Mack Brown and Dre Bly, a great tandem then, and now.

When I read Ross Martin’s preview on Inside Carolina and saw that 5-star cornerback Tony Grimes’ finalists were Georgia, Ohio State, Texas A&M and North Carolina, I said, “Are you kidding me?!”

Then I read where Grimes said, “I am looking for more of a connection and knowing someone when I get there that I can trust, and someone who is going to develop me more and who is going to put me in a position where I can play, ball out, and get to the next level.”

Then I read Grimes’ 247 Sports Crystal Ball prediction: The Tar Heels, 100 percent. Duh!

Why go all the way to Athens, Columbus or College Station when your school is a safe three-hour ride? And play for Brown and Bly?

Grimes, is from coastal Virginia, was recruited by Bly, the former UNC All-American and all-pro from Tidewater. It’s just more proof why Brown made Bly, who never coached at the college level before, a centerpiece of the staff he put together upon his return to Chapel Hill.

Who can forget when they teamed up 20+ years ago, leading Carolina out of the football forest into the nation’s top ten before Bly went on to a similarly star-studded career in the NFL? That is the exact path Grimes is seeking, and he appears to be a prospect the ilk of Bly.

Then, at 5 pm, Grimes came on the CBS HQ feed and, surrounded by his family, put on the Navy NC cap and said he is “taking my talents to the University of North Carolina.”

Grimes’ commitment, the 17th for Brown’s next haul, moves the Tar Heels into the top three recruiting classes in the nation.

“I love Dre,” Grimes has said. “He knows where we came up from, and how hard it is because he did it. He was ‘The Man’ at UNC. In the Hall of Fame, Pro Bowl, Super Bowl. I love Dre.”

The 6-foot, 180-pound Grimes is the No. 1 cornerback in the 2021 class and the second highest-rated recruit at Carolina behind Marvin Austin in the Internet era.

His goal when he gets to UNC? “We’re gonna win a Natty,” he said.

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