Withers prepares Tar Heels for season opener

Controversy and turmoil have kept the North Carolina football team in the news during the offseason, but the Tar Heels have yet to play a down of football.

This Saturday against James Madison, they will finally be given the chance to do so.

“I thought we had a good end of our training camp. I think we are right on schedule,” interim head coach Everett Withers said at a press conference Monday.

“Obviously everybody on our team is looking forward to hitting somebody else besides each other. So we’re excited about that looking forward to our first game this Saturday.”

At the press conference, Withers announced the three team captains for the season—senior center Cam Holland, linebacker Kevin Reddick and kicker Casey Barth.

The depth chart is starting to take its definitive shape for the first game of the season. Most notably, senior tailback Ryan Houston will be on the field for the first offensive snap.

Houston will be making his first appearance since being the leading rusher in 2009 for the Tar Heels because he sat out the first five games of last season as part of UNC’s preemptive suspensions.

Houston red-shirted after he was declared eligible by the NCAA.
Withers said he and his coaching staff felt most comfortable giving Houston the nod given his experience.

But Houston isn’t the only tailback on the depth chart, and he won’t be the only tailback on the field Saturday.

“We like to consider ourselves having three tailbacks to start the game, one guy just has to take the first snap,” Withers said. “We consider Ryan, Gio (Bernard) and A.J. (Blue) as guys that are going to play a lot at tailback for us.”

This is good news for sophomore quarterback Bryn Renner, who will be making his first start as a college quarterback on Saturday.

Renner said he likes the way the different running backs balance each other out even though they have clashing styles.

“It’s like thunder and lightning,” Renner said. “Ryan’s more of a bruiser, and then Gio’s the guy you give a toss to and he might take it 80.

“Having both those guys, I’m just so lucky to be a first-year starter and to have that offensive line and the receiving corps that we have and Gio and Ryan. It’s just awesome.”

On the defensive side of the ball, the team is still shuffling things around in the secondary. Former wide receiver Todd Harrelson made the switch to cornerback to provide depth and more athleticism to the back side.

Senior safety Matt Merletti is pleased to have the extra bodies in the secondary, and the former running back knows just how difficult making that transition can be.

“In the five years I’ve been here I’ve never seen anyone pick up cornerback that fast,” Merletti said. “That was before I knew he was all-state in high school.”

Not lost on the Tar Heels is the newness of their coach and the struggles that come with adjusting to new leadership roles in the program. But for now, UNC is doing the best it can to limit its focus to the gridiron.

Contact the Sports Editor at sports@dailytarheel.com.