Tag: North Carolina Tar Heels football

Kaimon Rucker, Omarion Hampton ranked amongst Top 100 returners

Will Kaimon Rucker and Omarion Hampton have big seasons again for UNC this fall?

Next year is bound to be interesting for the UNC football team.

There’s no more Drake Maye in the pocket, slinging the football at lightning-fast speed or using his legs to evade pressure. There’s no more Tez Walker on the outside, catching insane passes then blazing past the secondary.

Oh – there’s also the transfer portal, which has seen 2023 defensive starters Kedrick Bingley-Jones and Tayon Holloway leave.

There’s two players who you should be excited about next season: Kaimon Rucker and Omarion Hampton.

Rucker made a name for himself by driving the ballcarrier backwards, as he led North Carolina with 15 tackles for loss in 2023. Hampton was tied atop the NCAA leaderboard in rushing yards around Thanskgiving, but that title went to Oklahoma State’s Ollie Gordon II.

With how productive they were last season, both Rucker (59) and Hampton (65) were named amongst CBS Sports’ Top 100 returning players.

Let’s see what CBS sports had to say about Hampton:

“Hampton led the ACC with almost six yards a touch en route to a 1,500-yard, 15-touchdown season,” Blake Brockermeyer said. “The bruising back added another 30 catches for 232 yards and a touchdown. Hampton had 36 explosive runs and excels in the zone scheme where he can cut back at the lineman’s heels. Excellent feet and tough to arm tackle. An area for improvement? He had three fumbles last season.”

Now onto Rucker’s rundown:

“Rucker is somewhat undersized but doesn’t let that keep him from the quarterback (8.5 sacks, 15 TFL in 2023),” Brockermeyer said. “He plays with a demonic edge and is a great team leader. North Carolina has plenty of raw talent on defense, but Rucker is one of the few who has put it all together.

Fans will not get to see Rucker participate in the Spring Game on Saturday, April 20, but there’s a strong chance they’ll see Hampton, who’ll be one of college football’s best backs in the fall.

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Where Drake Maye is projected to go in latest CBS Sports mock draft

Will UNC football quarterback Drake Maye land with the Washington Commanders or New England Patriots?

The 2024 NFL draft is now under a week away and one of the biggest talking points continues to be which quarterback will be the second player off the board. With Caleb Williams going No. 1 to Chicago barring anything crazy happening, it’s either Drake Maye or Jayden Daniels for the Washington Commanders.

Going into the college football season, Maye was widely thought of as the consensus No. 2 quarterback behind Williams. But a Heisman season from Daniels and a strong offseason have moved him into the conversation and likely ahead of Maye.

For CBS Sports’ NFL reporter Jonathan Jones, that’s the case in his view as he released his only mock draft of the cycle. He has Daniels going No. 2 to Washington and then Maye right behind him at No. 3 to New England:

There’s simply no way in my mind the Patriots move out of this spot and/or don’t take a quarterback. The way the offseason has gone — and the way the last three years have gone — they have to.

Things may be changing, however.

After both Daniels and Maye visited with Washington this past week, there are some rumors swirling that the franchise might prefer Maye to the former LSU quarterback.

Whatever happens, the Commanders have done a good job of keeping this all locked up and not tipping their hand at No. 2 overall.

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UNC football looking to add punter for Fall

Does UNC need another punter for Fall football season?

Special teams might not be the most glamorous part of a football game, but it is undoubtedly the most important.

Teams need to effectively return kicks and set their teams up in strong field position. Acing clutch field goals is difficult, but a needed skill for those who want to play at the next level.

One area of special teams that’s also super important, particularly when the offense is struggling: punting.

Being able to pin a team deep in its own territory can prove wonders for the defense, which realizes it has a lot less field to work with. Defenses can pressure the offense into making mistakes, such as a fumble, bad pass or – worst of all – a safety.

Oh, and also offenses might feel more pressure to execute.

Speaking of punting, the only punter UNC has on its roster is Tom Maginness. He was part of a unit that struggled immensely last Fall, which was near the bottom of the ACC in terms of production.

Ben Kiernan was out with injury last season, but he was also a graduate student, meaning he has no more eligibility.

