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CHAPEL HILL – North Carolina offensive coordinator Phil Longo met with the media Monday to discuss his unit, what was learned from the loss to Florida State, lack of production from wide receivers not named Josh Downs, running back D.J. Jones, and much more.
Above is video of Longo’s presser and below are some notes and pulled quotes from what he had to say:
*Wide receivers Emery Simmons and Antione Green have combined for four catches for 28 yards in the last two games while also combining to play 221 snaps. On the year, Josh downs has 49 receptions, 25 more than all of the other receivers combined. So, what can how can Longo get more production from his outside receivers?
"That's a great question because it's something we are discussing right now,” Longo said. “There is a huge premium here on ball distribution. We want equal distribution. We want people to feel like they have to defend all of our skill positions. One trend this year is you've seen defenses do a little bit more to take the wideouts out of this thing, and that's a huge reason why Josh Downs has gotten so many touches.
“At some point here, much like the last week or so, you are going to get more double team action on Josh, which is going to single up our receivers. So one of the discussions today, I don't think this is any surprise to anybody that we're playing, or anybody that just watches our offense; we want to get our wide receivers more involved in what we're doing. Part of that is them being able to separate. It's also them being able to make catches.
“Then schematically, we have to do some things to try to promote getting them the ball more. The focus early on in the season is to get the ball to the backs in the passing game on some quick hits and involve our tight ends more, and we've done that. I think the final equation to the passing game is to get the wide receivers more involved.”
*North Carolina committed 12 penalties on Saturday, seven of which came on offense. Downs was responsible for two false starts, one that took UNC from a third-and- manageable to a third-and-long. The penalty stopped the drive's momentum, and UNC ended up settling for a field goal. Were Downs' penalties a product of him eager to beat one of the two guys who was double covering him?
"I don't know why it happened; it can’t happen,” Longo said. “Those little things, we had seven of the twelve penalties on offense. Of the 12 penalties we had on our team, seven were on offense. Two of them belonged to Josh this week. When you're playing good defenses, you gotta be smart, be discipline; you can't beat yourself.
“Those seven penalties certainly set us back. I think we left 111 by our estimation yards on the field because of the penalties, and that's just something we can’t do moving forward here... If we could eliminate the penalties and reap the benefits of the positive yards that we got on a bunch of those plays and we can eliminate the penalties and not set us back. The only time we got behind the chains in the game on Saturday against Florida State was when we committed penalties.
“We had some really out-of-character penalties and some stupid ones. We had pre-snap penalties, which are unacceptable. If I could eliminate anything from the game, it would be the penalties."
*UNC has yet to overcome a deficit this year. It has lost every game this year in which the opposing team has taken the lead. Why has this team not been able to handle adversity like the previous two teams?
"I think experience is a part of it,” Longo said. “When you have experience, when you played a lot of snaps, you're used to being in positive and negative situations. So what happens is you have to understand that the focus has to be the same. I hate to be over-exuberant over celebrate a positive play because we get locked in and execute on the next one. I always felt like you wanna celebrate, fine do that after we score at the end of the drive over on the sideline, and then let's get locked in on the next drive.
“I think experience has to do with that, and at the skill positions, that's not where our experience is. At running back and receiver, we have a lot of young guys out there playing, and they're learning as they go, and they'll be veterans next year. We've gotta learn how to execute and play this year. Then I think after a negative play, that's the adversity you're talking about. You gotta have a short memory, and if we drop a ball on first and ten, or we have a penalty.
“Our saying all the time this is, ‘just don't blink, you gotta put it behind you.’ We need to move forward and lock it on the next play, and some of us do that better than others.”
*Quarterback Sam Howell has been forced to do more than he has in previous seasons, including with his legs. The Tar Heels count on Howell to find open receivers and expect him to be a key contributor in the run game. Unfortunately, this increased role has led to the junior quarterback turning the ball over more than ever, including two interceptions in the end zone. So, what kind of conversations is Longo having with his signal-caller?
"He threw one pic in the game, and outside of that mentally, he played a nearly perfect game,” Longo said. “We talked about the emphasis last week was damage control on plays that initially don't go as planned. He had very few of those plays this week. When we did have those plays, he managed them very well. That's one of the reasons we only allowed one sack.
“He threw a couple of balls away. I think he ran more decisively at times. On some pass plays where we feel like there are some built-in draws, we don't necessarily call a draw, but that is a part of our thinking that is a part of our mindset on certain pass plays with regard to what the defense is doing upfront. That's why he has been so aggressive on pass plays.
“I think from a mental standpoint, he did a great job. The best aspect of what he does, and I remind him all the time, just play the play within the play. Just play the play. Each down is its own play, and it is its own world. You can’t let the result, maybe from the same play earlier in the game, affect what you think might happen on this one. And he does a great job of preparing that he has a very good understanding of what the defense is doing and what there in pre-snap.
“The difference right now is there isn't as much explosive talent around Sam as there was last year, and that's fine, but we still can't go outside of our framework, and try to do more than what we are capable of. This past game and the games he has played well in are great examples of him staying inside the framework of what he is capable of. The good thing for us is Sam is capable of a lot, so he can do a lot, he's a huge weapon, and hopefully, we can keep him playing the way he did last week. "
*Injuries have plagued sophomore running back DJ Jones. However, the Fayetteville, NC, native has shown flashes of his true potential in the past two games. Rushing for 60 yards on eleven attempts in the loss to Florida State, both of which are season highs, it seems like Jone's role is increasing in the offense. So what has Longo seen from the young running back?
"We're happy about his progress because he's getting healthier, and as he gets healthier, we give him more reps,” Longo said. “Players get better when they play. This kid has a strong desire to be a really good running back. He wants to be a huge contributor in this system. He's a huge supporter of Ty Chandler, and he's trying to develop his own niche, his own role, his own way of contributing.
“This is probably, I think, the most snaps he's got in a game as we've gone through, and he's getting back to where he's close if he isn't already at 100 percent. And so we will continue to use DJ along with Ty as we get into the second half of the season. Very, Very happy with his development. Very happy with his understanding of this system, and I think right now those are the two guys that are healthiest and have the best overall understanding of the offense."
