North Carolina 2012 Recruiting

North Carolina Tar Heels 2012 ... Head Coach: Larry Fedora

North Carolina Tar Heels

2011 Record: 7-6

Sept. 3 James Madison W 42-10
Sept. 10 Rutgers W 24-22
Sept. 17 Virginia W 28-17
Sept. 24 at Georgia Tech L 35-28
Oct. 1 at East Carolina W 35-20
Oct. 8 Louisville W 14-7
Oct. 15 Miami L 30-24
Oct. 22 at Clemson L 59-38
Oct. 29 Wake Forest W 49-24
Nov. 5 at NC State L 13-0
Nov. 12 OPEN DATE
Nov. 17 at Virginia Tech L 24-21
Nov. 26 Duke W 37-21
Independence Bowl
Dec. 26 Missouri L 41-24

2010 CFN Prediction: 9-3
2010 Record: 8-5

Sept. 4 LSU L 30-24 (in Atl)
Sept. 11 OPEN DATE
Sept. 18 Georgia Tech L 30-24
Sept. 25 at Rutgers W 17-13
Oct. 2 East Carolina W 42-17
Oct. 9 Clemson W 21-16
Oct. 16 at Virginia W 44-10
Oct. 23 at Miami L 33-10
Oct. 30 William & Mary W 21-17
Nov. 6 at Florida State W 37-35
Nov. 13 Virginia Tech L 26-10
Nov. 20 NC State L 29-25
Nov. 27 at Duke W 24-19
MUSIC CITY BOWL
Dec. 30 Tennessee W 30-27 2OT
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The Entire 2012 Recruiting Class

Top 5 North Carolina Recruits To Care About
Player writeups by Scout.com

1. CB Tyreece Jiles
6-0, 175, Scout.com 26th ranked, three-star cornerback. Jiles is a former QB that successfully transitioned to CB as a junior. He has great length, instincts, and jamming ability with plenty of speed. Jiles has terrific ball skills and can make an impact on offense as well. He possesses smooth hips which enable him to open up and run with top WRs. He has added considered strength over the last year.

2. DT J.J. Patterson
6-4, 310, Scout.com 30th ranked, three-star defensive tackle. An anchor in the middle of his defensive line, Patterson is the ideal nose guard type that absolutely owns his own area. It's almost diabolical what he does to high school centers with his combination of strength and quickness off the ball. But most of Patterson's damage is done between the guards. He's quick in 3 yard bursts but quickly slows down as the play goes away from him. He's not one to change direction and chase a play.

3. OG Caleb Peterson
6-5, 295, Scout.com 27th ranked, three-star guard. Peterson, a self-described gym rat, says he can bench 415-pounds, squat 560 and has a 22-inch vertical jump. Peterson broke into the starting lineup as an offensive right guard during his sophomore season (2009) at Auburn High School.

4. QB James Summers
6-2, 196, Scout.com 32nd ranked, three-star quarterback.

5. CB Malik Simmons
6-0,185, Scout.com 40th ranked, three-star cornerback.

The 2012 Class Was Heavy On... New head coach Larry Fedora hasn’t have any time to work, and he has to deal with the pressure of a new gig and trying to live up to the expectations of past UNC recruiting classes. For good and bad, the program has been a factory for pro talent over the last few years, and while there aren’t any jaw-droppers in this class, there’s talent at linebacker and a few good-looking defensive backs on the way. Next year’s class will have to load up on skill players.

Team Concerns For 2012: The pieces are in place for a terrific year with the shelves still stocked with talent, but Fedora has to try to replace the production of Quinton Coples – the possible top end taken off the board in the 2012 draft – and Zach Brown, who might be the fastest linebacker at the Combine. Donte Paige-Moss and Tydreke Powell are also gone off a rebuilding defensive front, while two good starters in Charles Brown and Jonathan Smith are gone from the secondary.

Looking Ahead To The 2012 Season: New head coach Larry Fedora doesn’t have the jaw-dropping talent to work with across the board the program has enjoyed for the last few years, but he has a few great players to start with. QB Bryn Renner and RB Giovani Bernard are terrific, and they should get time to work behind a good-looking line with four starters returning. Top receiver Dwight Jones is gone, but Eric Highsmith is ready to be a No. 1. Star end Quinton Coples is gone off the line, as is tackle Tydreke Powell and leading tackler Zach Brown, but there’s a nice base of six good starters to build around. T.J. Thorpe should be one of the nation’s top kickoff returners.

