campaign has been significant, so last week was one of the most important so far for Brown and his staff., who are also installing brand new offensive and defensive schemes.

There’s a whole lot going on within North Carolina’s football program these days, so what did Brown learn during that week of intense evaluation?

“I think after looking at the three practices, we actually told them this morning that we’re going to start over because now they should know what to do, know us, they know who their coaches are,” Brown said Tuesday morning, following the team’s fourth practice of the spring and first in 12 days.

“We know more about them. We’re going to start putting guys in different positions.”

Corey Bell was moved from cornerback to wide receiver, as an example.

“He’s fast and we’re thin at wide receiver as much as we’re going to be wide open and play three and four wide receivers and we need more legs,” Brown said. “We felt like he’s a guy that might make the move over.”

Brown also learned that guys were too high in engagement, not using enough leverage, quarterbacks were throwing too many interceptions, receivers were dropping too many passes and so on. Perhaps the most beneficial aspect of getting that time to devour the film from the first practices is that Tuesday’s practice was a reboot to the whole process.

“We’re actually starting over now after four days, we’ll go back and re-teach those first four days so we should be a lot better at what we’re doing now,” Brown said. “They should know more about what to do.

Here are some more notes from what Brown had to say Tuesday:

More about the week away and what the staff learned…

“Number one, we felt like we had a really good week off because the guys took care of their business, they came back in pretty good shape. And that always worries you with a change of coaches and you’re coming in new and guys don’t know you real well or not, but we did have (S&C coach) Brian Hess emailing them during spring break and telling them that they had a big run the day they got back. So, they had a long running session yesterday.

On Nick Polino working at center with Jay-Jay McCargo at guard…

“Nick’s so smart and he’s tough, he can either guard or center. He’s in their right now primarily because Jay-Jay McCargo has got the cast on his right wrist, so he can’t snap so he’s playing guard. And (Polino) will probably go back to guard if Jay-Jay gets well. He and Brian Anderson right now would be the centers.”

The Tar Heels are practicing in the morning this spring, which is a shift from previously when they practiced at 4 pm and ended usually at around 6 pm. Now, workouts end usually between 11 and 11:30 am. Brown was asked about this and his thoughts on the benefits of it.

“I’ve never practiced early before, this is brand new for me. Coach (Larry) Fedora had the academic schedule changed so we didn’t have any choice. It was already locked in and, obviously if you get here in November or get here in December really and the academic schedules for the next semester have already been put in place, you can’t change them. So, we’re trying it out and see what we like.

“I’ve asked the coaches, they’re 100 percent that they like it and would like to do it next year. So we go to the players and we ask them and it was 100 percent. So, I don’t know that I’ll have any input because, if everybody else out here likes early practices, I think we’ll be doing it. So now we’re checking with the university to make sure the academic schedules can be adjusted to the fall.

“We have to get them out of here so fast now because, as soon as practice is over, they want to sit around and talk, they want to visit the dressing room, they want to go take their time eating and then, if they’ve got 12 o’clock classes, they’re late and that’s on us so we’ve got to get them out of here. And then we meet with them in the afternoons. But the positive thing about morning practice is they get up, so they have to go to sleep (earlier), they get their practice done by 11-11:15, then they get to eat, then they can do study hall in the afternoon after their classes instead of late at night and they can get a lift in in the afternoon and meet with their coaches.

“So, the coaches will meet with them this afternoon at 3 o’clock so that gives them a chance go back over all the video and then the coaches can actually go home at night instead of staying over here all night. You’ve got to get up at about 5:00 to get started but, in the end of the day, everybody seems like they like it better because you’re fresher in the morning practice.”