Mack Brown Deserves Far More Praise for UNC's Dramatic Turnaround
By Michael Luciano
The North Carolina Tar Heels might have just finished the most impressive 7-6 season in the history of college football, as former Texas head coach Mack Brown has the Tar Heels as one of the best teams in the ACC just a year removed from a pathetic end to the Larry Fedora era.
The Military Bowl domination of Temple was the cherry on top of a seven-win season, in which a 38-31 loss to ranked Virginia was the worst loss of the season, in terms of point differential.
UNC went 2-9 last year. In Mack Brown's first year, UNC won their first bowl since 2013 by a 55-13 margin, and did not lose a game by more than 7 points.
— RedditCFB (@RedditCFB) December 27, 2019
Brown not only either won or lost by seven points or less in every game this year, but he lost to the two best teams in the conference, Virginia and Clemson, by a combined eight points, with the Tar Heels coming up just short against the Tigers.
Most Passing TD in a Season in ACC History
— Bryan Ives (@awaytoworthy) December 27, 2019
2016 - Deshaun Watson (CLEM): 41
2013 - Jameis Winston (FSU): 40
2019 - Sam Howell (UNC): 37
As a recruiter, Brown has worked his magic touch once again. According to 247, UNC is in the Top 20 for next season, just behind Oregon, and ahead of Nebraska and Florida State.
By hiring former Ole Miss offensive coordinator Phil Longo to instill the Air Raid, freshman quarterback Sam Howell has blossomed into a star. Howell's 38 touchdown passes are a program record for a single season, and it puts him sixth in program history total, as he trails Mitch Trubisky by three touchdowns.
Pretty neat that UNC, Duke, and NC State were undefeated in their bowl games.
— Sleeping Giant University (@UNC_Humor) December 27, 2019
Talking about representing the Triangle.
Fedora's 2-9 season last year left the Tar Heels as a black void with nothing to offer. Brown has been in Chapel Hill for one season, and he's made them a force on the recruiting trail, and has them set up as one of the most exciting teams in college football for the 2020 season.
Agree on not going too overboard based on a bowl game. I’m offering overall historic context. Of the previous 42 teams to lose 5 games by a TD or less (as UNC did), there was an avg improvement of 2.3 wins the next year & half won at least 3 more games. It’s luck, growth, etc. https://t.co/HoJu22NJlX
— Hale Yes! (@ADavidHaleJoint) December 27, 2019
Who's ready for two more years of Sam Howell and significant hype?