The 2011 Class Was Heavy On … Defensive tackles. This is yet another strong class brought in by Butch Davis, and while it’s not the deepest group, the star power is terrific at the top led by a pair of NFL defensive tackles. Once Delvon Simmons hits a weight room and fills out his 6-5 frame, he’ll be a dream of a 3-4 one-gap defender, while JUCO transfer Sylvester Williams could be the anchor of the front four tomorrow. 318-pound Devonte Brown is going to be a rock on the inside. Marquise Williams is the most talented quarterback the program has had in a long, long time, while Travis Hughes might turn out to be the best middle linebacker prospect in America. 2010 CFN Recruiting Ranking:

24. That Class Was Heavy On ... Defense. Considering Tar Heels are going to be splashed all over the first two rounds of the 2011 NFL Draft, Butch Davis had an easy sell to load up on the defensive side. Brandon Willis could grow into a smallish, quick tackle with a little work or a tough end right away. Kareem Martin is a 6-6 athlete who'll be a speed rusher on the outside, while Ty Lingon, Darius Lipford, and P.J. Clyburn are interesting players who should be a key part of the 2012 team. Offensively, QB Gio Bernard is small, checking in at 5-9, but he's a baller and a talented playmaker. The best recruit was James Hurst, a sure-thing offensive tackle who'll be an All-ACC performer within three years.

2009 CFN Recruiting Ranking: 7. That Class Was Heavy On ... receivers. Carolina’s response to losing Hakeem Nicks, Brandon Tate, and Brooks Foster to the NFL was to sign a half-dozen receivers, headed by four-star stud Jheranie Boyd. No returning wideout caught more than 11 passes a year ago, meaning Boyd and his classmates will get every opportunity to play right away in September. In fact, they’ll be counted on to do so.

AdvoCare V100 Independence Bowl
Missouri 41 … North Carolina 24
- CFN Thoughts on the Game

Missouri: The Tigers outgained UNC 337 rushing yards to 36 … QB James Franklin completed 15-of-23 passes for 132 yards and a score with a pick, and he led the team with 142 yards and two scores on 18 carries. … Kendial Lawrence ran 16 times for 108 yards and a score. … L’Damian Washington caught three passes for 47 yards, but eight different Tigers caught passes. … Andrew Wilson led the team with nine tackles with half a sack, two tackles for loss, and a forced fumble.

North Carolina: The Tar Heels outpassed Mizzou 317 yards to 176. … QB Bryn Renner completed 27-of-42 passes for 317 yards and three scores with a pick. … Giovani Bernard was held to 31 yards on 13 carries. … Erik Highsmith caught eight passes for 77 yards and a score. … Punter Thomas Hibbard averaged 48.8 yards per kick putting three of his four attempts inside the 20. … Zach Brown led the team with 14 tackles with an interception and two tackles for loss.

(AP) -- Missouri made sure its final football game as a member of the Big 12 was decided early.

James Franklin ran for two touchdowns and threw for another, and the Tigers easily beat North Carolina 41-24 in the Independence Bowl on Monday night.

Missouri (8-5) ends the season on a four-game winning streak for the first time since 1965. The Tigers will join the Southeastern Conference next fall and showed one reason they should be a factor immediately: The 6-foot-2, 225-pound Franklin, a sophomore who generally did as he pleased in both the running and passing games.

Franklin, named the game's offensive Most Valuable Player, rushed for 142 yards and threw for 132 despite less than ideal conditions in the cold and rain at Independence Stadium. He led the Tigers to 31 first-half points - an Independence Bowl record.

For North Carolina (7-6), a season that started with a promising 5-1 record ends with a lopsided loss. The Tar Heels lost five of their final seven under interim coach Everett Withers, who leaves to become defensive coordinator at Ohio State under Urban Meyer.

North Carolina had the Atlantic Coast Conference's second-best rushing defense, giving up just 106.2 yards per game. But the Tigers found plenty of running room with Franklin and Kendial Lawrence, repeatedly gashing the Tar Heels for big gains.

Lawrence rushed for 108 yards and a touchdown as the Tigers racked up 337 yards on the ground.

North Carolina's poor defense wasted a productive game by quarterback Bryn Renner, who threw for 317 yards, three touchdowns and an interception.

Missouri's mascot - Truman the Tiger - shattered most of the original Independence Bowl trophy before the game started in a pre-game accident. The Tigers were more than happy to claim the replacement.

North Carolina scored first, with Renner hitting Dwight Jones for a 22-yard touchdown pass with 12:12 left in the first quarter. That would be the high point for the Tar Heels.

