WRAL Sports Fan

North Carolina

Angry Tar Heels ready to turn season around

By Adam Harris

Nov 6, 2009

The Tar Heels may have saved their season with last Thursday's upset win at Virginia Tech.  North Carolina head coach Butch Davis doesn't point to X's & O's when he explains the team's turn-around last week, he credits anger.

"I think they were mad as much as anything after the Florida State game," Davis tells 99.9 FM The Fan ESPN Radio.  "We didn't give our best effort down the stretch in that ballgame. We didn't finish the game."

If Davis is correct, than the power of emotion was in full force for UNC. The Heels overcame a late comeback in Blacksburg and enjoyed their first victory over Virginia Tech since the Hokies joined the Atlantic Coast Conference.

The head coach of the Tar Heels says the day after their loss to Florida State one week earlier, the Carolina players and coaches began to right the ship.

"I think our assistant coaches did a great job the next day, critiquing the film, grading the film, explaining to the players how we should have finished, what we should have done,"Davis said on Thursday. "I thought it led to great practices."

Now that UNC is finally in the conference win column, the issue for Davis and the Tar Heels is how to maintain the momentum.

"Now, can you handle the success part of it? Sometimes it's easier to handle adversity," said Davis. "Because everybody rallies together and you've got your back in a corner."

Next up for UNC, a team that's pretty similar to Florida State. Just like when the Heels hosted the Seminoles, the Blue Devils arrive in Chapel Hill as the top passing offense in the ACC.

"They're going to get a challenge," Davis tells The Insiders. "Because this is one of the best passing attacks that we've faced."