Mack Brown reveals when he knew North Carolina defense was improved

North Carolina had one of the worst defenses in the country in 2022, ranking No. 116 nationally in total defense, while allowing 436.5 yards per game. The Tar Heels looked much improved on that side of the ball in their opener against South Carolina, holding Spencer Rattler and the Gamecocks to only 351 yards and 17 points.

Yes, Rattler had some success through the air — passing for 353 yards. However, UNC also sacked Rattler nine times and finished with 16 tackles for loss, while holding the Gamecocks to negative rushing yards.

North Carolina head coach Mack Brown met with the media earlier this week and shared when he knew his defense was improved.

“I thought it was a great message sent by the defense, and then the offense, in the first drives,” Brown said. “The defense had a three-and-out and they were all over it and should’ve had the sack. But you could see they were locked in. They were focused. And then the offense used different formations and moved the ball down and scored.”

South Carolina started its first drive from its own 25 and threw a backwards pass, which looked like it was going to be a double pass. However, North Carolina defended it well, and the play lost two yards.

On the second play from scrimmage, Rattler hit tight end Trey Knox for no gain as he was tackled immediately by Power Echols. Then on third-and-long, North Carolina rushed only three, nearly sacked Rattler and forced an incompletion.

UNC got the ball back, drove right down the field and scored in what was a sign of things to come.

“I felt really, really good after the first series on both sides of the ball,” Brown said.

Mack Brown on win over South Carolina: ‘Got some respect back’

North Carolina was one of the top teams in the ACC for much of last year, starting 9-1, before dropping its final four games.

The Tar Heels look to be back on track after the start of the 2023 season after beating South Carolina by two touchdowns in Week 1.

UNC head coach Mack Brown believes his team opened some eyes with the performance.

““Got some respect back that we lost the last four games of the season. Whether it was all fair or not, we lost a lot of respect,” Brown said. “But I thought we gained it back nationally on Saturday. It’s easy to gain back, hard to keep. So, you gotta make sure that you do it every week. That is the expectation that we have and the expectation that they have.”