Missouri responded with a 40-yard touchdown pass from receiver T.J. Moe to Wes Kemp after a lateral from Franklin. Moe hadn't thrown a touchdown pass since his days as a high school quarterback in suburban St. Louis, and it was just his second complete pass of the season.

The Tigers scored again on Franklin's 2-yard run to take a 14-7 lead late in the first quarter. The touchdown was set up by Franklin's 16-yard pass to L'Damian Washington that put the Tigers at the 2-yard line. Washington grew up in Shreveport, just a few miles from Independence Stadium.

And Missouri just kept piling on.

The Tigers scored two touchdowns and a field goal during the second quarter to take a 31-10 halftime lead.

North Carolina had a glimmer of hope late in the third when Jheranie Boyd caught a 44-yard touchdown pass from Renner to pull the Tar Heels to 34-17. But Missouri responded minutes later with Franklin's second touchdown run of the night and the rout continued.

Nov. 26 at North Carolina 37 … Duke 21  

Nov. 17 at Virginia Tech 24 … North Carolina 21
CFN Analysis: The running game couldn’t find any room and couldn’t get Giovani Bernard going, with just 45 yards and as score on ten carries. … The offense started to work late when things got desperate and Bryn Renner stopped worrying about making mistakes. He didn’t throw any picks, but he also didn’t deal on third downs until the last ten minutes of the game when he had to try everything to keep things going, and he got the team back in the game. Once again, he’s proving to be efficient enough and effective enough to build the offense around next year and let him do far more pushing down the field. … The defensive front gave up a big run to David Wilson, and lost containment on Logan Thomas for a touchdown dash, but the line did a terrific job throughout. This was the Quinton Coples everyone’s been waiting for on a consistent basis, making eight tackles, a forced fumble, and a sack with 2.5 tackles for loss. 

Nov. 5 at NC State 13 … North Carolina 0
CFN Analysis: Uhhhhh, North Carolina? You did get the message that the NC State run defense is a bit soft, right? After hanging 38 points on Clemson and 49 on Wake Forest, the offense didn’t go anywhere and the mistakes were big. The three turnovers were bad, the lack of pass protection was worse, and Bryn Renner getting knocked out of the game was really bad. Braden Hanson stepped in and wasn’t bad, completed 7-of-13 passes for 86 yards with a pick, but he didn’t lead the way to points. After losing three of their last four games, the Tar Heels are in big trouble with a trip to Virginia Tech up next, and while a bowl game is assured, it might take a win over Duke to avoid getting the league’s last slot. 

Oct. 29 at North Carolina 49 … Wake Forest 24
CFN Analysis: After losing two in a row and being less-than-scintillating in wins over East Carolina and Louisville, North Carolina needed strong performance. Giovani Bernard set the tone with 154 yards and two scores on the ground, but it was the passing of Bryn Renner and the big plays from the defense that made it a blowout. Renner hit on every key pass to keep things moving and balance out the attack. The defense came up with five takeaways to offset the 331 yards allowed. The Tar Heels are bowl eligible, and it’s time to move up in the pecking order with a win over NC State. If they can stay on the right side of the turnover margin – not a given so far this year – they can win at least two of the final three games. 

Oct. 22 at Clemson 59 … North Carolina 38
CFN Analysis: Bryn Renner picked the wrong time to start throwing interceptions. His first of three picks was a bad decision, forcing the ball into triple coverage, and he never seemed to find any sort of a rhythm, forcing the ball too much down the field instead of doing his normal dinking and dunking. Giovanni Bernard was never right, looking a step slow and now nearly as explosive as normal running for just 44 yards on 11 carries. The final score was ugly, and there was no hope of stopping Tajh Boyd, but the defense played better than the stats looked. It was put in a poor position time and again by an offense that couldn’t stop giving up the ball. With a winnable home game against Wake Forest up next, and with NC State and Duke still to play, there are still plenty of wins left on the schedule, but it would’ve been nice to have played tighter and better this week. 

Oct. 15 Miami 30 … at North Carolina 24
CFN Analysis: The Tar Heels tried to make the big comeback, and Bryn Renner made it interesting with a nice final 16 minutes, but it wasn’t enough to overcome a rough, unfocused first half. The defensive line was fantastic against the Hurricane running game, and the secondary managed to keep the big pass plays to a minimum, but the two turnovers and special teams errors were costly. Giovani Bernard had a decent, workmanlike day, but he was never able break free and the offense had to work too hard after being down 14 points before even getting a chance. This was a must win with three of the next four games on the road, and now the offense has to be ready to get into a shootout at Clemson. 

