Corrales Excited To Play For Brown, After All

CHAPEL HILL – Most of North Carolina’s players were familiar with who Mack Brown is when he was hired last November as the Tar Heels’ new football coach, but that was mainly because Brown had just spent five years at ABC and ESPN.

One Tar Heel, however, was keenly aware of Brown from his days as the head coach at Texas because Beau Corrales hails from the Lone Star State.

So, when Corrales learned Brown would be his coach, he was elated, perhaps more than most or all of his teammates because he knew a thing or two about Mack the football coach. Brown is a legend, and Corrales was plenty familiar with his exploits.

“Being from Texas and watching Mack Brown win a national championship – I used to live 30 minutes down the road from UT – so being able to watch that and actually having him as a coach,” Corrales said, sighing with a glow in his eyes. “I grew up wanting to have him as a head coach and to actually have the opportunity is a juice overflow.

“It’s fun, it’s exciting and everybody’s hyped up.”

The players are fired up because they’ve since learned about Brown’s amazing list of accomplishments, but they’re also excited about the way they will play the game under the new staff. This, obviously, includes the wide receivers, which is the position the 6-foot-4, 210-poind native of Georgetown, TX, plays.

“This offense is a lot of fun to be in and a lot of fun to be around, so we’re all having fun,” Corrales said.

The new Air Raid offense sounds like something out of a pass-happy conference where defense is optional, but it’s not. There might be nights when the Tar Heels chuck it around all over the place but others when they may be more run dominant.

It’s the passing elements, which also means route-running, is what gets Corrales all jazzed up. Fast paced, throws over the middle, in space and down the field are a big part of this offense. But those were things Corrales did in catching nine passes as a true freshman two seasons ago and 18 balls last fall despite missing three of Carolina’s 11 games.

“I wouldn’t say that (role) changed very much, but now that we’re focused on Air Raid, I feel like it’s just grown more, there’s a lot more dependability,” explained Corrales, who’s averaged 13.4 yards on his 27 career receptions. “At the end of the day, I’m playing receiver no matter what offense I’m in. I’ve got to catch balls and get open and make plays whenever I get the opportunity.”

Corrales, who has five touchdown receptions in his career, will be on the field a lot, as he ran with the first and second teams all spring. But the competition will remain and likely stiffen when fall camp starts.

The junior speaks highly of the former staff, but he also recognizes the changes have had a positive effect on the team.

“I love all the new coaches,” he said. “They’re all really cool, they’re kind of like players’ coaches. They want the best for us, they want to make sure that we’re enjoying the experience, which is really important to us.”

Most among them to Corrales is Brown, the former Longhorns coach whom Corrales once dreamed of playing for.