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The Daily Tar Heel

Mack Hollins impresses at UNC football spring game

The tar heels face off Saturday afternoon at Kenan stadium.
The tar heels face off Saturday afternoon at Kenan stadium.

UNC coach Larry Fedora had allowed the third-string offense a few untimed plays at the end of the second half, but when the unit failed to convert on third down, he decided to end the game rather than give the punting unit more practice — much to the chagrin of Hollins, who set up over the ball as if he were about to snap it back to one of the punters.

So Mack, what happened out there?

“He wants to talk all the trash, Fedora, about how I was a long snapper coming in, but he won’t let me go get a snap,” he said with a big grin. “I was trying to get some snaps in at the end. I was just messing with him.”

A year ago, the 6-foot-4, 210-pound rising senior made it a priority in the offseason to improve his abilities as a possession receiver — to catch passes in traffic and in the middle of the defense.

But this spring, Hollins said he has tried to become a better route runner, a skill he says will help with his longevity as a player.

“I’m a taller guy and obviously I’ve shown that I can run deep, but running deep only lasts so long,” Hollins said. “You get old and you can’t run as fast as you once could, but being able to have the sound fundamentals to get in and out of breaks is what makes you last longer.”

The receiver from Fork Union put his new-found skills on display in the first half of Saturday’s game.

With the offense set up in the red zone for the first time of the day, Hollins ran an effective “slant-and-go” route, allowing him to run free in the hole of the Cover 2 defense. Quarterback Mitch Trubisky promptly fired the ball to Hollins for an 18-yard touchdown — the first score of the game by any offensive unit.

So Mitch, is this something we should expect to see more of in the fall?

“I think so,” the redshirt junior quarterback said. “They’re just calling plays, and we’re just executing them, and Mack was getting open, and we were just taking what the defense gave us.”

North Carolina put together one of the most prolific offensive seasons in program history in 2015, ranking ninth in the country in scoring offense (40.7 points per game) and 18th in total offense (486.9 yards per game). But as the Tar Heels gear up for the 2016 campaign, Fedora still thinks the squad can improve.

“I really hope there’s not a position on the field that we’re not better in ...” he said. “They can see it on film, ‘Wow. We really can be better.’ We haven’t reached anything. I mean we really can be a lot better.”

For Hollins, improving his offensive skillset is important, but he also wants to be a part of a better special teams unit. He might not long snap, but he does play on all four kickoff and punt teams.

But why, Mack? Why not drop one of the teams to focus on getting better as a receiver?

“I’ll drop off of offense before I drop one of them,” Hollins said. “Because that’s how I got on the field. When I step off them is when I’m coming off the field. If I drop off those I lose the work ethic, I lose what made me who I am.”

@jbo_vernon

sports@dailytarheel.com

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