Mack Brown shares plan to replace Caleb Hood at running back

North Carolina has lost starting running back Caleb Hood to a season-ending injury, and luckily for the Tar Heels, they have enough depth at the position that head coach Mack Brown feels confident in his backfield moving forward.

Brown listed a number of players – DJ Jones, Elijah Green, Omarion Hampton, George Pettaway – as the different tailbacks that have impressed him this season either at practice, or in the game on special teams. The Tar Heels head man wants to see all four of them impacting the game on Saturday if they’re given the opportunity.

“At running back, whoever’s hot, whoever’s healthy, whoever fits the type of ball we need to play as compared to the defense and what they’re forcing us to do, put them in there,” Brown said ahead of Saturday’s matchup. “[Running backs coach] Larry [Porter] put George [Pettaway] in there in a critical spot the other day to catch flare, and the ball wasn’t where he needed it to be, but we’re really trying to do a great job of managing those backs and getting the right one on the field.”

CLICK HERE to subscribe for FREE to the On3 YouTube channel

Luckily for the Tar Heels, they keep their leading rusher – quarterback Drake Maye – and Hampton, a true freshman tailback, is the team’s leading rusher out of the running backs room with 78 carries for 358 yards and six touchdowns. In fact, Hampton has over 30 more touches than Hood this season and six more touchdowns this season, so slotting Hampton into the starting role should be seamless, in theory.

Elsewhere, Green, Pettaway and Jones have combined for 288 yards and five scores this season, and have collectively been a vital part of the Carolina rushing attack all year, when healthy.

Now that Hood is done for the year, Brown will look to lean heavily on Hampton for extended carries, but believes any of the other three backs (all of which average around five yards per carry) can get the job done if their number is called.

Whether Brown’s plan in the backfield works as smoothly as he’s laid out remains to be seen, but it’ll be put to the test during Saturday’s annual battle between Carolina and Virginia in the 127th edition of The South’s Oldest Rivalry.