THI TV: Chizik on What Was Learned From Campbell, Looks at Duke
CHAPEL HILL – North Carolina defensive coordinator Gene Chizik met with the media Monday at the Kenan Football Center for his weekly press conference in advance of the No. 24 Tar Heels’ home game versus Duke on Saturday night.
Chizik discussed what was learned from the win over Campbell, spoke about a few individual players, and spent most of his team speaking about the Blue Devils’ run game, physicality, and freshman QB Grayson Loftis, whom Chizik and the UNC staff expect to start for Duke.
Above is video of Chizk’s Q&A session, and below are some notes from what he had to say:
*Campbell might have been a .500 FCS team coming into Kenan over the weekend, but there was still plenty to work on, especially for a Carolina defense that had allowed 91 points, 1,248 yards – 580 rushing, 668 passing – and 65 first downs over the previous nine quarters before hosting Campbell. That equates to 40.4 points and 554.8 yards per game.
So, gap discipline, making their fits, not missing tackles, being explosive off the snap were all things the players were graded on, and other than early in the game, they did well, Chizik said.
“In a game like that, you evaluate it by execution. And there was times in the first half when we executed well, and there was times in the first half where we were a little inconsistent. I think we made some adjustments at halftime with some things that helped.
“But overall, in a game like that, it’s really never about the opponent, it’s about yourself, and how you execute, your technique, how you communicate. Things of that nature.”
*UNC Coach Mack Brown said the Campbell game came at the right time, and was better than having an open date. Does Chizik agree with that, and does he look at what transpired this past weekend as his unit hitting a reset button?
“We cleaned up some things.”
*Chizik says he believes they have fixed the issue dealing with tempo offenses that had been giving them problems.
*The number one focus on Duke is the run game, Chizik said multiple times. There isn’t a lot of film on freshman QB Grayson Loftis, so they have done a deep dive on the Wake game. But stopping the run is number one, affecting Loftis is number two. And Gene said they are planning on facing Loftis as the starter.
Loftis is the third Duke QB to start a game this season. Riley Leonard has been banged up multiple times and is not expected to play this weekend. Henry Belin played some but struggled. Loftis came in late versus Louisville and then started last week’s 24-21 win over Wake Forest.
He is 10-for-24 with 116 yards, a TD and an interception.
“He’s an impressive guy. I don’t think he gets rattled at all. You’re looking at a very young guy who starts a game on national TV last week, that’s a tough gig and he didn’t flinch…
“Very poised for a young guy. I think what really helps him is you’ve (Duke) got an offensive line that’s got so much experience… They’re running for around 200 yards against really good defenses. So obviously, that helps him as a young guy, he doesn’t feel like he has to win every game.”
*Cedric Gray will walk Saturday before his final home game at UNC. He passed up a chance at being selected in the second or third round of the NFL Draft last spring to come back, and he could be a first-rounder next April. Chizik was asked how NFL-ready is Gray.
“Very ready… he has all the intangibles for the NFL…” He said Gray has “that type of really special football understanding… He’s going to play for a long time in the NFL.”