Players Report: Nash, Morales & Echols

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CHAPEL HILL – Spring football is back in action for North Carolina after the players had last week off for spring break, and three Tar Heels were made available to the media following practice Tuesday morning.

UNC held its sixth practice of the spring Tuesday, and once again was in full pads. The Tar Heels have nine more to go, including the annual spring game on April 9.

So, Tuesday morning, redshirt freshman safety Dontavius Nash, sophomore linebacker Power Echols, and junior tight end Kamari Morales fielded questions from the media via zoom.

Below are the full videos of their interviews as well as a few notes and pulled quotes from what they had to say:

*Last year was all about learning and adjusting for Dontavius Nash. The Gastonia native realized as soon as he got to UNC the game was very different at that level. So, it took him some time to adapt, as it does for most true freshmen, but he eventually did.

Nash played in four games last season – two on defense and four on special teams. So he kept his redshirt. Defensively, he played 13 snaps – five versus Georgia State, eight versus Wofford – and he was in for four plays on special teams. It wasn’t a huge sample size, but it was enough for him to understand the significant differences at that level as opposed to high school.

“I would say just understanding the game more, getting used to the speed of it,” Nash said, when asked about his adjustments. “Actually, just sitting back and learning football. I learned a lot of football in this year.

“I took a year off because of high school because of a COVID year, so that kind of put me back a little bit. Just getting in with the older guys like Gio (Biggers), Don (Chapman), Dae Dae (Hollins), getting in with them and learning the playbook, that’s really all I’ve been doing.’

As for the biggest adjustment, speed or physicality?

“I would say both, because you’ve got these guys are bigger and stronger and faster, so I had to get used to everything,” he said. “Coming from high school, I was probably one of the biggest hitters in my conference, and then coming up here, you’ve got guys who are bigger, guys on the offensive side of the ball, running backs who are 230-plus, and I wasn’t used to seeing that.

“So, I feel like both of them was something I had to adjust to.”

*Another change Nash and the rest of the Tar Heels on defense this spring is getting used to is Gene Chizik’s defense. Many of the players have described it is as more simplified, so what are Nash’s thoughts?

“I would definitely say it’s a little bit simpler,” Nash said. “It’s a defense that allows us to play fast. We have a lot of calls that are the same calls we ran, it’s just a little change here, a little change there, for different personnel. I really like it. It came easy to me, I really understand it.

“I had trouble with the last playbook. I also think that came with maturity. So me knowing what the playbook looks like, knowing what I’m looking for, knowing what I need to do, that’s what helped me out.”

*Power Echols saw his playing time increase late last season in part because of his development but also due to Jeremiah Gemmel having an injury that limited him in the bowl game versus South Carolina. So, Echols went from a very young true freshman to a much more experienced player having been thrust onto the field for 43 snaps versus the Gamecocks.

Overall, for the season, Echols played 155 snaps on defense and 209 on special teams, mostly on the kick return, punt return, and kickoff coverage units. He is a much different player now after having that experience and being able to reflect and learn from it. And being thrust into action versus South Carolina certainly helped his growth some.

“I’d say the only difference is how comfortable I am,” Echols said. “I feel like I was pretty comfortable before the South Carolina game, but now that I’ve been in it, and the accumulation of reps I’ve had all the way from last spring through now, I’m just more comfortable knowing what I’m doing and where I’m going.”

Echols, by the way, had 25 tackles on defense and also picked off a pass.

*Echols is running with the first team as one of UNC’s middle linebackers. He has a handle on the Mike position and says it isn’t all that much different from playing in the middle of the previous scheme.

“I wouldn’t say it’s that much different, the only thing I’d say is it took a lot of weight off our shoulders, because we don’t have to do as much. The defense is a lot simpler. It’s just knowledge, hit, and run, as Coach Chizik would say.”

*Kamari Morales became a regular in UNC’s rotation at tight end last season, and displayed a knack for running quick routs and getting open in tight situations, notably near the goal line. He scored five touchdowns, tying Antoine Green for second most on the team.

For the season, Morales played 412 snaps in all 13 games, caught 24 passes for 220 yards, and those five scores. Morales is ready to break through even more this coming season.

“Honestly, I would say just consistency,” Morales said. “I feel like I gained a lot of the coaches’ trust between that time. This game we play is all about trust. Obviously, everybody here is talented, that’s why we’re here. So, it was just a matter of time, and I knew that.

“It’s about stacking up plays, stacking up practices, and I knew it would eventually lead to more time, and you’ve got to take advantage of it whenever you can get it.”

*If anyone is going to know something about the trio of players battling it out at quarterback this spring, it would be one of the guys to where they throw the ball. Morales says the competition is intense and he has been highly impressed with Drake Maye, Jacolby Criswell, and Conner Harrell.

“Key word, competition,” Morales said. “It has definitely been a competition. Everybody looks great, and that’s honestly what’s going to make it so tough when they ultimately decide who they’re going to go with.

“Honestly, I couldn’t tell you, because everybody looks exactly the same. There’s no drop off with any of the guys. Even when Conner steps in, yeah, he’s a young guy, but when he steps in he’s poised, he understands what’s going on, he’s a real smart young guy.

“So as far as the quarterback competition, man, it’s definitely a competition. So I’m really curious to see where that’s going to go as well.”