Gophers focused on stopping 'electric' North Carolina RB Omarion Hampton

Minnesota's run defense will have its hands full with one of the best RBs in the country.

Nov 11, 2023; Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels running back Omarion Hampton (28) with the ball in the first quarter at Kenan Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports / Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

First-year Minnesota defensive coordinator Corey Hetherman has the tough job of slowing down one of the nation's top running backs in Thursday night's season opener as Omarion Hampton and the North Carolina Tar Heels come to town.

Hampton averaged an impressive 5.9 yards per carry last year en route to finishing his true sophomore season with 1,504 rushing yards, which ranked fifth in the country. He added 16 total touchdowns and 222 receiving yards. Minnesota faced Hampton and the Tar Heels in Week 3 last season and held him to only 46 rushing yards — his third-lowest total of the season — while Drake Maye and the Tar Heels passing attack scorched the Gophers for 414 yards.

UNC took a similar approach as the Gophers this offseason and added former TCU and USC transfer Darwin Barlow to take the load off their star running back. Hampton is the guy, but Barlow brings nearly 1,000 career rushing yards and 11 touchdowns to Chapel Hill. Senior Caleb Hood will also add depth to the position.

"They're deep. I think it's well-documented. I think the AP All-American team came out and one of their running backs, Hampton, he's really, really good and we played against him last year," Gophers head coach P.J. Fleck said. "They've got a stable of running backs, they always do. They've got really good receivers."

In the first season under new offensive coordinator Chip Lindsey, North Carolina was one of the most balanced offenses in the country last season. They ran the ball on 49.89% of plays and threw the ball 50.11% of the time.

Now with Maye off to the NFL and plenty of questions at quarterback, there is a good chance they lean even more on Hampton in 2024. It will be imperative for Hetherman and Minnesota's defense to contain UNC's potent ground attack.

"They got a lot of really good players on the perimeter. The back is an electric player. He makes a lot of big plays and we got to be ready to contain them and control them up front," Hetherman said. "That'll be the number one is to stop the run. We got to make sure we stop the run. We gotta stay ahead of the sticks and we gotta put our defense in favorable situations all day."

Luckily for Hetherman and the Gophers, their front seven might be the strength of the football team. Talented defensive linemen Jah Joyner, Danny Striggow and Jalen Logan-Redding will be tested early and often against Hampton and the Tar Heels.

The season kicks off at 7 p.m. CT Thursday and the game will be televised nationally on FOX.