Discipline the key for North Carolina against Georgia Tech

By Lee Roberts  |   Thursday, November 06, 2008  |  Comments( 1 )

North Carolina Tar Heels
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The North Carolina Tar Heels have an opportunity to take a giant step toward the school’s first ACC Coastal Division crown this weekend against Georgia Tech. Butch Davis has his youthful team ahead of schedule, but it must show discipline beyond its years to beat Georgia Tech.

Commentary: This game has enormous impact on the ACC title chase. The two schools are part of a five-way tie atop the Coastal Division and the winner should emerge as the favorite to win it. If North Carolina is going to pull out the victory at home, its defense will have to prevent the Yellow Jacket offense from making big plays.

The Tar Heels’ rushing defense has been solid this season, allowing only 113.6 yards per game. Of course, it hasn’t faced a ground game like Georgia Tech’s, which is averaging 242.3 yards per contest out of its option attack. The key to stopping the Yellow Jackets is speed and discipline. The Tar Heels have plenty of speed on defense, but this Saturday will test its discipline.

North Carolina’s defense is led by its line and sophomore linebackers Quan Sturdivant and Bruce Carter. Sophomore Marvin Austin helms a D-line that has and zero seniors on the entire depth chart. The youth on the defense is talented, but it's also inexperienced. The immaturity showed up against Virginia Tech earlier in the year, causing several penalties that aided the Hokies' comeback.

Georgia Tech’s offense will grind away at its enemy and hope it makes a mistake. Whether that mistake is missing an assignment or overrunning a play, it will lead to a big gain for the Yellow Jackets. If North Carolina’s young defense can avoid these costly mistakes, it should lead to a great win for this up-and-coming program.

Fan Pulse: This blog thinks that forcing turnovers is the key for the Tar Heels. Georgia Tech has had some issues with fumbles; thus, if UNC can capitalize, it should bode well for a victory

Injury Watch: QB T.J. Yates might be available in a backup role and TE Zach Pianalto is questionable with an ankle injury.
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About Lee Roberts

Born in Richmond, Va, I moved south to UNC-Chapel Hill for college and received a degree in Journalism and Mass Communication. I currently live in Charlotte, NC and cover Auburn, LSU and the ...
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