Tar Heels Football: 3 Things UNC must do to beat Miami

UNC travels to take on Miami in a must-win to keep their ACC Coastal Division hopes alive

During the 2015 college football season, the North Carolina Tar Heels defeated the Miami Hurricanes 59-21.

The victory against Miami was monumental for several reasons: Ryan Switzer recorded his seventh punt return for a touchdown, North Carolina recorded the most points in consecutive games (125 including 59 against Miami) and this game marked the first time UNC had a nine-win season since 1997.

Enter 2016.

The Miami Hurricanes (4-1, 1-1) are ranked No. 16 in the nation. North Carolina (4-2, 2-1) was ranked for one week before being knocked out of the top 25 with their second loss to Virginia Tech last week.

Last year’s game took place on Tobacco Road. This year’s matchup will occur in the Glades. This game will be a dog fight. Miami will be seeking revenge for last year’s beatdown from the hands of the Tar Heels.

Now, let’s take a look at three things UNC must do to beat Miami.

Nov 14, 2015; Chapel Hill, NC, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels linebacker Jeff Schoettmer (10) tackles Miami Hurricanes running back Mark Walton (1) during the second quarter at Kenan Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Evan Pike-USA TODAY Sports

Slow down Mark Walton!

Some of you are unfamiliar with Mark Walton. Let me re-introduce him to you.

Walton ranks fifth in the ACC in rushing yards (484). He accomplished this with 77 carries. In addition, he has eight rushing touchdowns along with seven receptions for 70 yards. Walton averages 6.3 yards per carry and 10 yards per reception.

In other words, Walton is a beast. Flat out. He has the potential to dominate ANY game ANY given time. If there was a movie about him, the proper title would be, “Any Given Saturday.” Why? Because any given Saturday can be a Walton-fest or Walton-Con, full of touchdowns and highlight reels.

Miami’s only loss came from the hands of the Florida State Seminoles, 20-19. Prior to this game, Miami averaged 47 points per game. Another interesting statistic is the way that Florida State won the game.

They shut down Walton.

In the Florida State game, Walton rushed 14 times for 39 yards and caught three passes for 42 yards. This is the only game this season where he did not score a touchdown.

Florida State has the blueprint to beating Miami. Shut down Walton and you slow Miami’s offense. North Carolina must duplicate what Florida State accomplished against Miami to win the game. Walton is the focal point of the Miami’s offense.

Shut him down and Miami will be limited on offense.

Nov 14, 2015; Chapel Hill, NC, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels wide receiver Ryan Switzer (3) returns a punt for a touchdown in the second quarter at Kenan Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

Get Ryan Switzer the ball…BY ANY MEANS NECESSARY!!!!!

Mitch Trubisky may be the quarterback and Elijah Hood may be the running back, but Ryan Switzer represents the heart and soul of the offense.

Switzer is ‘the little engine that could,’ no pun intended. ‘The Little Engine That Could’ is a children’s story about optimism and hard work. This describes Ryan Switzer. Switzer may be small in stature, but he plays on a big level.

Last week against Virginia Tech, Switzer caught two passes for two yards. The offense was out of sync. Some people blamed the Hurricane Matthew. The Tar Heels were not prepared.

It is no secret that Switzer is Trubisky’s favorite target. On the season, Switzer has 49 receptions for 589 yards and two touchdowns. It is very possible for Switzer to catch 100 passes this season. As the slot receiver, Switzer is a possession receiver as well as a deep threat.

On special teams, Switzer has the ability and opportunity to impact ANY game. As a punt returner, Switzer has proven to be one of the best football players to ever play this position. Saturday’s game may come down to Switzer’s ability to impact the game as a wide receiver AND punt returner.

The ball needs to be in Switzer’s hands a lot on Saturday. It would behoove North Carolina to pull out a few trick plays on offense designed for Switzer. Give him the ball in a few reverses, a flea flicker and/or a fake reverse play action pass.

The more Switzer gets the ball, the more North Carolina moves down the field and scores.

Oct 1, 2016; Tallahassee, FL, USA; Florida State Seminoles defensive back Nate Andrews (29) cannot bring down North Carolina Tarheels quarterback Mitch Trubisky (10) as he scores a touchdown at Doak Campbell Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Melina Vastola-USA TODAY Sports

Mitch Trubisky must remain cool, calm and collected!

When Mitch Trubisky plays well, the North Carolina Tar Heels win games. UNC’s success corresponds to Trubisky’s ability to run the offense efficiently and effectively. It is safe to say as Trubisky goes, so does Carolina.

North Carolina has done one thing that Miami could not do. They beat Florida State this season.

Against Florida State, Trubisky was cool, calm and collected. Trubisky completed 31 of his 38 passes for 405 yards and three touchdowns. Trubisky had seven different receivers catch passes from him.

His primary targets are Ryan Switzer and Mack Hollins. Austin Proehl has become a new favorite of Trubisky’s this season, also.

Trubisky has a good chance to be an all-conference quarterback despite the ACC having two potential Heisman Trophy candidates in Lamar Jackson (Louisville) and Deshaun Watson (Clemson).

Moreover, Trubisky could potentially play himself into Heisman consideration with an outstanding display of skills this weekend. In all honesty (aside from being a Tar Heel myself), Trubisky deserves Heisman consideration. His stats are right up there with Jackson and Watson.

If Trubisky underperforms against Miami, then North Carolina does not have a good chance of winning the game. Trubisky leads this team by his play. Despite not being a vocal leader, Trubisky shows and proves why he is UNC’s starting quarterback. However, if Trubisky plays well, then Miami will have a hard time slowing down Carolina’s high-octane offense.

After last week’s debacle, expect a better performance from Trubisky. He will be determined to lead the Tar Heels to victory. The run game will be important for UNC, but their bread-and-butter is their passing game. Hopefully, the weather will be favorable for Trubisky to air the ball 35 to 40 times.