THI TV: Mack Brown NSD Presser

CHAPEL HILL – North Carolina Football Coach Mack Brown briefly met with the media Wednesday at the Kenan Football Center to discuss National Signing Day.

Brown took no questions and spent most of his time noting the class of 27 that signed with the Tar Heels today. He also offered critical remarks about NC State Coach Dave Doeren for an expletive he used in describing UNC’s players after the Wolfpack beat the Heels last month.

We addressed that in another content item. This is to show all of Brown’s eight minutes (above) and note below some noteworthy tidbits from what he had to say:

*WR Kobe Paysour missed UNC’s final seven games of the season, but had returned to practice for bowl prep. But he recently suffered the same injury during a non-contact drill on the other foot and will not play. Brown said Paysour will have surgery and

*Tar Heels practiced six times over the last week, but the players were released Wednesday to go home, and they will reconvene in Charlotte on Friday. They will practice Saturday-Tuesday, with Saturday serving like a Tuesday does in a normal game week, and next Tuesday will be the team’s walkthrough.

*UNC signed 27 players Wednesday; 26 high school seniors and one second-year junior college transfer. UNC hadn’t previously brought in more than 12 as early enrollees in January before and will have 21 in next month.

In fact, six have already arrived and have practiced with the team, as NCAA rules now permit early enrollees who have formally graduated to start practicing, but they cannot play in the bowl game. In addition, 11 players that signed today will join the team in Charlotte and practice there. They will be on the sidelines when the Tar Heels face West Virginia in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl on December 27.

“It’s amazingly the best academic class that we’ve ever had, so 21 of those signees will be here in January,” Brown said.

Early enrollees arrive January 7 and classes begin January 10.

*The class of 2024 is ranked No. 22, and is in the top 25 in pretty much every service. Brown is pleased with the group his staff is bringing in.

“It’s another top-25 class, so I congratulate our recruiting staff and our coaching staff,” Brown said. “They work really hard for really over two years on these classes. We’re already deep into next year’s class. And we’re still trying to do it with a large majority of high school players, and then fill in some areas of need with the portal. But we really don’t want to just go portal it and be transfers all the way.”

*Class breakdown: 14 defense, 12 offense, one specialist.

“So, we had a very balanced class,” Brown said.

Also: 5 All-Americans; 15 all-state selections; and many captains, “by far the most we’ve ever had before,” Brown said.