CHAPEL HILL – North Carolina quarterback Sam Howell met with the media Tuesday evening to discuss what he learned after watching the film of the Tar Heels' loss last Friday at Virginia Tech, his third interception, Josh Downs, what the passing game must to do pick things up, and about this weekend’s opponent, Georgia State.
Above is video of Howell’s entire interview and below are some notes and pulled quotes from what he had to say:
*UNC Coach Mack Brown said Friday night the “shine” had come off the Tar Heels, so how has the team responded the last few days to losing and the film sessions they’ve had dissecting what didn’t go well and what went well?
“Losing is not good but I think good can come out of it,” Howell said. “I’ve really liked the way our team has responded. Losing week one can either ruin your season or turn your whole season around, and I think it’s going to turn our season around.
“We all just kind of needed a reality check. We weren’t really ready to go in there and win a football game and they exposed that. Our team responded well. The older guys have stepped up and demand stuff out of the younger players. I’m really happy with how we responded.”
*A point of emphasis for Howell this past offseason was to not hold on to the ball too long, thus avoiding sacks that were sometimes charged to him a year ago. On UNC’s last offensive play Friday night, Howell was intercepted trying to throw the ball out of bounds while he was being pulled to the ground by a Hokies defender.
It was second-and-7 at the Hokies’ 40-yard-line and 37 seconds left to play after the whistle was blown following the interception. He would have lost about six yards, making it third-and-13 from the 46 had he kept the ball and just taken the sack, which is an option some observers believe Howell should have chosen.
In looking back, does he see that as a time he should have just taken the sack to live and play another down, or was the right thing to throw the ball away, he just made a mistake on the actual throw?
“Definitely with timeouts in our pocket a sack there isn’t bad,” Howell said. “It’s certainly not what you want. When we get late in the game, in my mind I’ve been taught you never take a sack, so I was trying to do everything I can to throw the ball out of bounds. It was a bad decision on my part. I should have just lived with the sack and given ourselves a chance. It’s just something I’ve got to learn from.”
*Howell finished 17-for-32 passing for 208 yards, a touchdown, and three interceptions, his high total as a Tar Heel. The pick on the last offensive play was also the first time he’s thrown an interception in the fourth quarter at UNC.
What did he learn from watching the film over the weekend that he could have done differently or perhaps needs to improve on some?
“I think I just need to do a better job of trying not to do too much at times,” he said. “I start pressing at times, and in certain points in the game I was just trying to make a play rather than really just trusting the system. So just try to stay within the play every single play and try not to do too much and trust the system.”
*Josh Downs caught nine passes for 32 yards and a touchdown, which is two more receptions than he had last season. Downs was talked about all spring and summer by teammates and coaches that he was ready to break out. Did he do anything that surprised Howell?
“We knew Josh was going to play really well and I think he did,” Howell said. “The one thing that surprised me about Josh is he was able to play a lot more plays than we thought he would. We thought his first game getting a lot of reps, he probably could only play 50 snaps or so. He played a lot more reps than we thought he’d be able to, which is really good because he’s one of our best playmakers.”
*Friday night was certainly not a high point for Howell in his Carolina career, and with the game on a big stage, many eyes saw what happened. So, has anyone reached out to him for advice that stands out, especially someone of note?
“A lot of people have reached out checking on me since Friday night,” he said. “There’s been so many people. I have a lot of really good people around me, and I’m very appreciative to everyone that has reached out and wanted to check on me to see how I was doing. But I wouldn’t say there was one person that sticks out. I’m very appreciative of all the support I have in my life.”
