Mack Brown says teams have to find a way to win openers. His didn’t.

When Carolina won the coin toss Friday night, Brown made his usual decision to defer receiving the ball until the second-half kickoff. He obviously hoped his defense was better prepared to stop the Virginia Tech running game than it had been in recent years.

The defense did play well for the last three quarters of the 17-10 loss, but not before Brown watched the Hokies torch the Tar Heels on the way to the red zone with their first two possessions.

Fortunately, UNC forced a fumble on the second drive and kept the home team from going up 14-0 in the first quarter, which would have turned the already wild crowd at Lane Stadium completely nuts.

Offensive coordinator Phil Longo said Monday it doesn’t matter whether the Heels have the first possession or not, they know what to do when they get the ball. Yet, he endured the worst performance by the offense in two-plus years even though Carolina still had a chance to tie or win right up to the end.

Before Sam Howell threw his third interception while being chased on his scramble to the right side, Longo saw the impending disaster from the moment the play unfolded. “Sam was under siege much sooner than he should have been because our guard pulled the wrong way,” Longo said. He knew it was a busted play when he saw the guard running toward him rather than away from him.

Early in the third quarter, the Hokies could have gone up 21-0 when their receiver Tré Turner was left all alone on the left side of the field right in front of UNC defensive coordinator Jay Bateman. Luckily, the Tar Heels were chasing Braxton Burmeister out of the pocket to the right, and the Tech quarterback never saw Turner wide open.

“I saw that and was very nervous,” Bateman said, adding coyly, “I didn’t think highly of it because we weren’t handling their receivers coming across the field very well. Sometimes you get lucky.”

Fans may see such blunders and TV announcers point them out on replays. Just imagine what coaches are going through in real time.

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