CHAPEL HILL — North Carolina coach Butch Davis spoke to the media Wednesday afternoon, fielding questions about the Tar Heel's next opponent, Connecticut.
He addressed his team's preparation for the the Huskies no-huddle offense and identified differences between the team the Tar Heels defeated last season and the one they will face on Saturday.
He said last year's 38-12 victory over the Huskies gave his team a "shot of confidence," going into the remainder of the season.
Davis said the defensive unit has been preparing to get a variety of defensive players into the game despite Uconn's no-huddle offense.
To simulate Connecticut's no-huddle, the Heels have been running groups of skill players to the line of scrimmage during practice. Davis said this should help the defense recognize changes in personnel. He said they are allowed to adjust personnel if the other team does so.
He said there should be litttle problem adjusting packages and safe-guarding against deep threats.
Edward joined the News & Observer staff in 2004. He is a graduate of American University and Johns Hopkins University. He covers Wake Forest football and women's college basketball for the N&O. Edward is a native of Washington, D.C. He can be reached at 829-4781 or 
Comments
Great read mate! I have
Thu, 11/19/2009 - 03:07 — LaehGuzGreat read mate! I have been following your posts for about a month now. Inpatient Heroin Detox Program
IMHO I think UNC's defense
Wed, 09/09/2009 - 21:30 — mad_maxIMHO I think UNC's defense easily holds UConn under 20 points (maybe even much less). The real question will be how effective UNC's offense is against a 1-a opponent. I don't really expect 40 points in this one, but it could happen, especially with some help from the defense. I'm taking UNC by two scores at this point.
Agreed
Wed, 09/09/2009 - 21:51 — Heels206 drops is unacceptable and we're facing a much better defense this week. I'm glad that we have an experienced QB and an improved running game, but it would still be very nice if we could catch some passes and establish a true two-deminsional offense. While I'm glad that we have a defense that can win games for us, I don't want to get too comfortable with it. Still 11 (hopefully 13) games left this year, and the competition is only going to get better.
The wr's..
Thu, 09/10/2009 - 08:23 — UNC1998need some sticky gloves. In all seriousness, I think the jitters were from playing in front of a large, loud crowd. That's over. I think the players will start to produce. Saturday would be a fantastic time to start. One place where I'm truly concerned is Yate's timing on the deep ball. I know the team is saying run first, but the deep ball keeps everybody honest, and UNC has to be able to hit those.
gloves like ...
Thu, 09/10/2009 - 11:23 — gvillegatrAndre Johnson in the Dick's commercial. Or even like Larry Fitzgerald in the IHOP commercial.
It sounded like the wind was blowing..
Wed, 09/09/2009 - 19:40 — UNC1998on those sound bites, but I appreciate it none the less. I know UConn has changed up some of their offense, but they will still try to run the ball. From the stats I've read, if their qb passes too much they might have 5 int's a game. He threw 3 against Ohio. I know Ohio is coached by former Nebraska coach Frank Solich, but I can't believe he's getting the athletes he may have one time got at the big "N". I just can't help but like UNC's chances to kind of open this game up and play well.
Never want to jump to conclusions...
Wed, 09/09/2009 - 20:53 — Heels20but I completely agree with you. While it's true that no game is a given, especially against a BCS opponent, this is definitely a game that we should win. The no-huddle offense serves as something extra to adjust to, but I don't think it's anything our guys can't handle. We have what appears to be a very good defense and an offense with a lot of potential, and because of that, we are our biggest enemy coming into this game. Our guys need to show up prepared.