Previewing the UNC football program's non-conference matchup with NC Central

The first game of a three-game homestand is in the books.

Next up for the UNC football program is FCS opponent North Carolina Central from nearby Durham (not the bad part). The Eagles were manhandled last weekend by Elon, 41-19. Their road does not get any easier with a visit to Chapel Hill up next.

Conner Harrell did enough to keep Charlotte from ever threatening an upset during a lovely, late summer afternoon at Kenan Stadium. He’ll need to improve if North Carolina wants to be competitive in an ACC that suddenly looks wide open. Harrell has an outstanding running game to help him, especially now that freshman Davion Gause has shown he’s a viable backup to the UNC football program's man-and-a-half running back Omarion Hampton.

In fact, Hampton could potentially sit out the NC Central game if Mack Brown wants to be extra cautious. The junior running back from Clayton, North Carolina sat out the second half against Charlotte as a precaution. He could have played, but with Gause handling business, there was no need to risk the crown jewels.

North Carolina's offense shouldn’t matter too much, as defense will be the name of the game. The Tar Heels have some coverage issues to clean up, but they could point to an outstanding 2 for 14 clearance rate on third down.

They get off the field if they stay on schedule!

Compare that to NC Central’s offense only getting 3 of 11 first downs on third down. You can see how this game could get lopsided if this trend holds.