CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – The time for talk is finally over. After a long offseason of hype and expectation, No. 10 North Carolina will kick off its 2021 football season in prime time on Friday against Virginia Tech in a sold-out Lane Stadium (6 p.m./ESPN).
It wasn’t long ago that the Tar Heels were grinding out five wins over two seasons, closing the Larry Fedora era before entering the second Mack Brown era. A coaching decision that was questioned by many pundits due to Brown being five years removed from the sideline following a lackluster end to his Texas tenure, the Hall of Fame head coach has silenced his doubters with a rapid turnaround in Chapel Hill.
UNC won its final three games in 2019 to secure a 7-6 record and took another step forward in a COVID-19-ravaged 2020 season, finishing fourth in the ACC with an 8-4 (7-3) record and earning the program’s first-ever Orange Bowl appearance. The Tar Heels return 21 of their 22 starters from that 41-27 loss to Texas A&M, including Heisman Trophy candidate Sam Howell, who completed 68.1% of his passes for 3,586 yards – the third-highest single-season total in school history – and 30 touchdowns against seven interceptions in 2020.
The entire starting offensive line is back, as well as super senior tight end Garrett Walston, although offensive coordinator Phil Longo has been tasked with replacing a quartet of elite playmakers – Dyami Brown, Michael Carter, Dazz Newsome and Javonte Williams – who combined for 4,761 offensive yards and 48 touchdowns last season. Former Top-100 wide receiver recruit Josh Downs and Tennessee grad transfer tailback Ty Chandler have stepped into that massive void this offseason.
With the offense potentially taking a step back, defensive coordinator Jay Bateman’s unit needs to take a step forward after the Tar Heels ranked 65th in scoring defense (29.4), T-66th in defensive red zone touchdown percentage (63.0) and 74th in yards per play allowed (5.8) in 2020. Two-time first-team All-ACC linebacker Chazz Surratt is playing in the NFL, although UNC returns 10 defensive starters and has brought in elite talent with consecutive Top-15 recruiting classes.
Given those developments, the momentum behind the Tar Heels this offseason has been steadily increasing to the point that even Brown has had to pump the brakes before Friday’s opener.
“We’ve got to start proving this stuff,” Brown said this week. “We've talked enough, time to win. And if we don't win Friday night, it doesn't mean the season's over, it means we've got a lot more work to do. Because we've got too many question marks right now that aren't answered to start anointing ourselves for something big."
>>> UNC's 2021 Week One Depth Chart <<<
Virginia Tech is arriving at its season opener in a different head space. The Hokies have suffered losing records in two of the past three season, endured significant roster turnover and witnessed athletic director Whit Babcock hold a press conference to explain why he was sticking with head coach Justin Fuente.
Virginia Tech returns 19 starters and an abundance of experience after COVID-19 derailed its 5-6 (5-5 ACC) campaign in 2020. With upwards of 75% of his roster and 80% of his coaching staff being infected with the virus last season, Fuente was tasking with scheming around shifting holes on a weekly basis. In the Hokies’ 56-45 loss at UNC, for example, they were without 15 scholarship players, including five members of the secondary two-deep.
“I certainly feel better than I did a year ago, I can tell you that much,” Fuente said this week when asked about last season’s loss in Chapel Hill. “Chamarri [Conner] got thrown out and it was pretty much over. We didn’t have a shot. We had guys out there playing in the secondary that had been out for two weeks and showed up the day before the game. I’m not using it as an excuse. They beat us. That’s how it goes. We showed up to play the game. It counts. Hopefully we’ll have all of our guys out there, but we’ll still have our work cut out for us.”
Virginia Tech’s offense, led by junior quarterback Braxton Burmeister, is intent on proving it can replicate last season’s successes even without tailback Khalil Herbert, who ranked second in the ACC in yards per game (107.5) and third in yards per carry (7.7). The Tar Heel defense will try to counter against an opponent that’s averaged 257 rushing yards in the past two meetings between these programs.
There’s also the element of a packed Lane Stadium a year removed from COVID-19 capacity restrictions. UNC lost in six overtimes in its trip to Blacksburg in 2019. The Tar Heels are 2-6 in Lane Stadium since the Hokies joined the league in 2004.
UNC was the preseason pick to win the Coastal Division for the second time in program history and advance to the ACC Championship Game to play Clemson in Charlotte, although those expectations would be dealt a significant blow with a loss on Friday night.
“Those fans are going to be pumped, so that's a given,” Brown said. “You worry about you. And if we play the best we can play and don't win the game, then we weren't the 10th best team in the country in preseason. Let's figure out where we are and get ready for Georgia State.”
The Tar Heels are favored by 5.5 points over the Hokies and have won 11 of their last 15 games.
Countdown to Kickoff: UNC-Virginia Tech - 247Sports
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