The UNC football program suffered a major blow to its offensive line unit

Throughout the preseason, college football programs try their best to remain as healthy as possible.

Unfortunately, the injury bug has hit the UNC football program in a big way.

According to Inside Carolina, offensive lineman Austin Blaske suffered a non-contact foot injury in training camp. The team is awaiting further evaluation, but it appears as if the sixth-year senior will miss an extended amount of time due to the injury.

Blaske reportedly broke his foot, an injury that will likely sideline him for the next two months. While the injury isn't good, the positive is that the program believes he can return to the field as early as October 4 when the Tar Heels host Clemson in Chapel Hill.

The UNC football program's offensive line unit underwent a major overhaul this offseason, but Blaske remained in town for the start of the Bill Belichick era. After starting at center for the Tar Heels a season ago, Belichick was experimenting with the idea of playing him at other positions along the offensive line, as the veteran was getting reps at center, guard and tackle.

Regarded as the Tar Heels' best overall offensive lineman, the starting unit (however it shaped up) was undoubtedly going to include Blaske in some capacity.

This is a major blow for the UNC football program. Considering how he's a leader on the field and in the locker room, the Tar Heels are hoping he can return to action as soon as possible, as his presence in the trenches makes this unit significantly better than it is without him in the mix.

While they await further testing and evaluation, the UNC football program is holding its breath that the injury isn't worse than originally anticipated.