If you haven’t guessed it by now, North Carolina is looking to add another punter (or two).

The Spring Game kicks off today on Saturday, April 20, so maybe the Tar Heels will find their next punter then. It’s definitely an area to look out for, as the Spring Game is always an opportunity to see positional battles and potential standouts.

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UNC football lands another commitment for 2025 class

A three-star defensive tackle out of Georgia has committed to North Carolina in the 2025 recruiting class.

As the North Carolina Tar Heels are getting set for the annual spring football game, Mack Brown and his staff received more good news on Saturday afternoon.

For the second straight day, the Tar Heels’ landed a big commitment in the 2025 recruiting class. And for the second straight day, it’s on the defensive line.

After Austin Alexander committed on Friday, the Tar Heels landed a verbal commitment from defensive tackle Devin Ancrum. The Georgia native becomes the ninth player in the 2025 class to commit to North Carolina, giving the Tar Heels a top 20 class in the early recruiting cycle.

The 6-foot-2, 295-pound Ancrum is a three-star recruit that is the No. 102 defensive lineman and No. 92 player in the state of Georgia per the 247Sports recruiting rankings.

Ancrum had a total of 16 offers in his recruitment and picked UNC over Duke, Georgia Tech, and NC State. He’s the latest prospect from Mill Creek High to commit to North Carolina, joining 2024 recruits Aiden Banfield and Jaiden Patterson.

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UNC football lands four-star edge rusher in 2025 class

Mack Brown and the UNC football program have landed four-star edge rusher Austin Alexander in the 2025 class.

Mack Brown and the UNC football program received some great news ahead of Saturday’s spring game.

On Friday, four-star edge rusher Austin Alexander pledged his verbal commitment to the Tar Heels. He picked North Carolina over finalists Kentucky, Notre Dame, Stanford, and Wisconsin.  Alexander had a total of 29 offers in his recruitment and was highly sought after.

In the end, it was the Tar Heels that won out to land the Kentucky native and add a big piece to their 2025 recruiting class, boosting the defensive side of the football. It’s also been a long time since UNC landed a commitment from a player in the state of Kentucky, potentially a good sign moving forward.

The 6-foot-3, 243-pound Alexanders is ranked No. 381 nationally, the No. 42 defensive lineman and No. 3 player in the state of Kentucky per the 247Sports recruiting rankings.

He becomes the eighth commitment for UNC in the 2025 cycle, as their class is ranked No. 17 nationally. With a lot of time left to go, it’s a good step forward for Brown and the class with the potential to add a lot more.

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UNC football makes cut for 2026 quarterback

The UNC football program makes the top 10 for a 2026 quarterback as he cut his list down on Thursday.

Mack Brown and the North Carolina Tar Heels’ football program took a step forward in the recruitment for a quarterback prospect in the 2026 class.

On Thursday, Florida native Noah Grubbs cut his list of schools from 24 total offers down to 10 finalists. Grubbs took to X (formerly Twitter) to reveal that he will focus on UNC, Florida, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Miami, Auburn, Michigan, Texas A&M, Nebraska, and UCF.

The 6-foot-4, 185-pound Florida native received an offer from North Carolina in late 2023. With UNC entering the mix, they have made a push for Grubbs and now take the next step in his recruitment.

Grubbs is one of the top quarterbacks not only in Florida but in the 2026 recruiting class.

The news also comes just a few days before Grubbs is set to visit North Carolina this weekend to take in the spring game. He’s also visited Michigan (March 24th), Miami (March 30th), Florida (April 2nd) and Alabama (April 5th-6th).

If the Tar Heels want to land Grubbs, they are going to need to beat out some elite programs in the process. It won’t be easy but a commitment would be a huge get for the future plans at quarterback.

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Mack Brown explains why UNC football spring game wont be televised

The UNC football spring game will no longer be aired on the ACC Network and Mack Brown explains why.

North Carolina football fans who can’t be at Kenan Stadium on Saturday will be out of luck in terms of watching the annual spring game.

The game was scheduled to be aired on ACC Network, allowing fans with access to see the team ahead of the 2024 season. But things have since changed.