Oct. 8 at North Carolina 14 … Louisville 7
CFN Analysis: Don’t get hung up on the offensive problems against the Cardinals. Louisville has a great defense this year, and the Tar Heels did what they had to do to get by, taking few chances and getting a terrific touchdown play from Dwight Jones. Bryn Renner never pushed the ball down the field, except for the touchdown throw, and outside of the one fumble, the O didn’t make any big mistakes. The defense never let the Cardinals breathe with the defensive front stuffing the ground attack all game long. Against Miami and Clemson over the next few weeks, the offense has to get back to taking more shots down the field. 

Oct. 1 North Carolina 35 … at East Carolina 20
CFN Analysis: The Tar Heels got hot early and coasted from there. Giovani Bernard built off his excellent game against Georgia Tech by ripping through the Pirate defense for 146 yards and a score, while Bryn Renner was nearly flawless throwing for 230 yards and four scores on just 13 completions. The defense gave up a ton of passing yards in an ECU comeback mode, but the outcome was never in doubt. This was exactly the game the team needed after the loss to the Yellow Jackets, and now it’s on to a layup against Louisville before getting Miami and a road trip to Clemson. As long as the turnovers are kept to a minimum, this will be one of the ACC’s most dangerous teams.  

Sept. 24 at Georgia Tech 35 ... North Carolina 28
CFN Analysis: North Carolina might have lost the battle, but it found its star that it needs to keep feeding. Giovani Bernard looked quick, fast, and strong with his knee injuries well in the past. Bryn Renner continues to be accurate, and while the two interceptions hurt, he made great decisions and he did what he could to keep control of the ball. It wasn’t enough as Georgia Tech held on to the ball for over 36 minutes, but the Tar Heels did a nice job of making a comeback late to tie it up. In crunch time, though, the defense couldn’t stop the Yellow Jacket option giving up a huge run to Roddy Jones to change the game. Next week against East Carolina, the Tar Heels need to improve the turnover margin and have to keep Barnard going. 

Sept. 17 at North Carolina 28 … Virginia 17
CFN Analysis: After screwing up way too much in the close win over Rutgers last week, the Tar Heels were tight with just a lost fumble and three penalties to keep Virginia from getting in the game. The coaching staff loves Bryn Renner, and it’s easy to see why as he’s a good, smart decision maker who seems to have a nice feel for the game. He checks down well and he doesn’t force the ball. The defensive front was a tad soft against the run, and it didn’t get a consistent push, but against Georgia Tech next week the key will be ball control. If Renner can with his third down throws, he’ll bail out a defense that had problems putting the game away late. However the D finally started to force mistakes.

Sept. 10 at North Carolina 24 ... Rutgers 22
CFN Analysis: With five turnovers and nine penalties, North Carolina did everything it could possibly do to keep Rutgers in the game. The run defense was phenomenal, and when he wasn’t turning the ball over, QB Bryn Renner did a nice job of moving the offense completing 20-of-26 passes for 273 yards with a touchdown. Giovani Bernard ran well with 16 carries for 81 yards and two touchdowns, and overall, the offense did its part with 405 yards, while the D held Rutgers to just 244 yards. With Virginia and the ACC opener up next, the Tar Heels have to limit the mistakes or they’ll get tagged by a lesser team down the road.  

Sept. 3 at North Carolina 42 … James Madison 10
CFN Analysis: If it’s possible to pitch a perfect game, Bryn Renner almost did it completing 22-of-23 passes for 277 yards and three touchdowns with the lone misfire a pick. The ground games rolled on a decent JMU front wall, but Ryan Houston didn’t tear off any big runs. The defense was tremendous against the run, and even though it allowed a slew of short passes, there were only two big plays with 88 of the 152 passing yards coming on two pass plays. After all the turmoil and all the craziness, this was exactly what the Tar Heels wanted to kick off the season. If Renner can play like this again, and with home games against Rutgers and Virginia to follow, there’s a great chance to go on a nice run before the road trip to Georgia Tech. 

The 2011 Class Is Heavy On … Defensive tackles. This is yet another strong class brought in by Butch Davis, and while it’s not the deepest group, the star power is terrific at the top led by a pair of NFL defensive tackles. Once Delvon Simmons hits a weight room and fills out his 6-5 frame, he’ll be a dream of a 3-4 one-gap defender, while JUCO transfer Sylvester Williams could be the anchor of the front four tomorrow. 318-pound Devonte Brown is going to be a rock on the inside. Marquise Williams is the most talented quarterback the program has had in a long, long time, while Travis Hughes might turn out to be the best middle linebacker prospect in America.

