Following the UNC football team’s 41-27 loss to Texas A&M in the Orange Bowl, questions are starting to emerge about how the Heels are going to survive next year. It was apparent in the Bowl game that the loss of both All-ACC and likely future NFL running backs Michael Carter and Javonte Williams affected UNC’s play calling and efficiency.
The dynamic duo of Carter and Williams allowed UNC to stay on schedule in terms of the down-markers all season. They had a combined 2,957 yards on 363 touches, along with 33 touchdowns.
Williams was responsible for 22 of the touchdowns and held the role of power back. He broke UNC’s single-season record for all-purpose touchdowns, formerly held by legend Don McCauley. Pro Football Focus, a football analysis website that provides individual grades to players, honored Williams’ historic season.
“Javonte Williams had a record breaking season,” said PFF in their yearly awards release. “The Tar Heel’s 95.9 rushing grade wasn’t just the highest of the entire 2020 season, it was the best we have ever recorded at the position since PFF College began seven years ago.”
He was awarded ACC player of the year by PFF, picked over the likely No. 1 overall NFL Draft pick in Trevor Lawrence.
On the other hand, Carter was named first-team All-ACC by the conference, while Williams was named to the second-team. He was more elusive and was generally the third-down back. Carter’s 11 touchdowns didn’t have the same historical significance as his counterpart’s did, nonetheless he had more yards than Williams and was efficient while getting them.
Suffice to say, UNC had a couple solid running backs this season. Both Carter and Williams opted out of playing in the Orange Bowl in order to avoid injury and prepare for the NFL Draft in April, and the result wasn’t very pretty.
British Brooks (junior) and Josh Henderson (freshman) led the Heels’ backfield in that game. After a few negative plays to start out, the Aggies’ defense was aware they wouldn’t have the same challenge that they would have had with the duo they had seen on tape all season.
To be fair, Texas A&M is one of the best teams in the country. However, the replacement backers left a lot to be desired.
In the regular season, the threat of the run kept the field open for UNC quarterback Sam Howell, who thrives in that environment. The run-pass option was a staple to offensive coordinator Phil Longo’s playbook all season, which allowed Howell to decide whether to hand it off and let the running backs go to work, or thrash the defense with his arm.
In the Orange Bowl, Howell got away with a few throws 50+ yards downfield, but he didn’t have much to work with in the middle of the field. The lost threat of the experienced running backs allowed the A&M linebackers to drop into coverage and make things that much harder for Howell.
The question remains to be answered: How will UNC replace that efficiency in what is likely Howell’s final year in college? Barring an offseason that makes Henderson and Brooks viable running backs for a team that wants to compete for a national championship (which is a tall order if the Bowl game indicated anything), they will need to look toward their incoming freshman and senior graduate transfer Ty Chandler to compete for playing time next year.
UNC running back commits Gabe Stephens and Kamarro Edmonds are both Top-250, four-star prospects in the 2021 recruiting class according to 247Sports, and they will surely be in the running (no pun intended) to replace the production of Williams and Carter next season.
Chandler, who recently announced that he will play for the Heels in 2021, is another player who will contend for the starting role next year. Chandler is a former four-star prospect who committed to Tennessee in 2017. He had 2,511 yards from scrimmage in his four years with the Volunteers and will spend his last year of eligibility trying to increase his production in Chapel Hill.
If UNC wants to avoid a fundamental change in their offense that Howell has become so used to, they need to get one of their backs to burst onto the scene next year. One of them needs to show that the Heels’ running game didn’t die with Carter and Williams heading to the next level.
Photo courtesy of Brian Fisher/Flickr.
