Noah Taylor gives blunt answer on his role at North Carolina

The North Carolina Tar Heels were able to bring in former Virginia Cavaliers defensive star Noah Taylor this offseason through the transfer portal. At Virginia, Taylor was used all over the field. From outside rush linebacker to safety and even, at times, the nickel corner. However, at North Carolina, he will only have to focus on one position: the jack linebacker. During a recent press conference, Taylor gave a blunt answer on what responsibilities he will have to fulfill in his new role with the Tar Heels.

“Get the quarterback,” said Taylor. “That’s really it. Get the quarterback; dropping in coverage sometimes just to give relief to the corner maybe the safety here and there, but just get after the quarterback. That’s really it.”

With Taylor having to play all over the field for the Cavaliers, it was difficult for him to affect the game to his maximum potential, and it showed. In his final season at Virginia, Taylor had 69 tackles, 28 solo, 3.5 sacks, four passes defended, and one fumble recovered. Now with North Carolina, he can settle into one role and focus primarily on that task for the game plan.

Noah Taylor discusses transferring from Virginia to North Carolina

Noah Taylor took his talents from one ACC program to another, choosing to attend North Carolina and play under Mack Brown after the linebacker terrorized opponents for years with Virginia.

During a press conference earlier this week, Taylor spoke about how he’s adjusting to his new surroundings, including Tar Heels defensive coordinator Gene Chizik.

“It was really straightforward,” Taylor started, speaking about meeting Chizik for the first time. “Obviously, I committed under the old coach. But he was very confident in his approach. Knew exactly what he wanted to do with me right away. So, that was really good.”

While Taylor enjoyed his time with the Cavaliers, the linebacker added that it was simply time for a change as Virginia went through a coaching change of their own.

“I saw it as an opportunity, when Bronco [Mendenhall] decided to step-away from coaching, I saw it as an opportunity to try to get to see the way that somebody else runs a program,” explained Taylor. “Learn a new defense. Experience something new.

“You know, I was in Charlottesville for four years. I love that place, but it was just getting kind of boring, kind of old — just wanted to see something new.”