Five North Carolina Recruits You Should Care About
Player writeups by Scout.com

1. DT Delvon Simmons
6-5, 262, Scout.com’s 3rd ranked defensive tackle. A defensive end and offensive guard for his McKeesport team, Simmons may be best served playing interior line full time in college. He is a very good run blocker at guard, on the defensive line he plays with good strength and leverage. He's a good athlete that will need to learn to get off blocks better if he's to remain on the defensive side of the ball. Plays with a high motor and gets in on 2nd effort tackles.

2. OT Kiaro Holtz
Fires off the ball with a tremendous burst and drive blocks from his tackle position like a powerful interior lineman. Holts has a tremendous change of direction which enables him to get to the second level and attack linebackers as equally effective as he handles defensive linemen. Gets to his man quickly then takes short choppy strides to keep a good base and drive his man. Will need to use his hands better in pass protection.

3. QB Marquise Williams
Williams finished his junior season with 2,400 yards passing and 1,000 yards rushing for a total of 40 touchdowns. He says he can bench 280-pounds, squat 410 and claims a 38-inch vertical jump. He’s 6-3, 215 and is Scout.com’s 16th ranked quarterback.

4. DT Sylvester Williams
Williams has an ideal frame for the defensive tackle position, he is a well proportioned 300 pounder that doesn't carry a lot of excess weight. He has exceptionally quick hands that let's him gain an immediate advantage over the offensive linemen he faces as he is able to dictate contact to them. Well conditioned and doesn't seem to slow down as the game wears on, despite playing nearly every snap on defense.

5. OG Landon Turner
An offensive tackle for his Harrisonburg team, Turner has the bulk in his hips and legs of a drive blocking interior line prospect. He could stand to get off at the snap and out of his stance a little quicker, but he's a good athlete that can run down the field trailing the play and gets to the second level fairly easily. Moves his feet well when engaged with a defender, a terrific drive blocker.

2011 Entire Recruiting Class

Tyler Alberts ATH 6-7 235 Clemmons, N.C. (Forsyth Country Day)
Devonte Brown DL 6-4 275 Fayetteville (Jack Britt)
Alex Dixon DB 6-1 180 Clearwater, Fla. (Countryside)
Eric Ebron TE 6-5 225 Greensboro, N.C. (Smith)
Brandon Ellerbe DB 6-0 200 Wadesboro, N.C. (Anson)
Kiaro Holts OL 6-5 275 Indianapolis, Ind. (Warren Central)
Stephen Houston FB 5-11 230 Little Rock, Ark. (Lakota West (Ohio)/ Independence (Kan.) CC)
Travis Hughes LB 6-2 225 Virginia Beach, Va. (Kempsville)
Kameron Jackson DB 6-0 180 Madison, Ala. (Madison Academy)
Jarrod James OL 6-4 285 Goldsboro, N.C. (Aycock)
Romar Morris ATH 5-10 185 Salisbury, N.C. (Salisbury)
Norkeithus Otis LB 6-2 215 Gastonia, N.C. (Ashbrook)
Darien Rankin DB 5-11 185 Salisbury, N.C. (Salisbury)
Travis Riley RB 6-1 215 Kannapolis, N.C. (A.L. Brown)
Tim Scott DB 6-0 180 Fredericksburg, Va. (Colonial Forge)
Delvon Simmons DL 6-5 265 McKeesport, Pa. (McKeesport)
Sam Smiley DB 6-0 175 Jacksonville, Fla. (Raines)
Miller Snyder P/PK 6-2 185 Charlotte, N.C. (Myers Park)
Jack Tabb TE 6-4 250 Red Bank, N.J. (Red Bank Catholic)
T.J. Thorpe WR 6-0 180 Durham, N.C. (Jordan)
Landon Turner OL 6-4 310 Harrisonburg, Va. (Harrisonburg)
Shawn Underwood DT 6-2 295 Fuquay-Varina, N.C. (Fuquay-­Varina)
Keeon Virgile LB 6-2 210 North Miami Beach, Fla. (North Miami Beach)
Marquise Williams QB 6-2 215 Charlotte, N.C. (Mallard Creek)
Sylvester Williams DT 6-3 315 Jefferson City, Mo. (Jefferson City/Coffeyville (Kan.) CC)