Heels adjust for Thursday game

In describing North Carolina’s pregame practice schedule, coach Butch Davis sounded confused.

“From a football perspective you can make some adjustments in the things that you do,” Davis said. “You can call Sunday Tuesday, you can call Monday Wednesday if you want to. But the classes don’t change and so we’ve had to make an adjustment with our practice schedule.”

Davis wasn’t mixing up days of the week; rather, he was explaining the transition that UNC has to endure to play a Thursday night game — like the Tar Heels will this week against Florida State.

Kenan Stadium has never hosted a Thursday night game, and for this week, Davis and the Tar Heels have had to make adjustments to prepare for the national spotlight.

Among other things, the Tar Heel practice schedule has been moved up.

“Thursday night games, as good as they are, they are interruptive,” Davis said. “(The players) are going to miss some class time on Wednesday.”

And the adjustments aren’t lost on the players themselves.

“It’s just telling your mind that it’s a Tuesday practice, it’s not a Sunday practice,” senior defensive end E.J. Wilson said. “It’s a whole mind-set thing. As far as physical it’s nothing different.”

And while the different format might necessitate some adaptation, UNC has used its bye week to rest and recuperate the Tar Heels’ battered offensive line.

“All the guys who have been nicked up, we pretty much held them out of practice this last week,” Davis said. “The most prudent part, they got a chance to watch some film and do some walkthroughs … but the actual physical practice of it, we held those guys out most of the week and they didn’t return until (Sunday).”

Offensive linemen Kyle Jolly and Jonathan Cooper are back to full strength and listed on the depth chart, but UNC did lose two important pieces during the weekend.

Tailback Jamal Womble and quarterback/tailback A.J. Blue both went down for the season with injuries after surgery on Friday, according to a press release from the athletic department.

To plug those holes, UNC will turn to freshman tailback Hunter Furr, who saw some snaps during UNC’s rout of Georgia Southern.

“He’s played in every single game so far on special teams. He’s covered punts, covered kickoffs and he’s done some really good things,” Davis said.

Davis also mentioned that UNC could use Anthony Elzy or Johnny White at tailback. Elzy is currently a fullback, but he started several games at tailback in 2007. White, a wide receiver, also started at tailback in 2007.



Contact the Sports Editor at sports@unc.edu.