With less than a month to go before the UNC football program kicks off its 2022 season, there are still a few question marks surrounding some of the position battles.
Most notably, there is a lot of production that the Tar Heels will try to replace on the defensive side of the ball.
UNC loses a lot of production from the linebacking core, including Jeremiah Gemmel who had at least 70 tackles in each of the past three seasons and Tomon Fox who had at least 7.0 sacks and 10 tackles for loss in each of the past three years.
The Tar Heels found production through the transfer portal this offseason with [autotag]Noah Taylor[/autotag]. The Virginia transfer heads to Chapel Hill as a veteran who has produced a lot in his career.
According to On3.com, Taylor is listed as one of the 10 most impactful transfers in the ACC.
“Noah Taylor was a three-year starter for Virginia and has legit big-play ability. He had 13 sacks, 30 tackles for loss, 16 quarterback hurries, three interceptions and 10 pass breakups at UVa. (Worth noting: Taylor had a career-high 12 tackles in a loss to the Tar Heels last season.) UNC was ninth in the ACC in sacks and tackles for loss in 2021, so Taylor’s addition is big. New defensive coordinator Gene Chizik should be expected to put Taylor’s big-play ability to good use.”
Taylor is projected as the No. 5 most impactful. While he won’t be able to do it all himself, Taylor has totaled 169 tackles in 35 games for his career. He also has 28.5 tackles for loss, 12.5 sacks, 10 pass deflections, three interceptions and two forced fumbles in his career.
Taylor was a huge factor on the Virginia defense and that should carry over to UNC. He has a very good ability to rush the ball and his versatility will give the Tar Heels a good playmaker at the linebacker and pass rushing position.
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