UNC head football coach Mack Brown announced Wednesday that senior wide receiver Beau Corrales and graduate outside linebacker Tyrone Hopper will each return next season.

The NCAA said earlier this fall that all fall sport athletes will be granted the option of an additional year of eligibility, as well as an extension of the five-year eligibility period, due to uncertainty caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Brown also said kicker Grayson Atkins will be back with the Tar Heels next season as well, using the same rule.

A lower-body injury has limited Corrales to just 13 catches for 238 yards and a touchdown this season, but for his career he has racked up 80 receptions for 1,176 yards and 12 scores.

Hopper, meanwhile, has finally burst onto the scene this season after shoulder injuries limited him early in his career. He has 25 tackles, two sacks and a team-high seven quarterback hurries in 2020.

“We sat down at the open date with the seniors that could come back with the NCAA rule this year,” Brown said on Monday. “We just asked them, ‘Any of you that want to come back, we’d love to have you.’ If you don’t, we’ll help you get somewhere else. So the most important thing is that the guys get their degrees and that’s what this whole transition period is about.”

 

 

Photo via Dakota Moyer

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