No Justice for Tar Heel defense

For once it wasn't the defense that was making North Carolina fans groan - it was the offense.

The Tar Heels are well known for having one of the most miserable defenses in the ACC, but if anything positive came out of North Carolina's 14-5 loss against Wisconsin on Saturday, it was the defensive effort.

Despite its reputation and 109th ranking last year, the defense looked solid against the Badgers, giving up only 14 points to a team that had scored 121 in its first two games.

Moreover, the Tar Heels held junior running back Brian Calhoun, who'd rushed for a combined 305 yards in two games, to 171 yards on the ground and didn't allow his longest run of the game, a 26-yard dash, until the fourth quarter.

"We knew they were going to try to run on us," said senior defensive end Tommy Davis. "And we just knew we had to stop the run, and we felt like we did a great job."

The UNC defense also made some critical third down stops, letting the Badgers convert only 6 of 17, and got its first sacks of the season, bringing down Wisconsin quarterback John Stocco four times for 25 yards.

Another first of the season for the UNC defense was a fumble caused and recovered. When Wisconsin seemed poised to score late in the first quarter, the Tar Heel defense recovered the ball on North Carolina's 8-yard line.

But despite the positive steps taken on Saturday, the defense won't get any breaks this weekend against rival N.C. State. Starting middle linebacker Doug Justice - the senior who caused the fumble - likely will be out for the season after breaking the fifth metatarsal in his right foot in the loss.

"He's a great kid, and he's just become a great leader on our football team," said Coach John Bunting. "We're going to miss him a lot."

Though Justice is already in his fifth year with the team, having redshirted as a freshman, Bunting said he's looking into securing a sixth season of eligibility for the player because the injury came in the second game of the season.

In the meantime, junior Victor Worsley, who recorded six tackles against the Badgers, will be filling in for Justice at middle linebacker.

Having earned Academic All-ACC honors the past three years, Justice was as much a leader on the field as he was off it.

"He sets a high bar for a lot of our players to live up to," Bunting said. "It's one thing to talk about those things - Doug walks the walk."

 

Contact the Sports Editor at sports@unc.edu.