UNC football was buried under a mountain of hype. October is the chance to reclaim it

The month of October represents a chance for North Carolina to gain back much of what it lost in Blacksburg in the season opener and then again in Atlanta last week. Starting the first of three straight home games with a 38-7 win over Duke on Saturday helped set the tone.

The Tar Heels (3-2, 2-2 ACC) have been buried by an albatross of expectations this season. They were the team with one of the nation’s best quarterbacks, Sam Howell, who could post the kind of numbers to put him in serious contention to win the Heisman Trophy. They were the preseason favorite in the ACC’s Coastal Division and the popular pick to be the team that could knock Clemson from its throne as the league champion. Win the ACC, and there were even whispers about the College Football Playoff potential.

UNC coach Mack Brown said the team has been playing with the pressure of what they were supposed to do all season.

When they lost at Virginia Tech as the No. 10-ranked team and were knocked out of the polls last week after losing at Georgia Tech, it took a lot of shine off what they thought they could accomplish.

“We let people down; we didn’t accomplish what we’re supposed to in preseason,” Brown said. “So we’re trying to continue to build confidence. And confidence is a powerful thing. Confidence allows you to be tough. Confidence allows you to make plays that you might not be able to make otherwise.”

The Heels’ confidence at home hasn’t wavered. That’s why this three-game stretch is so important for restoring some semblance of swagger for their Oct. 30 trip to Notre Dame.

UNC will be favored in games against Florida State on Oct. 9 and Miami on Oct. 16.

The Seminoles (1-4, 1-2) have struggled this season, losing their first four games before Saturday’s 33-30 win over Syracuse. The Hurricanes (2-3, 0-1) suffered a major setback when quarterback D’Eriq King injured his shoulder in a loss to Michigan State. King has missed their last two games, including Thursday’s 30-28 loss to Virginia when kicker Andres Borregales’ potential game-winning 33-yard field goal clanged off the left upright as time expired.

Should Carolina take a three-game winning streak into its open date before traveling to South Bend, Ind., it could change the narrative of disappointment.

“We’re bouncing back from that, we’re not looking too much into pressure because, I mean, all the hype is off of us right now,” said UNC sophomore receiver Josh Downs, who had eight catches for 168 yards and a score against the Blue Devils.

The Heels’ defense took a step forward against Duke. Five different players recorded a sack after entering the game with just six on the season. Those sacks included sophomore tackle Myles Murphy, who now leads the team with three; and Kevin Hester Jr., who caused a fumble returned for a 63-yard touchdown by free safety Trey Morrison.

When strong safety Cam’Ron Kelly intercepted a Gunnar Holmberg pass in the third quarter, it marked the third time this season Carolina has forced two turnovers in a game.

Duke entered Saturday averaging 544 yards in total offense per game, but UNC held the Blue Devils to a season-low 314 yards.

Brown said he knows the Heels lost a lot of cache with their losses, and some people believe they’re not as good as advertised.

“That’s fine, people better hang on because we’re gonna keep getting better,” Brown said. “The program is getting better. We saw signs of it on defense today. And now we just got to get our offense to continue to grow as well.”

The offense has a serious problem at center where neither starter Brian Anderson nor backup Quiron Johnson are fully healthy. Brown said instead of toggling between the two, they made every lineman practice a snap at center before settling on moving Cayden Baker from tackle to center against Duke. Baker hadn’t played center since “eighth or ninth grade,” but came in on their second possession to play three series before giving way to Johnson.

UNC needs to find a solution on the offensive line, after allowing another five sacks to add to its ACC-worst 22.

Howell set a new personal standard by throwing for more than 300 yards for a fourth-straight game. He also added three touchdown passes for an offense that’s averaging 49 points at home compared to only 16 points on the road.

“I don’t think it’s so much confidence, I think we’re a confident team,” Howell said. “We know what we’re capable of doing, we just got to play consistent. We’re playing well home so I’m glad we’ve got these next two games at home.”

The Tar Heels’ confidence just might depend on it.

This story was originally published October 3, 2021 at 7:00 AM with the headline "UNC football was buried under a mountain of hype. October is the chance to reclaim it."