Keeping It Heel
Fansided

UNC Football: Keys To The Game: Clemson Tigers Edition

By Jordan Falls

Nov 11, 2023; Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels linebacker Cedric Gray (33) and defensive lineman Kevin Hester Jr. (98) and defensive back Marcus Allen (29) celebrate in the third quarter at Kenan Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 11, 2023; Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels linebacker Cedric Gray (33) and defensive lineman Kevin Hester Jr. (98) and defensive back Marcus Allen (29) celebrate in the third quarter at Kenan Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports /
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CHAPEL HILL, NORTH CAROLINA – NOVEMBER 11: Drake Maye #10 of the North Carolina Tar Heels reacts after rushing for a touchdown against the Duke Blue Devils during the game at Kenan Memorial Stadium on November 11, 2023 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. The Tar Heels won 47-45 in double overtime. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images)
CHAPEL HILL, NORTH CAROLINA – NOVEMBER 11: Drake Maye #10 of the North Carolina Tar Heels reacts after rushing for a touchdown against the Duke Blue Devils during the game at Kenan Memorial Stadium on November 11, 2023 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. The Tar Heels won 47-45 in double overtime. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images) /

Convert Red Zone Trips into Touchdowns

This has been a headache for the UNC Football offense for the last several weeks, it seems, and even more so most recently against Duke. Settling for field goals and not touchdowns inside the 20-yard line will not beat a talented team like Clemson.

Last week, the Tar Heels got to the red zone NINE times and only came away with four touchdowns. Ready for some math? That means every time Carolina settled for a field goal instead of a touchdown, they were leaving four points on the board each time, on five trips, that’s 20 more points.

As Jake Lawrence on X points out, the Tar Heels offense has either been all or nothing on red zone conversions this year, it seems. When they are converting, they are doing so at a high rate, but when they are missing, they miss often.

It’s also worth noting that when they miss 50% or less of their attempts (with the exception being Syracuse), they are in a close game, too. Against Appalachian State and Duke, they went to double overtime. Against Virginia, they failed to convert twice and lost by four.

Converting red zone trips to points is great, but against the Tigers on Saturday, those need to be seven-point trips, not just three.

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