CHAPEL HILL – North Carolina held its 18th practice Thursday morning since opening fall camp July 29, and it was also the last time the program will have media availability until next Monday, when game week officially launches.

The Tar Heels will hold practice the next three days, though scaled back some, with an emphasis on getting ready for all that goes into actual games, before having Monday off. UNC Coach Mack Brown plus offensive coordinator Phil Longo and defensive coordinator Gene Chizik will hold their in-season weekly pressers beginning Monday morning, as well.

The Tar Heels open their season August 27 at home versus Florida A&M for an 8 PM kickoff.

Three players were available for questions from the media via zoom Thursday. We ran a separate piece on junior cornerback Storm Duck, so here are the full video interviews along with some notes and pulled quotes from what senior offensive lineman William Barnes and senior defensive lineman Ray Vohasek had to say:

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William Barnes was the prize recruit for North Carolina’s class of 2018. A 4-star offensive guard from Apopka, FL, Barnes was the No. 93 overall player in the Rivals250 and No. 2 nationally at his position. He could have gone anywhere, but ended up at UNC.

Barnes played 41 snaps at guard in his UNC debut as a true freshman, a game the Tar Heels lost at California. A week later, he played 48 snaps on another loss, this time at East Carolina. But an injury slowed him and gained weight was an even bigger problem, so Barnes played just 127 over the next two seasons.

Last fall, he played a career-high 228 snaps with highs of 52 at Pittsburgh and 40 versus Virginia. He graded out at 63.7, according to PFF, in the win over the Wahoos.

*With so many position battles still going on, and the coaching staff waiting to let the team know who is starting in many spots, Barnes is certainly in the mix at right guard and right tackle. He isn’t too worried about it at this time, he says.

“I’m getting a lot of reps at right guard and right tackle,” he said. “We’re crossing through rotations for the o-line. We don’t really have a starting line yet, but we’re still working through it, and each guy one of our guys is working hard.”

*This is Barnes’ fifth season in Chapel Hill, and he has traveled a wobbly path to this point. But credit him for sticking it out and trying to make it work at UNC. So, where is he with respect to is development and comfort with who he is as a football player?

“I feel like with my fifth year going in, I’m real comfortable in the state that I’m in, but there’s always room for improvement,” he said. “I still have to work on consistency and staying focused on the field and also staying physical as well.

“That comes with learning and growing as time goes on.”

*Barnes hasn’t yet played to what the recruiting rankings suggested, but his career isn’t over. He is right there fighting for a starting spot and will get on the field a lot this fall regardless. But owning a starting role would be an accomplishment and reflect his perseverance throughout his Carolina career. He says being a starter would mean a lot personally.

“It’s very important to me,” he said. “It’s something I’ve been working for since my freshman year, and I’m going to keep working to achieve that goal and have that dream of mine.”

*UNC Coach Mack Brown said Tuesday the left side of the offensive line is solid, but the right side has question marks. The players battling there have each missed time, and there just isn’t much certainty at right guard or right tackle. That side of the line still has some things to figure out before the opener on August 27.

“It’s just consistency,” Barnes said. “Whoever wants to get that starter spot as to stay consistent, and that’s what coach is looking for. We’re not giving up any sacks this year, so it’s basically consistency each time.”

A two-time All-ACC Honorable Mention honoree, Vohasek has appeared in 36 games, starting the last 24, over his three seasons in Chapel Hill. He's tallied 82 tackles, 5.5 sacks and 16 TFL over that span.

Last season, Vohasek earned honorable mention honors after posting 38 tackles, a sack, four TFL, four hurries and three PBU, while starting all 13 games. In 2020, he started all 11 games and recorded 29 tackles, 3.5 sacks, seven TFL, four hurries and two PBU in earning league honorable mention honors. During his first season in Chapel Hill after transferring from the College of Dupage, Vohasek appeared in 12 games and posted 15 tackles, a sack and five TFL.

*The talk about UNC since practice started has been as much about the depth and talent along the defensive line as anything else. So, Vohasek has been around awhile and knows what the room looks like now compared to when he arrived, and he is extremely pleased with where things are now.

“I think when you talk about in terms of depth, we can go three-to-four deep this season, especially with the different packages in terms of like nickel, dime, and things like that,” Vohasek said. “There’s a lot of rotation, different packages, so guys are really being able to capitalize on their skill sets and what they bring.

“I really think we can go four deep. And definitely, me and Murph (Myles Murphy) will have less snaps, and I think that will really help us when we get deep into the season; guys taking less snaps and just having quality (individual play) over quantity.”

*Vohasek has been highly impressed with pretty much everyone along the defensive line, but he was pressed to name a few, so here is what he said:

“I think all the guys are coming along great,” he said. “A guy in my room in my spot, Travis (Shaw) at that nose spot. I think he had a great spring, especially coming right out of high school, and right when we started camp, he picked up right where he left off and he’s been improving day by day.

“I’ve been trying to help him out as much as I can. I think he can really help us this year, especially what he brings to the table with his size and athleticism. So I think he can really help us this year.”

*The guys up front have talked a lot about being in a three-technique or at nose, etc. Vohasek offered up examples of the differences in the two and what kinds of players fit one more than the other.

“I would say at nose guard things come very fast,” Vohasek said. “The three-tech, you get a lot more space, you get more of a two-way go, you get a lot of one-on-ones on pass situations, because a three-tech is usually set to the back.

“It’s more of a vertical thing at nose… because you’re so tight and usually getting double-teamed. It’s great having guys that can play both positions. It just makes them more versatile and gives them a better opportunity to get on the field.”