UNC Football: 5-star hoping to visit Tar Heels before decision?

Mack Brown and the UNC Football program have found success on the recruiting trail over the past three cycles. With two back-to-back Top 20 classes under their belts, the staff at North Carolina are hoping for another big class in 2022.

One way of ensuring that would be to land a big five-star recruit in this cycle.

A prospect that the Tar Heels are in on that would fit that mold is five-star offensive tackle Zach Rice. The 6-foot-6, 282-pound Lynchburg, Virginia native is among the top recruits in the country and is starting to see his recruitment heat up a bit.

Rice has a total of 35 offers in his recruitment so far but has trimmed that list down to Florida, LSU, Miami, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oklahoma, and Virginia. He did say that Alabama is picking up some momentum, so that Top 8 list might not be final just yet.

But where do the Tar Heels stand? Rice caught up with Tar Heel Illustrated this past weekend and discussed his recruitment. In the interview, Rice talks about a decision timeline and the fact that he does want to visit schools including the Tar Heels before he makes a decision.

"“I want to do a set date, but I know when I get down and finally see these schools, it’s kind of going to be harder. I feel like it’d be an easy decision right now as we’re speaking, but once I finally get to see these schools, then I feel like it’ll probably take me longer to make a decision.”"

Rice also went on to say that he went to a few UNC games last season including at home against N.C. State and then on the road against Virginia. Additionally, he did say that he does talk to the staff and revealed what he likes best about his relationship with North Carolina:

"“I’d say the biggest thing is I got on the phone with Coach (John) Lilly about a few months before the game and he showed me the stadium and stuff on FaceTime. And when I got there, it was kind of like deja vu. I already knew where everything was, it was crazy. And I would say the biggest thing is, kind of talking to Mack Brown and stuff, just the opportunity they gave me."

Rice is ranked as the No. 21 overall recruit, No. 1 offensive tackle, and the No. 2 player in the state of Virginia per the 247 Sports recruiting rankings. 

For more on the UNC Football program, please check back with Keeping It Heel.