CHAPEL HILL – Playing to a standard has been a theme for North Carolina since well before fall camp started July 29.
It was supposed to show up Saturday when North Carolina hosted FCS member North Carolina Central, but it wasn’t anywhere inside Kenan Stadium for too long before the Tar Heels turned it on in the fourth quarter pulling away for a 45-10 victory.
Meeting the stated standard, however, was clearly missing.
“The first drive, they had 75 yards and there were seven minutes left to go in the quarter,” UNC Coach Mack Brown said. “So, obviously, they came in thinking they couldn’t block us and then wanting to keep the ball, and it worked.”
That was a clear early sign the Tar Heels weren’t dialed in as the coaching staff would like.
The mantra stems from the Tar Heels’ occasional bouts of self-inflicted sprees that have led to too many losses as favorites in recent years. Losses to Virginia at home and at Georgia Tech last season are prime examples.
A home defeat to a struggling Georgia Tech team two years ago when the Heels were 9-1 might serve as the poster loss leading to the need for more of a proclaimed standard, at least in the manner head coach Mack Brown and the players speak.
So, when the Tar Heels led Central by just a 17-10 score in the fourth quarter Saturday night at Kenan Stadium, the path didn’t include many sequences in which the standard was met.
Consider:
*Central led 7-0 after one quarter and had 14 first downs by halftime. Last week in a 41-19 home loss to Elon, the Eagles had only 11 first downs for the game.
*UNC was flagged for 10 penalties in the first half, and well into the third quarter, Carolina had 77 penalty yards and only 72 passing yards. The Heels ended up being flagged 16 times, tying a school record set 48 years ago.
*UNC had 42 passing yards at halftime, and 179 yards overall, which includes a 53-yard run by Omarion Hampton.
*Carolina allowed Central scoring drives of 12 plays (to open the game consuming half the quarter), and 14 in the first half leading to 10 points.
“I don’t have any earthly idea,” Brown said, when asked to what he attributed the 16 penalties. “Probably not being as focused as we have (been).”
A team’s focus stems from its disposition, which is connected to the standard. And the Heels will get that tested against next week when James Madison visits.
