CHAPEL HILL - North Carolina junior quarterback Sam Howell met with the media via Zoom on Tuesday afternoon following the Tar Heels’ first day of spring practice.

Among the topics discussed were his offseason grind, the start of spring practice, his new hobby and much more.

Above is the full video of Howell’s press conference and below are a few pulled notes and quotes from what he had to say:

*Howell has had quite the career since first stepping foot in Chapel Hill back in January 2019.

As a freshman, Howell started in all 13 games for the Tar Heels and was voted the ACC Offensive and Overall Rookie of the Year after throwing for 3,641 yards and 38 touchdowns.

The Indian Trail, NC, native followed his stellar rookie campaign up with another impressive season as a sophomore, racking up 3,586 pass yards and 30 touchdowns, which led to him being voted to the All-ACC Second Team.

Expectations will be even higher for Howell this season, with many seeing him as a legitimate Heisman Trophy candidate, and he spent the offseason working to improve various aspects of his game.

“There's a lot of stuff I was trying to work on this offseason,” Howell said. “I’m always trying to improve on my mobility. I'm not the most mobile quarterback, and I don't want to be a runner, but I just want to be mobile enough to extend plays and protect myself when I need to…

“I'm always trying to expand my knowledge on defense. I think I’ve got our system down pretty well, so just trying to watch more defenses and learn more about the defensive side of football.

“And then just trying to study my own game and just really focusing on my footwork in the pocket. I think a big project for us offensively this year is limiting sacks. A lot of the sacks have been on me, some on the o-line, some on the running back and some on the tight end, so everyone has to play their part on eliminating the number of sacks we have.”

*UNC did not have spring practice last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, meaning Tuesday was the first spring practice the program has had in nearly two years.

Not having it last season was a big loss for the Heels, especially when you consider just how many young guys they had on their roster, including 13 early enrollees from the 2020 class.

With all that in mind, Howell was excited to get back on the field Tuesday morning and thinks the experience the younger players will get out of it is invaluable.

“I'm really glad we have it this year, just because we have a lot of younger guys that are gonna need to get a lot of reps this spring and going into fall camp,” Howell said. “I think this spring is going to be really valuable to us and what we do in the spring I think is gonna show in the season because we have a lot of young guys that are gonna have to step up and play for the first time this year.

“So, I think we’ve got to take this springtime seriously and really make sure we're taking advantage of every single rep we get.”

*Two big returners on the offensive side of the ball this season for UNC are wide receiver Beau Corrales and tight end Garrett Walton.

Both were eligible to return to Chapel Hill for a fifth season due to the NCAA’s rule, which was passed in Aug. 2020, which gave all fall sport student-athletes an additional year of eligibility.

Corrales had sports hernia surgery last December after missing a majority of last season through injury, playing in just five games for UNC in 2020, racking up 13 receptions for 238 yards and one touchdown.

Walston on the other hand was a key member of the Tar Heels’ offense, totaling 19 catches for 255 yards and two touchdowns.

So, what are Howell’s thoughts on having Corrales back for another season?

“Beau, he's had a lot of success here,” Howell said. “He's made a lot of plays and he's going to be a really good player for us this year, so I'm definitely excited to have Beau back for one more year.”

And Walston?

“Garrett, he's such an important part of what we do on the offensive side of the ball,” Howell said. “I know he doesn't really get a whole lot of passes, but what he does in the run game, pass protection, he does a really good job of that.

“And he probably should get a little more touches than he does, so I’ll try to warm him up a little bit more, get him more involved. But, he's a really good player and I'm definitely excited to have him back.”

*Another key addition to this year’s team is Tennessee transfer running back Ty Chandler.

UNC announced Chandler was transferring back in January and the veteran back will have one year of eligibility for the Tar Heels.

A Nashville, TN, native, Chandler racked up 3,291 all-purpose yards in 46 games for the Volunteers, which currently ranks fifth all-time in Tennessee history.

He also scored 17 touchdowns in his four seasons in Knoxville, including 13 on the ground, three through receptions and one by kickoff return.

Chandler provides much needed experience and depth to a UNC running backs room that lost two All-ACC running backs in Michael Carter and Javonte Williams and has a new position coach in Larry Porter.

So, what are Howell’s thoughts on Chandler and how does he think the veteran can help this offense?

“He's a really special player,” Howell said. “Just watching his film from what he did at Tennessee, I'm really excited to play with him this year. He's a really good player, he can do a lot of different things. He can come out of the backfield as a pass catcher and do lots of sorts of things.

“So, I'm definitely excited to play with him. I’m just trying to make sure he feels really comfortable in the system. Obviously, it's new coming from Tennessee and he hasn't been here that long, so just trying to make sure he is good on the mental side of things.

“But, from an athletic standpoint, he's fine. He's been in college for a long time, he knows what he needs to do, so I'm definitely excited for him. I think he’s gonna have a really big year.”

*Howell picked up a new hobby this offseason in the form of golf.

The junior said he got a set of clubs for his birthday and, despite not being very good, Howell has enjoyed getting out on the course in his free time.

“I never played golf my whole life and recently I picked up on it,” Howell said. “My dad got me some clubs for my birthday back in September, so I've played golf a couple times. I'm enjoying it.

“It's hard. I suck, so I'm trying to get better. I try to play golf whenever I can. But yeah, it's something I'm trying to get better at, but it's a lot of fun. I enjoy it, but I’m definitely pretty bad at it.”

*Despite it being over a year since the COVID-19 pandemic hit, protocols across the UNC football program have not changed as the team begins its preparations for the 2021 season.

“It's really the same,” Howell said. “We still wear masks around the building, we still get COVID tested a couple times a week. We wear masks when we work out, so it's really the same. Nothing has changed as far as the protocols within our program.”