UNC Football Positional Grades vs. Clemson

Sep 27, 2014; Clemson, SC, USA; Clemson Tigers wide receiver Mike Williams (7) catches the ball for a touchdown while being defended by North Carolina Tar Heels cornerback M.J. Stewart (6) during the third quarter at Clemson Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Joshua S. Kelly-USA TODAY Sports

Defense: D-

Where should I start?

Yes, the defense definitely improved from last week.  But that was not terribly difficult.  Against Clemson, they “only” gave up fifty points and 528 yards.  Much better than the seventy and 789 they gave up against East Carolina.  But that doesn’t mean that this week’s numbers were good.

From Clemson’s second play of the game, a 74 yard touchdown pass to the wide open Germone Hopper, the Heels could not stop the Tigers to save their life.  And, when I say that Hopper was wide open, I mean, he was wide open.  As in, somehow he caught the ball with no Tar Heel defender within ten yards of him.  And the thing was, there were other Tigers who were even more open than Hopper.  For example, there were no Tar Heel players within twenty yards of Mike Williams.

The Tar Heels’ coverage was dismal all night long.  Clemson quarterback Deshaun Watson, making his first career start, had his pick of wide open receivers all night.  On some of the plays, there were no defenders in the same area code as the Clemson receivers.

Coverage was not the only problem for UNC, as they struggled with tackling.  Again.  I am so tired of writing about all the missed tackles that the Heels have had.  So, rather than describe how poor the tackling was, I’ll show you.

So, not only did Deshaun Watson have tons of time (like he did most of the night), he had a wide open receiver (again, like he did most of the night).  Then, after making the catch, Artavis Scott was able to make one defender miss, and then drag two defenders into the end zone.  Come on defense!  You have got to be better!