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UNC Football: Tar Heels crack top 20 in Sporting News preseason poll

By Blake Cockrum

ANNAPOLIS, MD - DECEMBER 27: Head Coach Mack Brown of the North Carolina Tar Heels watches the game against the Temple Owls in the Military Bowl Presented by Northrop Grumman at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium on December 27, 2019 in Annapolis, Maryland. (Photo by G Fiume/Getty Images)
ANNAPOLIS, MD - DECEMBER 27: Head Coach Mack Brown of the North Carolina Tar Heels watches the game against the Temple Owls in the Military Bowl Presented by Northrop Grumman at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium on December 27, 2019 in Annapolis, Maryland. (Photo by G Fiume/Getty Images) /
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The UNC football program is ranked 19th in the Sporting News preseason top 25

The North Carolina football program is coming off its first winning season in three years, and hoping to build on the seven-win campaign that resulted in a fourth-place division finish and a victory in the 2019 Military Bowl.

That momentum has expectations high in Chapel Hill this year, evidenced by The Sporting News‘ top-20 ranking of the Tar Heels to begin the 2020 season. Coming in at No. 19 in the poll, the Tar Heels welcome back rising sophomore quarterback Sam Howell, who figures to be one of the top signal callers in college football this season. The Tar Heels also welcome back one of the nation’s top receiving corps that’s led by Dazz Newsome and Dyami Brown. In the back field, North Carolina boasts a pair of runners that combined for nearly 2,000 yards rushing last season.

The Clemson Tigers are ranked first in the poll, and they’re followed by Ohio State and Alabama. Georgia and LSU, the 2020 College Football Playoff champion, round out the top-5. Oregon is No. 6 in the poll, and Oklahoma is seventh. Notre Dame, Penn State and Florida are ranked eight through ten. Auburn, Minnesota, Texas, Oklahoma State and Michigan are ranked 11th through 15th. Wisconsin, Texas A&M and Utah are 16, 17 and 18. After the Tar Heels at No. 19, it’s Cincinnati, Arizona State, Louisville, Kentucky, UFC and Boise State.

Next. Early bowl projections for Tar Heels. dark

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