North Carolina head coach John Bunting entered the 2004 season in the hot seat, having won five games combined in the previous two seasons.
Then the Tar Heels did the unthinkable—the team finished the regular season 6-5 with last-second victories over Miami and N.C. State, and advanced to play in the Continental Tire Bowl.
In 2005, however, UNC will need to survive without standout quarterback Darian Durant. In 34 career starts, Durant set an astounding 51 school records. Last season, Durant led the team to those six triumphs despite a defense that surrendered over 30 points per game.
Durant’s replacement is Matt Baker, a senior who has thrown less than 80 passes in his collegiate career. Baker, a 6-foot-3, 210-pound pocket passer out of Michigan, has shown flashes of potential. He threw for 171 yards in one quarter against Virginia and has demonstrated his ability to throw the ball downfield.
The running back position also took a hit when Ronnie McGill, suffered a chest injury that will likely keep him out until October. His replacement, LSU transfer Barrington Edwards, who sat out last season after transferring, is a confident back who can beat defenses by pounding it up the middle and by eluding would-be tacklers with his speed.
“Edwards is going to be a big-time back,” Bunting told ESPN.com. “He’s the kind of guy we’ve been looking for…. He just wore the defense out at times last fall when he was redshirting and loved to talk about it on the field. He is an in-your-face type of player.”
The most stable position on the offense is wide receiver, since many talented and accomplished receivers return from last year’s wrecking crew. Jarwarski Pollock, a 5-foot-8 senior, is better than his size might indicate, having caught 116 passes over the past two seasons combined. Lining up on the other side is Jesse Holley, a former basketball player, and returner Mike Mason and Derrele Mitchell are also in the mix.
Stability is not the word to describe the state of the offensive line. Tackle Skip Seagraves returns after losing a season to injury, and the injury bug also hit tackle Bryan Bishop, guard Kyle Ralph, center Steven Bell and and backup center Scott Lenahan in the spring. The line also must deal with the loss of graduated center Jason Brown, creating understandable concern on the coaching staff.
Not even UNC alum and NFL star Julius Peppers could have saved the Tar Heels defense last season. The team surrendered a conference-worst 45 touchdowns and 5.2 yards per carry.
Looking to give the defensive line a boost is senior Chase Page. Page missed all of 2004 due to a hand injury and will join the athletic Khalif Mitchell, Kyndraus Guy and Tommy Davis in an effort to stop the run.
The linebacker position, now led by new coach and former UNC star Tommy Thigpen, could be the key to turning around the defense. Underperformer Larry Edwards has blossomed with Thigpen’s help, and Tommy Richardson looks to build upon his 67 tackles in ’04.
The secondary will be anchored by cornerback Jacoby Watkins and free safety Kareen Taylor, two players who have shored up a perennially shaky unit.
With several question marks and few sure bets, the Tar Heels will open their season at Georgia Tech on Sept. 10.
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