Note: Art Chansky is gone for a few days, so digital content manager Dakota Moyer will be contributing for the Sports Notebook in his absence.
Who will start at quarterback for Carolina in 2018?
This is Dakota with Friday’s Sports Notebook.
The biggest question surrounding UNC football heading into fall camp is the quarterback battle. Junior Nathan Elliott and sophomore Chazz Surratt both played in 2017, but neither was particularly good.
Surratt started seven games after grad transfer Brandon Harris flamed out. He threw for over 1,000 yards and accounted for 13 total touchdowns, but Carolina’s offense sputtered quite often.
Elliott took over at the end of the season, starting the final three games. He lead Carolina to wins over Western Carolina and Pittsburgh, but only completed around 50% of his passes.
So who will start at quarterback this season?
Well, the answer is probably both of them.
It’s likely there won’t be a clear winner by the time UNC travels across the country to play Cal. For the first few weeks, fans may see both Surratt and Elliott under center as Larry Fedora and his staff figure out which is the best option.
After all, practice can only tell you so much. Good quarterbacks perform well in practice, but the truly great ones take what they learn and apply it when the lights are on.
Keep in mind, we may see some of the true freshman quarterbacks as well with the new redshirt rule in place. This will allow freshmen to play up to four games at any point in the season without losing a year of eligibility.
Jace Ruder was a four-star recruit in high school and had offers from Florida State and Penn State before eventually choosing UNC. The competition he faced in Kansas was nothing like the college level, but the tools are there for him to be a good player.
Fellow freshman Cade Fortin was a three-star recruit, but had offers from Texas A&M, Louisville and Oklahoma State as well. Don’t be surprised to see the young guns on the field this season.
So while one player might take the opening snap against Cal, there is no guarantee he will play the next series, or even the next game. As Carolina attempts to rebuild, the quarterback battle will likely extend into the season.
You’re correct practice can only tell you so much, but Fedora has had two off seasons worth of practices and about a dozen games last year to determine who is the better of the two.
The reason the team sputtered with Surratt last year is because he split reps with Harris all summer and half the games. Fedora’s inability to evaluate quarterbacks early in camp and name a start 4 of the last 5 seasons puts the team at a disadvantage.
You’re correct practice can only tell you so much, but Fedora has had two off seasons worth of practices and about a dozen games last year to determine who is the better of the two.
The reason the team sputtered with Surratt last year is because he split reps with Harris all summer and half the games. Fedora’s inability to evaluate quarterbacks early in camp and name a start 4 of the last 5 seasons puts the team at a disadvantage.