North Carolina At First Glance

Looking at South Carolina's first Football opponent in the North Carolina Tar Heels, this is a team that will live and die with one side of the ball.

When it comes to College Football, week one is typically viewed as one full of lackluster matchups that only draw the excitement and attention they get because one of the highest-grossing sports in North America has returned to people's living rooms. For Shane Beamer and South Carolina's Football team, their week one matchup is anything but, as they'll take on the No. 21 ranked North Carolina Tar Heels in the Duke's Mayo Classic in Charlotte, NC, this Saturday night.

Any conversation about North Carolina starts and ends with star quarterback Drake Maye, who, after a stellar sophomore campaign, is viewed as both a Heisman favorite and a potential top three pick in next April's NFL Draft. Outside of Maye, however, resides a lot of question marks. The Tar Heels didn't have a single running back rush for more than 558 net yards in 2022, although they may point to a pass-happy offensive coordinator in Phil Longo as being the root of that problem.

Regarding their play in the trenches, the Tar Heels struggled mightily on both sides of the ball in 2022. In the passing game, North Carolina gave up 40 sacks on offense, the ninth-worst mark at the Power 5 level, and only racked up 16 sacks defensively in the regular season last Fall, the ninth-worst mark in all of college football. Compounding their pass rush issues, the Tar Heels' secondary was one of the worst in the country, as North Carolina gave up an average of 271.3 passing yards per game. Only fifteen teams did worse than Mack Brown's squad in that aspect.

Outside of losing three defensive back starters and their top two pass catchers from last season, the Tar Heels return the majority of their starters from 2022 and added multiple transfers this offseason who are expected to start for them this coming season. One transfer to watch is wide receiver Tez Walker, whom Mack Brown and even North Carolina government officials have been working feverishly to get reinstated eligibility-wise after the NCAA recently had his immediate eligibility inexplicably revoked. To this point, no resolution has been made.

North Carolina has a budding star at quarterback in Drake Maye, but also a lot of position groups that are either unproven or didn't perform at a high level last year, which could open the door for a more well-rounded South Carolina Football team on Saturday night. 

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