We are closing in on the season opener for the Tar Heels in Minneapolis meaning it is time for us to give you some predictions for the upcoming season. We’ll start with our breakout players for this upcoming season, an exercise that in the past has created some big hits and massive misses. Here are the five players that each of our guys see bursting onto the scene in 2024.
Anthony
Kaleb Cost
Cost is a guy that this Tar Heel staff has been raving about throughout fall camp and there is reason to believe he has a chance to thrive in the STAR position this season. He gave us a preview of what to expect in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl, where he finished with four total tackles and allowed just three of his six targets to be caught for 25 yards. He showed the ability to make plays on the ball with two pass breakups and the team is in need of more defensive backs that can do just that. When you combine that ability with his tackling ability, it culminates into the making of someone who should have nice success out of the STAR position, especially in Collins's more aggressive scheme.
Beau Atkinson
Atkinson only played limited reps last season, but he flashed something that Des Evans simply didn’t. In just 229 snaps, he racked up 19 total tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks and 14 quarterback pressures, all numbers that could explode if he is given more reps this season. The staff has raved about the camp that he has had and are discussing creative ways to get him on the field, especially since he is a better run defender on the edge than Evans. I expect the reps to be more evenly split this season and that should result in a big season for him opposite Kaimon Rucker.
John Copenhaver
Last year was supposed to be the breakout year for Copenhaver, but a broken hand suffered on the first drive of last season limited him as a pass catcher. With that injury in the rearview, this could be the career year that he was looking for. Last season, with just one good hand for the majority of the way, he caught 18 passes for 279 yards and four touchdowns, including an amazing one-handed grab in that opener against South Carolina. Bryson Nesbit will limit his targets a bit, but it shouldn’t be enough to prevent him from being able to double his production from last year.
Amare Campbell
Campbell is set to be the next in a line of extremely successful linebackers that the team has produced since Brown’s return. He really impressed the staff last offseason with how quickly he was able to pick things up and looked capable in the limited reps that we saw him play last year. The bowl game wasn’t his best performance as he missed a team-high three tackles, but the staff and his teammates have been very pleased by what they’ve seen from him this offseason. With a summer of work alongside Echols and that bowl game as motivation, I envision a big season for Campbell when he returns from a broken right hand that he suffered in the middle of fall camp.
Chris Culliver
It seems like every year I try to predict the next breakout receiver and I’m not shying away from it this year. The Tar Heels are in need of a deep threat receiver with Tez Walker gone after just one season and Culliver fits that perfectly. He showed in the Campbell game last season what he is capable of and the comparisons to Dyami Brown coming out of high school are still sticking with me. He has been dealing with a bit of a hip ailment this offseason, but as long as it isn’t something that carries over into the season, he has a great chance to emerge as the big play threat for this offense this season.
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Joshua Harris
If there’s one thing you can say about Mack Brown, it’s that he’s honest, so whenever he openly raves about a player, you should take that to heart. One of the guys he’s talked so much about this training camp, has been Joshua Harris, who arrived at UNC via the transfer portal, and has made an immediate impact on and off the field. If this defense is going to take the next step, it starts up front, and Harris has brought energy, and leadership to that group. For a guy that’s on his third school, there’s a sense of urgency for Harris to make his impact felt, and more importantly, play for a winner. Harris’s arrival might help get the most out of the other members of the defensive line, which is good news for a defensive line gorup, that is looking to get the right amount of production, out of the talent that exists in that room.
Marcus Allen
Those of you that have listened to the podcast for the last couple of years know how big of a fan I am of Marcus Allen, and that hasn’t changed. Allen has been another player that Mack Brown has raved about this preseason, complimenting him for adding weight to his frame. Allen played over 900 snaps last season, but now has the body to go along with the talent, which means a big season could be in store. The fact that Elijah Huzzie will draw the #1 assignment also opens up the dore for Allen to be a consistent #2 corner, and being a player that won’t wear down as the season moves along. Don’t rule out Allen being in contention for All-ACC honros in 2024.
Kaleb Cost
Another defensive player makes the list, meaning that maybe this writer is putting too much trust and faith in Geoff Collins’s arrival in Chapel Hill. We saw what Kaleb Cost could do in the bowl game loss to West Virginia, and he has taken the STAR position over, and is ready to play a significant role in the secondary. His ability to make plays in open space will be a welcomed sight, and could change the defense’s outlook as a whole.
Conner Harrell
We finally get to an offensive player, and one that as of right now, may not be UNC’s starter when they take the field next Thursday at Minnesota. Max Johnson may be more experienced, and has a track record of taking care of the football, but Harrell is the better fit for Chip Lindsay’s offense. Harrell has a strong arm, and as he improves his accuracy, will become the best man to lead the offense. His ability to make plays wit his legs will give the offense a Marquise Williams like feel, which will help take the pressure off of Omarion Hampton to carry the load. I can’t tell you when Harrell will be UNC’s starter, but by the end of the season, Mack Brown will have found his QB of the future, one capable of bridging the program into the post Drake Maye era.
Chris Culliver
Not only will Carolina find their next QB of the future, they’ll also find their top wide receiver, that in the form of Chris Culliver, who has the potential to be the deep threat this offense desperately needs. We saw how explosive he could be at different times last season, and with no Tez Walker, the door is open for Culliver to be a big part of Carolina’s passing game. It might take some time for Culliver to breakout as UNC is still trying to figure out their QB situation, and whether it’s Max Johnson or Conner Harrell that emerges, Culliver will be at the forefront of whichever QB has success.
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