UNC Football: Tar Heels next opponent receives bad injury news

The next opponent of the UNC football program received some very unfortunate injury news, as their starting quarterback will miss the rest of the season.

With an 0-2 record to kick off the season, the official beginning of the Marcus Freeman era has not gotten off to the start Notre Dame was hoping for.

Things continue to get worse for the Fighting Irish, as it was announced that starting quarterback Tyler Buchner is expected to miss the remainder of the 2022 season.

The sophomore quarterback was injured in Notre Dame’s weekend loss to Marshall, and it has been revealed that he has a significant left shoulder sprain. With surgery upcoming, the San Diego, California native is expected to need approximately four months to recover.

Freeman announced that the Fighting Irish will turn to fellow sophomore Drew Pyne to take over the reins of the offense. Pyne completed three of his six passes, including both a touchdown and an interception, in relief of Buchner on Saturday afternoon.

Why is this important? Well, the UNC football program is scheduled to host Notre Dame in just under two weeks, so this is definitely something that is notable heading into this anticipated matchup.

Prior to the start of the season, Notre Dame was among the top-ranked teams in the country, so their assured losing record heading into this contest should be a bit of a surprise.

Expect the Tar Heels coaching staff to keep an even closer eye on the Fighting Irish this weekend, as they’ll host California for their third game of the year. With a small sample size of Pyne (who has only thrown a total of 39 passes in his college career), look for the UNC football program to examine how the offense may look different with him under center.

For a defensive unit that has struggled, the focus should be on the fact that this Notre Dame offense is still very talented. If the Tar Heels can shut down the team’s running attack, which may ultimately be relied upon more moving forward, they may have the chance to really stifle the Fighting Irish’s offensive attack.

With all eyes on the UNC football program’s next opponent, this injury news is certainly a development to keep an eye on.

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