The year was 2005, and Mack Brown’s Texas Longhorns were 10-0, ranked No. 2 in the country and headed into a matchup with Texas A&M to finish off a potentially perfect regular season. The Aggies were struggling at 5-5, and Texas was coming off a 52-point win over Kansas the previous week. All signs were pointing to a burnt orange blowout.
Then Brown got a phone call from his friend Bill Parcells.
“You’re in trouble,” Parcells told him. The Big Tuna could sense Brown’s team was more focused on a possible BCS matchup with No. 1 USC than the rivalry with the Aggies. With A&M’s larger goals for the season gone, it would bring all it had into the matchup with Texas. During his weekly UNC press conference, Brown recalled the chilling warning Parcells issued to him.
“He said, ‘You’re like that big rat that’s eating the poison cheese.’” Brown remembered. “And he said, ‘You’re gonna die now. You’re gonna eat the poison cheese and you’re gonna die.’
“I got scared to death sitting there on the phone. I said, ‘I got you, Coach!’ So I went downstairs and I hung a piece of cheese from every locker. And I put his quote up there.”
Parcells’ words turned out to be gouda advice, as Texas struggled with A&M in the first half before finally pulling away in the second. Now, Brown said he’s giving the same warning to the Tar Heels: in order to avoid a muenster upset at the hands of 1-5 Virginia, No. 10 Carolina can’t eat the poisoned cheese after a 6-0 start.
Brown brought up the story after being displeased with the Tar Heels’ midweek practice in preparation for the Miami game. The Hall of Famer said he felt Carolina was simply resting on its laurels after beating Syracuse, similar to how last season’s team collapsed after reaching 9-1. Brown “ripped” the team after the practice, and last Sunday had what he called one of the toughest post-win team meetings he’s been around.
The message is clear, and it seems like Brown’s players have taken it to heart.
“Playing UVA, they’re a 1-5 team right now, [but] we can’t get complacent,” said linebacker Cedric Gray. “We have to play to our standard each and every week, no matter who we play. It’s the time of the year where upsets are very big, and we’re not gonna let that happen to us. We’re gonna come out focused and handle business like we’re supposed to.”
Carolina is listed as a 23.5-point favorite over the Cavaliers, by far its largest point spread of the year. The ‘Hoos are mired in a tough season and are likely the weakest side the Tar Heels have faced so far, but according to veteran offensive lineman Corey Gaynor, the margins are still razor-thin.
“This game is fickle,” Gaynor said. “It changes every second. You feel on top of the world one day, and everyone’s patting you on the back. You lose one time, you give up one sack, you give up on [tackle for loss], the narrative changes on you. So we’re always looking for what’s next.”
Gray and Gaynor appear to have followed Brown’s advice and refrained from eating the poisoned cheese. It’s unclear whether the same can be said of AP Poll voters, who have the Tar Heels in the Top 10 for just the fourth time since 1997. Unfortunately, Carolina lost each of its last two games as a Top 10 team, including the season opener at Virginia Tech in 2021. The poisoned cheese had done its job.
Now, Brown has acknowledged his team’s maturity is on a different level from two years ago, benefiting from leaders like Gray and Gaynor. But he also said while that leadership has removed some variables from Carolina’s week-to-week performance, he’s still not entirely convinced.
“We know Virginia’s gonna play hard Saturday night,” said Brown. “We knew Miami was gonna play hard Saturday night. How are we gonna play? Are we gonna walk around all week and be cool and talk about all these stats about how many times we’ve been 6-0? Better not, because then you won’t be 7-0.”
It’s hard to forget a shot across the bow like that. But just to make sure, Brown repeated his actions from 18 years ago. When the Tar Heels returned to the locker room after practice this week, each and every locker was festooned with a piece of cheese.
Featured image via Associated Press/Chris Seward
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