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2016 North Carolina Tar Heels Football Preview
Team Strengths
2015 was a sensational year for the North Carolina Tar Heels (+8,000). They exceeded expectations, winning a total of 11 games, claiming the ACC Coastal division title and ending up at No. 15 in the final AP poll. And yes, the school’s suffered a number of key losses on both sides of the field, but rest assured that head coach Larry Fedora can figure out a way in guiding the team to another promising run this upcoming season.The Tar Heels, after all, still have the necessary pieces to compete against the other top dogs of college football. Tons of pressure will be on their quarterback, Mitch Trubisky, who should be in line for a breakout season in his first year as the starter. He completed 40 of his 47 throws with zero interceptions last season, and will be looking to lead a North Carolina offense that led the nation in yards per play (7.28) and averaged above 40 points per game in the previous year.
Speaking of offense, both the running and passing game should continue to thrive for the Tar Heels. Running backs Elijah Wood and T.J Logan are arguably one of the best 1-2 punches on the ground right now, while senior wide receivers in Mack Hollins, Bug Howard and Ryan Switzer provide Trubisky a number of trustable options to pass to.
Team Weaknesses
North Carolina’s offense appears pretty loaded, but the same cannot be said when it comes to defense. The team ranked close to the bottom of the ACC in run defense (5.1 yards per carry, third-down stops (44.2% conversion rate) and sacks (1.6 per game).
There are clearly a handful of things that the Tar Heels have to improve and solve on this side of the field, and Gene Chizik, who enters just his second-year as a defensive coordinator, better find a way to deliver some positive results with all the current pieces he has to work with.
2015 Team Stats
Category | Stat (Rank) |
---|---|
Points per game | 40.7 (#9) |
Passing yards per game | 262.5 (#28) |
Rushing yards per game | 224.4 (#13) |
Scoring defense | 24.5 (#42) |
Writer’s Prediction
The Tar Heels (+8,000) finishes the season with a 10-2 overall record.
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