In his press conference with the media on Wednesday, head coach Mack Brown explained why the game will no longer be available on the ACC Network. Instead, the game will be seen only by fans in attendance.

The reason? UNC has made a lot of changes to its defense and has a quarterback battle going on. They don’t want any practice footage from the game aired.

The program instead struck a deal with the ACC Network to air a practice last week instead of the game.

We get the competitive advantage aspect of this. However, it takes away from the fans who can’t make the game and want to get a preview of what the team will look like ahead of the opener in Minnesota in late August.

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Who does 247Sports have UNC facing in its first bowl projection?

UNC is projected to make a bowl game, but will it win for just the third time in 10 tries?

College football season doesn’t start until August, but there will be plenty of conversation around the sport in the coming weeks.

That’s because on Thursday, April 25, the dreams of over 200 college players will come true in the NFL Draft.

A majority of the NFL Draft attention in Chapel Hill surrounds star quarterback Drake Maye, who finished his college career with nearly 10,000 scrimmage yards and 80 touchdowns, was named the 2023 ACC Player of the Year and will likely be a Top-5 pick.

One of the greatest questions for UNC – in the fall – surrounds its quarterback position. North Carolina will have an intense quarterback competition in the Spring game, highlighted by Conner Harrell and Max Johnson.

The Tar Heels might not have the wide array of offensive weapons from last season, but they should win enough games to make another bowl game.

According to 247Sports’ early projections, UNC is set to face off against Northwestern in the Pinstripe Bowl.

I have hope that North Carolina can figure out how to win a bowl game, but I can already tell you right now that game will end in a loss. UNC is 2-7 in its last nine bowl games, not a pretty sight for a team that collapses late in the season.

The Tar Heels’ NFL Draft-eligible players sit out to save their careers, which I don’t blame them. There is talent across UNC’s roster, but head coach Mack Brown falls just short of prepping his reserves for the postseason.

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Mack Brown reveals what UNC football program is seeking in transfer portal

What positions will the UNC football program target in the transfer portal? Mack Brown discusses.

The North Carolina Tar Heels football program is hosting its annual spring game this Saturday as preparation for the 2024 season continues on. But as the preparation continues, the spring transfer portal has also opened up.

UNC has four players who have entered the transfer portal so far, two being defensive backs, one a quarterback, and then an offensive lineman. Going into this portal period, UNC was considered to be in good shape. But Mack Brown knows his program has to add some talent.

On Wednesday, Brown met with reporters and talked about the portal, revealing the team is looking to add some defensive linemen, a quarterback and a running back:

Defensive line has been a need for UNC all offseason so it’s not shocking to see it continue to be a need. However, quarterback and running back are new additions to the list.

The transfer portal is only a few weeks old so it will be interesting to see if the Tar Heels are able to land some talent.

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UNC football trending for a four-star DL set to make decision

The UNC football program appears to be the team to beat in the recruitment for a four-star edge rusher.

Mack Brown and the North Carolina Tar Heels will soon know their fate for a big four-star reciting target.

Edge rusher Austin Alexander is set to make his decision this weekend, ending his recruitment after landing 29 offers. With the four-star Kentucky native making his choice on Saturday, there’s a team emerging as a leader.

And it’s the North Carolina Tar Heels.

The Tar Heels have the lone crystal ball prediction for Alexander, with that coming from national recruiting analyst Tom Loy. The analyst made the pick on Tuesday with a confidence of 6.

In addition to Loy, Steve Wiltfong of On3 has also listed the Tar Heels as his pick in this race:

Burlington (Ky.) Cooper four-star EDGE Austin Alexander has been a coveted player on UNC’s list since he received an offer in August. And things look to be trending in the Tar Heels’ way as we head deeper into the spring.

On Wednesday, On3’s Steve Wiltfong placed an expert pick in the On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine (RPM) for Mack Brown and Co. to ultimately land Anderson. To do so, they’ll have to fight off in-state Kentucky, Notre Dame and a handful of other programs who would like to add him to their class.

Alexander is ranked No. 381 nationally, the No. 42 defensive lineman and No. 3 player in the state of Kentucky in the 247Sports recruiting rankings.

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