It may not have been as easy as we were hoping, but the Tar Heels were able to take down the Charlotte 49ers 38-20 in their homes. As the team prepares to host NC Central this weekend, here’s a look at who is trending up and who is trending down heading into that matchup.
⇧Davion Gause
With starting running back Omarion Hampton getting banged up early in the game on Saturday and Darwin Barlow sidelined with an injury, Gause got the opportunity to handle the bulk of the reps and thrived. He led the team in rushing on Saturday, rushing for 105 yards and a touchdown on 16 carries, showcasing great decisiveness and downhill running ability. This week should provide another opportunity for him to see carries, but Saturday’s performance alone should have been enough to secure him that RB2 role the rest of the season.
⇧Jahvaree Ritzie
Ritzie may be the best defensive tackle in college football through the first three weeks of action after he put together another outstanding pass rushing performance on Saturday. He only had two tackles the entire day, but both of them were sacks, giving him 5.0 through the first two games of the season. He becomes the first Tar Heel pass rusher to tally five sacks in two game span since Kareem Martin back in 2023 and he is well on pace to break the program record of 9.0 in a season for a defensive tackle. Something seems to have been awakened inside of Ritzie this season and it has given a much-needed boost to this pass rush.
⇧Run Defense
We have been waiting for the better part of the last twelve years for a Tar Heel defense that could stop the run and this year’s unit has done so in the first two games of the season. Through two games, the team is allowing just 64 rushing yards per game, including just 64 yards total in the last six quarters. It all starts up front where the guys in the middle have stepped up. Travis Shaw and Joshua Harris have led the charge while the edge rushers have done a much better job of sealing the edges so far this season. The linebackers and safeties have done a good job cleaning up anything that has slipped through that defensive front. The hope is that this group can continue to get this type of push up front against some of the ACC opponents they are going to face.
⇧Amare Campbell
Campbell built off of his strong start to the season with an even better performance on Saturday. He led the team in tackles with seven and tied for the team lead in tackles for loss with 1.5. He got after the quarterback again, as well registering a sack for the second straight week and two other pressures, as well. Campbell has been fantastic out of the gate so far this season and that has been while playing with a broken hand.
⇧Alijah Huzzie
While the defensive backfield as a whole has struggled, Huzzie has been fantastic in the first two games of the season. He was tremendous in coverage once again, allowing two of the three targets to be caught for just 4 yards, meaning that he has allowed just six yards on the four catches that he has allowed in the first two games. He was involved heavily as a tackler, tallying four total tackles, including 1.5 for loss. He has been the team’s best all-around defensive player so far this year and there’s no reason to expect he won’t continue to be moving forward.
⇧Zach Greenberg
Greenberg was forced into action on Saturday when Austin Blaske went down with a lower body injury and he shined. He graded out as the team’s second-best pass blocker (84.2) while failing to allow a single pressure and held his own in the run blocking situations, as well. He won’t overtake Blaske as the starter based off of that performance, but he did prove that he is someone that the team can trust as a rotational piece.
⇧Bryson Nesbit
Nesbit exited the game early on Saturday with an upper body injury, but not before setting a new program record. He hauled in the first touchdown of the game, which gave him eleven in his career. With that touchdown, Nesbit overtakes former teammate Kamari Morales for the most by a tight end in program history. Nesbit seems to have avoided any sort of significant injury and should be able to continue his quest to add that record as soon as this weekend.
⇧Conner Harrell
Harrell was the most important guy that we wanted to see trending up and he is despite some inaccuracies. After a few missed throws early, he really settled into the game in the second half and made some nice throws at all three levels and shined when he tucked the ball and ran. This wasn’t exactly the perfect performance from Harrell, but he showed that he has the capability to lead this offense and put points on the board.
⇩Kaleb Cost
The defensive backfield as a whole had a brutal day, but no one had it worse than Cost. While he only allowed two of his five targets to be caught, but both of them were catches of 34 yards or more. In the first two games of this season, Cost has allowed three receptions of 20 or more yards which is a concerning trend. If he can’t provide more resistance in that nickel spot, the team will eventually have to take a look at Tre Miller or Ty White.
⇩Marcus Allen
Allen’s issues with consistency have carried over into the start of this season and were present again on Saturday. He was targeted eight times and allowed just four to be caught, but he once again was beaten on another big play down the field. The team needs him to stop being so hit-or-miss in coverage because the explosive plays are hurting this defense right now.
⇩Safeties
This group was picked apart in coverage on Saturday. Jakeen Harris, Will Hardy and DeAndre Boykins all allowed completions of 20 or more yards, explosive plays that this defense can’t be allowing at that rate. This unit was supposed to be the strength of this defense and right now they are one of the biggest weaknesses.
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