Football: Tar Heels out for turnovers

It’s the elephant in the room for North Carolina — turnovers.

The Tar Heels have a defense that, even after their beating by Georgia Tech, ranks near the top of the ACC.

They have an offense featuring a veteran quarterback, a two-headed monster at running back and a host of youthful wide receivers.

But while UNC stands in the top half of the ACC in almost every category, there is one area where the Tar Heels are lagging seriously behind.

UNC stands ninth in the ACC in turnover margin at minus three. UNC has turned the ball over 10 times this season — six interceptions and four fumbles lost. UNC has forced seven turnovers thus far.

The defense that was tabbed in the preseason as one of the best in the nation has only four picks thus far, and none in the last two games.

“I’m real surprised,” cornerback Charles Brown said when asked about the recent dearth of interceptions. “I was waiting on one to come last game.”

Brown mentioned that the UNC coaches have spent the week harping on snagging some passes from opponents.

“You can take the ball away from somebody and score or just give it back to the offense and take away possessions from the other team,” Brown said. “And just the change of field position — that’s real important.”

And while the turnovers haven’t been flowing recently, UNC’s seven takeaways is tied for fourth in the ACC. The minus three number and subpar turnover margin stem from the Tar Heels’ 10 giveaways.

UNC has thrown six interceptions this season. That’s more than any other team in the ACC. Only Maryland has more total turnovers than the Tar Heels in 2009.

Nowhere was the turnover battle more evident than in North Carolina’s 24-7 loss to Georgia Tech. In that game, the Tar Heels gave the ball up three times and forced zero turnovers.

“You can’t turn the ball over three times and not get any turnovers and expect to probably have much of a chance against good teams,” coach Butch Davis said.

Last season, UNC had the Division-I leader in interceptions roaming the backfield in safety Trimane Goddard.

This season, Da’Norris Searcy stepped into that spot but has yet to intercept a pass.

Fellow safety Deunta Williams has picked off two passes, but both of those were during North Carolina’s season-opening rout of The Citadel.

But for certain, Brown, Williams and the rest of the UNC defense will be looking for some passes to pick off Saturday against Virginia.


Contact the Sports Editor at sports@unc.edu.