UNC fans once tore down goal posts after beating Miami. But this ACC matchup is about 2019

If the biggest improvement in a football team comes, as coaches often say, from Week 1 to Week 2, the University of Miami should have some bonus points kick in at 8 p.m. Saturday.

The Hurricanes (0-1) will meet the North Carolina Tar Heels (1-0) at a sold-out Kenan Memorial Stadium in Chapel Hill after having an extra week to be driven by a season-opening loss to the then-No. 8 Florida Gators — and prepare for a Tar Heels team that upset South Carolina with an impressive, come-from-behind performance by true freshman quarterback Sam Howell.

This will be the first Atlantic Coast Conference game for the Coastal Division members, so the outcome is critical in the quest to represent the Coastal in the league title game Dec. 7 in Charlotte, North Carolina.

UM will face the Tar Heels for the first time since pounding them 47-10 last season at Hard Rock Stadium. The Heels, who finished 2-9 in 2018, are five-point underdogs — but no pushovers. UNC is 5-3 against Miami at Kenan Stadium, including 2004, the year Miami came in ranked fourth against the 3-4 Tar Heels. The Heels won on a last-second 42-yard field goal as Carolina blue-garbed fans spilled onto the field and tore down the goal posts.

But most of today’s Hurricanes were in elementary school then, and these Canes are focusing on Saturday.

“It didn’t take long to put away the Florida game,’’ insisted UM linebacker Shaq Quarterman this week. “Press on. That’s the only thing we’ve been talking about. We can’t sit and sulk.’’

For Hurricanes coach Manny Diaz, the game will pit him against the coach who fired him after the second game of the 2013 season, when Diaz was the defensive coordinator at Texas under Mack Brown, now the UNC head coach. Then in his third season at Texas, Diaz’s defense gave up a program-worst 550 rushing yards in a 40-21 loss to BYU.

“Our performance on defense last night was unacceptable,’’ Brown said in a statement after Diaz was fired, “and we need to change that.’’

Fast forward almost exactly six years to the day, and Diaz, who has since proven to be one of the nation’s foremost masters of defense, will face Brown for the first time as a head coach.

“We have a fine relationship,’’ Diaz said, when asked on his WQAM radio show if this was a payback game for him pertaining to Brown. “Everyone is coming to watch the players play and certainly not the coaches go.’’

Said Brown of Diaz on Wednesday: “Very honestly, we weren’t playing good defense, so it wasn’t him, it was just the timing. And he understood that. Manny is a professional, and he’s really good. We’ve moved way beyond that.’’

If anything, Diaz expounded, the Hurricanes will be the ones the Tar Heels intend to pay back.

“What you have to understand,’’ Diaz said, “is we’re on their hit list. Obviously we had a great night against North Carolina last year.

In 2018, the Hurricanes dominated North Carolina by forcing six turnovers, returning three for touchdowns in N’Kosi Perry’s first start at quarterback.

But a year later, redshirt sophomore Perry is the backup to redshirt freshman Jarren Williams, who was named the UM starter before the Florida game.

Williams, sacked 10 times against Florida, has spent the past two weeks trying to focus on his receivers and progressions, as opposed to “watching the rush’’ as defenders hone in on some man-to-man havoc. Keep in mind that UM’s extremely young offensive line, with true freshman Zion Nelson at left tackle and redshirt freshman John Campbell at right tackle, didn’t help.

“All that happens here every day is just daily improvement,’’ Diaz said regarding Williams’ progress with the extra week of practice. “You come in, you run your stuff [and] you just find a way to do it better than you did the day before — so he’s doing well. But it gets back to the same point: If we would’ve thrown a touchdown pass on the last drive [against Florida] and won 27-24, we would not have come in here and done anything differently. So, Jarren, like all the guys, is finding a way to better master what it is we’re trying to do.’’

UNC last week won its first opener against a Power 5 opponent since 1997 and held the Gamecocks to 270 yards — fairly evenly split at 128 yards rushing and 142 yards passing.

Tar Heels safety Myles Wolfolk had two interceptions in the the final three minutes, earning UNC’s new, massive turnover belt that resembles the ones worn by WWE champs.

Wolfolk was asked this week if there would be a battle of dueling turnover belts, as the Hurricanes actually started the trend in 2017 with their turnover chain.

“You’re going to see on Saturday,’’ Wolfolk said, laughing.

The Canes’ defense held UF to 304 yards, only 50 of them on the ground.

“They really like their backs, so they are going to do anything they can to keep the ball in their playmakers’ hands and it always starts with the run,’’ Quarterman said of the Tar Heels, who rushed for 238 yards last week behind Javonte Williams’ 102 yards, Michael Carter’s 77 and Antonio Williams’ 53. “We’re always going to stop the run first and deal with everything [else] second.’’

The Hurricanes are 11-11 all-time against UNC, and 8-7 since the Canes joined the ACC in 2004.

“As a team, we just want to win,’’ Miami cornerback Trajan Bandy said. “Everything else is going to take care of itself.’’

This story was originally published September 6, 2019 at 10:54 AM.